Girls Basketball Ends Run in County Tournament

ROSELLE–Similar to their previous meeting this season, Thursday night's Union County Tournament quarterfinal matchup between the second-seeded Summit Hilltoppers and the seventh-seeded Westfield Blue Devils was a gritty battle from start to finish.

For Westfield, it was a chance to avenge their earlier loss to Summit this season: one in which Hilltopper Emily Cristaldi hit a layup at the buzzer to beat the Blue Devils 44-42.

"Summit is a great team," Westfield's Diana Venezia said. "I've played against Emily Cristaldi for a few years now and it's always a great matchup."

Westfield came in with a game plan and never faltered from it. It was clear they wanted to take Cristaldi, Summit's leading scorer, out of the game with a Box-and-One defense. Westfield's Danielle Miller and Amanda Markowski shared the duty of applying constant defensive pressure to the Hilltopper. It worked for much of the game, as Cristaldi (averaging 23 points per game) scored six points in the first three quarters of play.

With Cristaldi heavily guarded, other Hilltoppers stepped up on offense. In the first quarter, sophomore Kelly Osmulski played aggressively, driving into the lane for a pair of layups. With one minute left in the quarter, Kate Martino anticipated a Westfield pass and hit a shot under the basket. After eight minutes of play, however, Westfield was on top 15-10.

"I was really proud of the girls tonight," Summit head coach Brian Erickson said. "We went down 12 and were able to come back and go punch-for-punch at the end. This is a tough loss, but I told them to keep their heads up and we'll live to fight and battle another day."

Both teams played aggressive defense and applied a full-court press for the entire game. The pace was fast and furious in all four quarters. The aggressive play got Summit into foul trouble, however, and 11 of Westfield's 26 first half points came from the foul line.

Despite Summit's clear frustration, the team fought for every loose ball and played with determination. Osmulski continued scoring in the second quarter, hitting a baseline jumper and layup for her team. In the face of Westfield's tough press, forward Cassie Hall made a nice play when she dribbled up the court and sank the 10-foot jump shot. At the half, Summit trailed 26-19. Westfield's Diana Venezia had 19 of her team's 26 first half points.

The third quarter was a low scoring event for both teams. Summit's only score of the quarter came just 15 seconds in when Hall blocked a Westfield shot and made a nice outlet pass to Martino for the layup. Entering the final quarter, Summit trailed by their largest deficit, 33-21.

In spite of the Box-and-One pressure, Summit's Emily Cristaldi came alive in the fourth. Her 13 fourth quarter points helped Summit go on a huge run that turned their 12 point deficit into a two point lead with 1:10 remaining.

With 44 seconds left on the clock, however, Cristaldi was called for her fifth foul as she tried to steal the ball from Westfield's Amanda Markowski. Now fouled out of the game, Cristaldi would have to watch from the bench as Markowski hit a pair of free throws to put her team ahead, 43-41.

Summit's Michelle Burian drained a long baseline jumper to tie the score with 25 seconds remaining, but Westfield's Charlotte Lorentzen answered with a jumper of her own to put Westfield up 45-43 with 15 seconds left.

After a Summit turnover, the Hilltoppers were forced to foul Venezia, who was no stranger to the foul line on the night. Venezia sank both free throws to put the Blue Devils up by four points with six seconds remaining.

Summit's Kate Martino made a heads-up play when she sprinted down the court and hit a layup to make it a one possession game. But with just one second remaining on the clock, Westfield was able to inbound the ball and let time expire to come away with the 47-45 win.

Though the loss ends Summit's Union County Tournament run, the team showed a tremendous amount of resilience and heart, particularly in the fourth quarter comeback.

Cristaldi scored a team-high 19 points for the Hilltoppers. Kelly Osmulski had another solid game with 13 points, and Martino contributed eight. Forward Cassie Hall was a strong presence in the post with five blocks on the night.

Summit's next game is at home on Saturday against Scotch Plains at 1 p.m.