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Gators Get A Rematch Against Wildcats

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A Tribune staff report

Published: February 9, 2008

TAMPA - As a native of Indiana, Land O' Lakes coach Laurie Pacholke couldn't resist.

Before her team traveled to Freedom for the Class 5A-Region 2 quarterfinal matchup, they gathered at Pacholke's home.

"Last week we watched 'Heart of the Game' and this week we watched 'Hoosiers'," Pacholke said. "Went to eat together and watched 'Hoosiers.' Being from Indiana ..."

That movie, coupled with a directive from senior Kayli Keough that they would not lose to Freedom, the Gators collected a dominating 49-32 victory against the Patriots.

The win sets up a rematch at Wesley Chapel - a team Land O' Lakes lost to in the 5A-District 7 tournament final Feb. 2 - 7 p.m. Tuesday. The teams split the regular-season meetings, the Wildcats took the first 63-46 and the Gators won the second 35-31.

Thursday night, Freedom couldn't overcome a stout Land O' Lakes defense or the consistent rebounds after missed shots. A bulk of the Gators points came on second-chance shots created by a domination under the board.

It became apparent less than halfway through the game Freedom was overwhelmed.

"I think at the end of the second quarter when I saw them give up on some of the loose balls," Pacholke said in reference to when she sensed a change in Freedom. "Honestly, the mentality that my girls had, I always said in the postseason, your mentality has to change. And I've seen our aggressiveness step up significantly in the postseason, so they knew coming in, it was going to take a lot to beat us tonight."

Freedom couldn't stop Kayli, nor her younger sister Meghan, as they finished with 19 and 22 points. Making matters worse, the Patriots could only muster four points in the first quarter and five in the third.

"This team wants it," Kayli Keough said. "Other teams have wanted it, but we really want it and we're willing to work hard. At the beginning of the season we told ourselves if we practice hard, we'll play hard and that's what we've done this season."
Eddie Daniels
McIver, Carey Spark Wesley Chapel Win
WESLEY CHAPEL - Two moments Thursday night seemed to signify how determined Wesley Chapel was to beat 25-game winner Tampa Bay Tech and defy the doubters.

The first: senior Cree McIver powering through a hard foul by TBT's Dae Dae Mann to score underneath the basket early in the fourth quarter, came as the Wildcats' lead had been slipping away.

The second: a pair of clutch free throws by Ashley Carey with 46 seconds left, the home crowd screaming with approval - effectively sealed an at-times ugly but impressive 38-34 win in the Class 5A regional semifinals over the 25-2 Titans.

"We weren't going to let them win," said Carey, who finished with a game-high 18 points and three 3-pointers.

McIver's total, five points, didn't seem as impressive on paper, but her layup was the catalyst that kept Wesley Chapel (23-4) ahead throughout a tight fourth quarter. The Wildcats briefly lost the lead late in the third, and held a slim 25-23 advantage when McIver made her move to the basket.

Mann flew in from the right, sprawling out on top of McIver, who was crouched and about to jump. Still, with the senior on her back, she rose up and made the shot as the referee's whistle blew, signaling the foul. The play energized the Wildcats, and her ensuing free throw snapped a string of five consecutive misses at the line.

"I think we needed somebody to provide a play to get us back into it," Wesley Chapel coach Warren Jones said, "and Cree provided it."

Carey - fittingly - carried the Wildcats to the final horn, with four free throws in the final minute. But the first two stretched the lead into a two-possession game. After starting the game 1-for-10 from the line, Wesley Chapel made nine of its last 11.

"She comes through. All along, I've been saying it," Jones said. "She may not be the fastest player, but she scores, keeps our offense calm and makes big shots. She provided that stability tonight."

Two words seemed to perfectly describe the first half of Thursday's game: "real bad," Jones said. Yet the Wesley Chapel defense was making TBT look worse.

They held the Titans, which had been averaging more than 58 points a game, to 9 at halftime, but scored only 15 due to poor shooting.

"We felt like we were doing what we were supposed to, but we needed to execute better," Carey said of the team's feelings at halftime. "We weren't playing to our best, and we talked about coming out stronger."

The same theme will carry over to Tuesday, when the Wildcats face Land O' Lakes (25-3), a 49-32 winner at Freedom, in the regional semifinals. The All-Pasco county matchup is a rarity across all sports when Hillsborough County opponents stand in the way. Wesley Chapel is 2-1 against the Gators this season.

"I'm happy for Pasco County. You hear Hillsborough, Hillsborough, Hillsborough, and not Pasco," Jones said. "So it'll be a good thing. We know them well, they know us well."

"We can't back down," said Carey. "We've just got to keep playing strong. We know they're going to come at us hard. We're just going to be ready."

Bart O'Connell

Young Bucs Looking Toward Next Season

ORLANDO - The Gulf Buccaneers (19-10) have come a long way for a fairly young team. With two starters, Jordan Schulman and Lindsey Brooks, graduating in May, the Bucs are looking toward the future instead of the loss they suffered Thursday in Orlando to Bishop Moore (24-4).

"We are all young," Gulf Coach Mike Quarto said after losing the final game of their season. "Aside from Jordan and Lindsey, we are all sophomores and freshman."

Gulf is going to miss Schulman the most, and rightfully so. Scoring more than 400 points this season along with 59 assists, and averaging 15.4 points a game, Schulman was an integral part to the Bucs teams.

After losing to No. 1 seed Nature Coast, 47-36, Gulf traveled to Orlando to square off against the Hornets. Nature Coast defeated Gulf twice before that game by 15 and 13 points.

The Bucs fell to the Hornets 55-28 on Feb. 7. Schulman had a very slow and difficult night. Scoring eight points, and making only two out of 12 three-point shots, it was obvious that Schulman was frustrated with the Hornets pressing defense.

Although the Bucs team practiced a lot of free throws while they encountered a flu bug epidemic earlier in the season, that practice went out the window when the entire team went four of eight from the line.

Gulf's renowned duo, Schulman and freshman Nicole Adams, scored 17 points combined, and shot 50 percent from the free throw line.

Even though their season ended earlier than they had hoped, Coach Quarto and the Lady Bucs are far from discouraged.

"Ultimately, we hope to have a good off season," Quarto continued to say "and we hope to be back in the state tournament next year."

Jessica Etter

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