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WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. Hamiltons terrific season has ended. The Raiders fell to undefeated Section 9 champion Coleman Catholic, 48-44, in a tense Class C regional semifinal matchup at the Westchester County Center.
Im proud of the girls, overall, because they fought hard. They bought into the program and worked hard for me, said Hamilton coach Benjamin Carter. I wanted to win, but the excitement that they got here, Im excited about that.
The score was knotted at 42 with 1:20 left. Then, with 57 seconds remaining, Colemans Kate Shults hit a runner to put the Stateswomen up by two. Maia Hood got the ball in the paint on the other end but was called for travelling.
Shannon Gildea then extended Colemans lead to 46-42 with 36 seconds left. Hamilton cut into the lead, but at 48-44, the Raiders had a shot blocked at the other end and never scored again.
Colemans size gave the Raiders tremendous problems, as they missed shots in the paint and under the net, areas that Hood and others normally dominate.
They had some nice size. We were prepared for it, but I think being tired and trying to explode up and not being able to, I think thats what hurt us because our layups werent going in, Carter said.
Missed free throws also plagued the Raiders, particularly in the second half.
Our layups and missed foul shots kind of caught up to us, Carter said.
Hamilton jumped out to an 11-2 lead in the first quarter, but Coleman trimmed it to 13-8 after the first eight minutes. The Raiders took a 26-18 lead into halftime, but the Stateswomen responded with a 10-2 run and tied the game at 28 with 5:15 to play in the third quarter.
From there, it was a back and forth affair. Hamilton held a slim 35-34 lead at the end of the third quarter and built it to 39-34 in the early portion of the fourth quarter. Coleman took a 40-39 lead, but Hamilton tied it at 42 with 1:20 to play to set up the dramatic finish.
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