Defense key for Planets
ADAMS TWP — Mars' defense had held Gateway to 28 points through the first three quarters of Monday's Class 5A girls basketball preliminary playoff game.
But the Planets needed several more stops to put the Gators away.
Mission accomplished.
Mars did not allow a field goal in the fourth quarter until 2:33 remained. By that point, Mars' lead, which was down to 22-21 midway through the third period, had been pushed to double digits.
The Planets (10-9) iced the game from the free throw line and advanced with a 47-33 victory. They will travel to top-seeded Trinity (18-1) on Thursday.
“That's what we're capable of,” Mars coach Dana Petruska said of her team's defensive effort late in the game. “Sometimes with the youth we have, they forget things we talk about.
“If you're weak-side, that means you're two passes away and you need to help (defensively). I thought we did a great job of recovering tonight.”Mars' ability to score early in the fourth influenced what happened on the other end of the court. Kaitlyn Pelaia's basket, followed by Olivia Donnelly's trey gave Mars a 38-28 lead.The Gators (7-11), began to take 3-pointers in an attempt to close the gap more quickly. But Gateway was 0 for 11 from beyond the arc in the game, including 0 for 6 in the fourth.Senior forward Dynasty Shegog finally made Gateway's first field goal of the period five and a half minutes into the quarter.“It came down to execution,” said Gateway coach Curtis Williams. “They wanted it more than we did.”Both teams began the game cold from the floor. Gateway made just one of its eight attempts in the first period while Mars sank just one of its first 10.“We didn't miss during warmups,” lamented Petruska. “After that, I knew we were going to start the game out cold.”But Mars made its final four attempts to close the opening quarter, including a trey from Ava Black, and led 10-2 after eight minutes.Shegog was the focal point of Gateway's offense for much of the game. She matched her scoring average with 15 points, but Williams wanted to see more players involved.“She's our leading scorer, but she's not supposed to shoot as much as she did tonight,” he said. “When players aren't stepping up, she's forced to do more.”Mars brought a 20-15 edge into the second half, but when Marino Grado turned a steal into a layup with five minutes left in the period, the lead had shrunk to just one point.Petruska called a timeout and immediately after, senior forward Madeleine Horvath completed a conventional 3-point play for the Planets.“We started to space out more offensively and we didn't panic when facing pressure,” said Horvath. “I'm a senior and I didn't want this to be my last game.”Black paced the Planets with 18 points and Pelaia added 12.<b>GATEWAY 33</b>Amiya White 3 0-0 6, Alexis Margolis 1 0-0 2, Jayla Oliver 1 1-2 3, Dynasty Shegog 5 5-9 15, Marina Grado 3 0-0 6, Becca Ryan 0 1-2 1, Kira Pavlik 0 0-0 0, Grace Weiskircher 0 0-0 0, Anayla Jordon 0 0-0 0. Totals: 13 7-13 33.<b>MARS 47</b>Ava Black 4 8-12 18, Kaitlyn Pelaia 4 3-4 12, Olivia Donnelly 2 1-2 7, Madeleine Horvath 3 1-1 7, Lauren Atwell 1 1-2 3, Carly Kern 0 0-0 0, Alexa McDole 0 0-0 0, Jess Winters 0 0-0 0, Kylee Fredericks 0 0-0 0, Avery Bennett 0 0-0 0. Totals: 14 14-21 47.Gateway 2 13 13 5 — 33Mars10 10 13 14 — 473-point goals: Mars 5 (Black 2, Donnelly 2, Pelaia)Thursday: Mars at Trinity, WPIAL 5A first-round playoff
