CONESTOGA - Conestoga sculpted itself a victory by chipping away at Palmyra's lead when it counted most Tuesday.
The Cougar girls erased a 31-20 halftime deficit with 33 second-half points to knock off the Panthers 53-49. Conestoga harassed Palmyra into 8-of-29 shooting after the break and the Cougars converted four free throws in the final 1:41 to clinch their first victory of the year.
CHS head coach Kyle Steckler said the Cougars (1-9) had a happy postgame meeting after handing the Panthers just their fourth loss of the season.
"It was almost like they were in shock. They didn't know what exactly just happened," Steckler said. "I think it'll take a little while for it to sink in, but the smiles were on their faces. They worked hard. They deserve it."
Palmyra (10-4) forced 20 first-half turnovers and held CHS to one point during the first 6:51 of the second quarter. Conestoga senior Brittney Murdoch said the Cougars were determined to run a better offensive attack in the second half.
"We went in the locker room and we knew we needed to step up and hit shots," Murdoch said. "We knew they weren't just going to hand it to us."
"We just had a little talk about playing with emotion and not panicking," Steckler said. "Their pressure really affected us in the first half and I told them that it's a mental thing. I told them to focus on playing as a team and realize where their teammates were on the court."
Conestoga brought a loud crowd to its feet in the third quarter with a late surge that ended with Brooke Murdoch's buzzer-beating layup. The shot cut the gap to 43-36 and gave CHS a renewed sense of optimism entering the final quarter.
"I was jumping out of my seat," junior Kourtney Simmerman said. "I was getting so excited that I was bouncing up and down. When Brooke hit that last point at the end of the third I was off. I was up in the air. That was exciting."
Brittney Murdoch gave the Cougars their first lead with 2:14 left when she made a steal near midcourt and raced in for a fast-break layup. Simmerman drained two free throws 36 seconds later to break a 49-49 tie, and Murdoch sank a pair of foul shots with 28.4 seconds remaining to create a four-point lead. Conestoga's defense forced Palmyra to miss its final six shots over the final 1:50 to keep the lead intact.
Steckler said he was pleased with the composure the Cougars showed during the final stretch. Conestoga had just two fourth-quarter turnovers and scored points on 8 of its final 16 possessions.
"Once we got (the deficit) down lower and lower and getting closer to tying it up, and then once we did eventually tie it up and take the lead, the girls didn't panic, which was good," Steckler said. "They finished the game like they had been there before, which was really good to see."
Brittney Murdoch led Conestoga with 14 points and she added four rebounds and four assists. Brooke Murdoch scored 12 points and Simmerman posted eight points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals. Delayne Martin snagged a team-high 10 rebounds and scored three points and Sydney Todd had nine rebounds and chipped in eight points.
Holly Mach and Ciera Dowding both scored 16 points to lead Palmyra's offensive attack. Starting point guard Sam Masilko scored eight points before fouling out with 1:41 left.
Steckler said the Cougars had displayed progress on both sides of the court in games against Elmwood-Murdock and Auburn prior to Tuesday night. He said the Cougars are aiming to continue that positive momentum throughout the final five weeks of the season.
"We played a great first half against Elmwood-Murdock and a great last three quarters against Auburn, so it's there," Steckler said. "We've been showing improvement. Tonight it just all came together in the second half and it was good to see. We're ready to get on with the next game."
Palmyra 15 16 12 6 - 49
Conestoga 14 6 16 17 - 53
Palmyra (49)
Ockinga 2-4 0-0 4, Dowding 6-11 4-8 16, Masilko 3-9 1-2 8, Mach 7-20 2-5 16, Schroder 1-7 0-3 3, Sims 0-1 0-0 0, Phillips 1-3 0-0 2, Jones 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-37 5-18 49.
Conestoga (53)
Simmerman 2-8 4-5 8, Martin 1-7 1-2 3, Wilsey 3-6 0-0 6, Todd 2-6 4-4 8, Brit. Murdoch 5-13 3-4 14, Brk. Murdoch 5-8 0-1 12, Hoshor 1-1 0-0 2, Wehrbein 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 19-50 12-16 53.
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