Roscoe Inches Closer

By Rob Potter
ROSCOE — February 15, 2000 -- After not being able to defeat Livingston Manor on the basketball court for the past few years, the Roscoe Lady Blue Devils have made it two-for-two in the 1999-2000 Western Sullivan League (WSL) season.
On Thursday night, in front of a loud, standing-room-only crowd, host Roscoe turned what had been a close game in the first three quarters into a decisive 59-40 win.
The victory allowed the Lady Blue Devils to inch closer to the WSL title, which the program has not won since 1976. With a 11–0 league record, Roscoe needs to win only one of its final three league games to capture the championship. (Over the weekend, the Lady Blue Devils smashed Narrowsburg 105-33 to clinch at least a tie for the title.)
Although Roscoe led nearly the entire contest, it was not until late in the third quarter that the Lady Blue Devils pulled away. The last Manor lead came with three minutes left in the first quarter when Danielle Dutcher scored in the lane to give the Lady Wildcats a 9-7 lead.
But from that point on, the Lady Blue Devils held the lead. Roscoe led by four at the end of the first quarter and seven at the half. The lead ranged from one to eight points as Manor never could put together a solid run to tie the score or move ahead.
Roscoe outscored Manor 18-7 in a key stretch in the last two minutes of the third quarter and the first four minutes of the fourth period.
Becky Evans netted eight of her game-high 20 points in that run and Danielle Austin added six. When Austin scored under the hoop to put Roscoe up 53-38 with 3:50 left in the game and Manor called a timeout a few seconds later, the home fans roared.
“It was close for a while, but they put a run on us in the third quarter,” said Manor coach Gail Whaley. “I think fouls and injuries played a little part in the outcome.”
Whaley noted that starting forward Casey Green injured her ankle in practice the day before.
“But she gave a gutty performance tonight,” Whaley said. “And Rachelle (Irwin) missed some time with her lip. They never quit, though.”
Green’s ankle slowed her down and Irwin missed about three-and-a-half minutes of game action after suffering a bloody lip late in the third quarter.
The foul trouble Whaley spoke of concerned Irwin, who picked up three fouls in the first half and Dutcher, who committed four fouls in the first two periods. Dutcher sat out the entire third quarter because of the fouls.
Dorthel Seibles paced Manor with 19 points. Dutcher finished with 10 points and Bridget Ellison added eight.
Evans had a great all-around game to key the Roscoe attack. Aside from netting the aforementioned 20 points, she grabbed 15 rebounds and made nine steals.
Teammate Jill Spaulding added 11 points and 12 rebounds. Danielle Austin and Mary Kate Johnston each contributed nine points and six assists for the Lady Blue Devils.
“Everybody stepped up,” said Evans, a senior center. “Everybody made their shots and did a great job. We all really wanted to win this one.”
Coach Becky Ahart noted that her team played well throughout the game, especially after a “nip and tuck first half.”
“I think in the third quarter we got our offense going and settled down,” Ahart said. “Defensively we did a nice job. All of the girls did a nice job tonight.”