By Rob Potter
LIVINGSTON MANOR — January 18, 2005 – In the first quarter of Friday night’s Orange County Interscholastic Athletic Association (OCIAA) Division VI girls’ basketball game, the visiting Chapel Field Lady Lions and Livingston Manor Lady Wildcats each enjoyed a small lead.
With 3:59 remaining in the opening period, Chapel Field’s Bethany Chiarot scored a basket on a fast break to give the Lady Lions a 9-2 advantage.
But three baskets by Manor senior forward Carrie Lewis within a span of just over one minute knotted the score at 9-9. At the 3:32 mark, Lewis swished a 3-point shot from the corner. Twenty seconds later, she stole the ball from a Chapel Field player, dribbled downcourt and scored on a short jump shot to pull the Lady Wildcats to within two points at 9-7. Then with 2:27 showing on the scoreboard clock, Lewis hit a 12-foot jumper in the lane to pull Manor even with the Lady Lions.
Lewis continued her stellar shooting performance by connecting on another 3-pointer with 2:00 remaining in the opening stanza, which gave Manor a 12-9 lead.
But about 40 seconds later, Chapel Field took a 13-12 lead when senior forward Laura Bast scored inside the lane.
Chapel Field (5-3, 3-2 Division VI) gradually added to that lead over the next three quarters. As a result, the Lady Lions recorded a 60-35 victory over Manor (7-5, 2-3 Division VI).
Katie Oskam swished a trio of 3-point shots in the second quarter to help the Lady Lions take a 36-24 advantage at halftime. Chapel Field extended its lead to 14 points (44-30) by the end of the third quarter.
Leading Chapel Field to the win were Bast and junior guard Jessica Wiejak. Bast scored a game-high 22 points and Wiejak recorded 17 points. Oskam finished the evening with her aforementioned nine points and Bethany Sgandurra netted eight points.
“Manor came out fired up,” Chapel Field Coach Sal Patane said. “Carrie Lewis was on fire in that first quarter and she played a great game.”
Patane also praised the Lady Lions for the way they played.
“This is a very good group of girls,” he commented. “They complement each other. They kept hustling and working hard tonight.”
Lewis finished the evening with a team-high 23 points. Ashley Mann added five points for the Lady Wildcats.
“The third quarter did us in,” Manor Coach Kevin Clifford said. “They took control of the game in the third quarter. We kind of ran out of gas and they just wanted it more tonight.”