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BUTLER TWP — The Butler girls basketball team rolled back into town after a three-day, activities-packed schedule in Orlando, Fla., late Sunday night.
Less than 24 hours later, the Golden Tornado were back on the court in their own gym against Grove City.
The jet lag showed.
Butler overcame a mid-game lull that saw it squander a 10-point lead and gutted out a 49-40 win over the Eagles Monday night.
“I knew they were going to be a little lethargic out there,” said Butler coach Dorothea Epps. “We went down there and played three games and went to parks every day. My thing to them is you have to find a way to pull the game out.”
That's exactly what Epps told her team — loudly — during a timeout after Grove City point guard Danyelle Lucido hit her second 3-pointer of the third quarter to tie the game at 29-29.
The Golden Tornado (3-4) responded, leading 36-33 at the end of the quarter and 44-36 midway through the fourth to survive an upset at the hands of a feisty and determined Grove City team.
“That was their wake-up call,” Epps said. “I told them they have to snap out of it.”
Early, Butler showed no ill effects from their travel schedule.
The Golden Tornado jumped out to a 19-9 advantage midway through the second quarter, but that's when the lead began to unravel.
Grove City (3-2) had a lot to do with that. The Eagles struggled early breaking Butler's full-court press and half-court trap. Once Grove City did, it made a run, closing to 25-19 at the half and then going on a 12-4 surge to take the lead at 31-29.
“I told my girls I'm really proud of them,” said Grove City coach Mike Hostetler. “They battled a tough Quad-A team. They executed well. They got the ball to the basket against their trapping, half-court defense and even against their full-court pressure.”
Hostetler said the way his small Class AAA team stood up against Butler is encouraging going forward.
“I really think we can play with anybody,” Hostetler said. “They need to believe they can compete with anybody. We beat a great Sharpsville team and we put a lot of pressure on a good Quad-A team in Butler. They have to be proud of what they are doing right now.”
Corianne Hyduchak scored 14 points to pace the Eagles despite constant double-teams from Butler.
Lucido scored seven points and wasn't afraid to mix it up in the physical game. Jenn Ferguson came off the bench to pitch in 10 points for the Eagles.Butler, though, was able to exploit Grove City in the paint.Forwards Mackenzie O'Donnell and Julia Baxter combined for 17 points and Cait Baxter, playing a lot in the post, led the Golden Tornado with 16 points.“Cait was getting back to being Cait,” Epps said of Baxter, who missed all of last season with a severe knee injury. “She was pressing so much because she's a competitor. She wanted to help out her team. She wants to be the old Cait. But I told her, 'Be patient. It will come.'”Butler went 1-2 on its trip to Orlando and already has played seven games heading into its first section contest Thursday at North Allegheny.Epps said she thought her team learned a lot during that hectic trip late last week.“It's a great learning experience. That's one of the reasons why you go,” Epps said. “It builds camaraderie amongst the girls. I think what they learned is that you have to play through the tough times, the hard spells like tonight.”GROVE CITY 40Hailey Hall 0-2 0-0 0, Corianne Hyduchak 5-13 4-4 14, Jordyn Wyllie 1-5 1-4 3, Danyelle Lucido 2-7 1-2 7, Arianna Sprando 0-2 0-0 0, Alexis Deyarmin 0-1 0-0 0, Jenn Ferguson 5-8 0-2 10, Brenna Deyarmin 1-2 2-2 4, Kennedy Young 0-0 0-0 0, Rachel Hughes 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 15-41 8-14 40.BUTLER 49Alyssa DiPippa 0-3 4-4 4, Mackenzie O'Donnell 2-7 5-8 9, Sam Marak 0-1 3-6 3, Julia Baxter 4-5 0-0 8, Cait Baxter 6-9 3-5 16, Kalynn Callihan 1-5 0-0 3, Natalie Barkus 0-2 0-0 0, Morgan Pfabe 2-6 0-0 6, Lauren Bresnahan 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 15-37 15-23 49.Grove City 6 13 14 7—40Butler13 12 11 13—493-point goals: Grove City 2 (Lucido 2). Butler 4 (C. Baxter, Callihan, Pfabe 2)JV: Butler 30-22Thursday: Butler at North Allegheny; Grove City at Meadville
