West Allegheny girls upset No. 2 Chartiers Valley in Section 1-5A clash

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, January 4, 2018 | 11:46 PM

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Individuals often have one of two responses when pushed to the brink: fight or flight.

The West Allegheny girls basketball team chose fight in Thursday's game against Charters Valley.

The Indians stormed back for a 52-48 upset of the No. 2 Colts in a Section 1-5A showdown after trailing by 13 points.

“I love that we continued to fight,” West Allegheny coach Reggie Wells said. “We were struggling offensively so much, but we continued to play defense. I am just so proud of them.”

Chartiers Valley led 29-16 early in the second half after a Megan McConnell 3-pointer and a Mackenzie Wagner layup.

But West Allegheny (8-3, 2-0) switched to a full-court press to pressure the Colts. The change in defensive intensity sparked West Allegheny, and it finished the third quarter on a 10-2 run.

After scoring only 16 points in the first half, the Indians scored 23 points in the third quarter.

“That was my assistant coach,” Wells said. “She said we should just at least change the feel of the game because it didn't feel like we were getting ourselves into the game. We decided to stay with it for a while and give them a little bit of trouble.”

The change in defense also neutralized Wagner, who scored nine points in the first half but was held to a single basket in the second.

After tying the game at 41 early in the fourth quarter with a pair of Grace Faulk free throws, the Indians took the lead on Hannah Lindemuth's basket in the paint, followed by Melina Lynn's steal and layup.

West Allegheny led for the final 7 minutes, 13 seconds.

“Right now, I am a bit speechless,” Charters Valley coach Dan Slain said. “You have the game under control, and then you go out of control. This is a simple game if you stay under control and play with patience. This isn't rocket science. If it was, I would be working for NASA.”

West Allegheny was led by a trio of scorers — Lindemuth finished with 16, Lynn added 15 and Faulk finished with 14.

Charters Valley's defense dominated the game early, forcing six turnovers in the first quarter. The strong start allowed the Colts to build a 14-6 lead after one quarter. The lead ballooned to 20-8 in the second quarter after a pair of Alexandra Ferrella free throws.

The Indians got a spark late in the second half when Lynn hit 3-pointer and went on a 7-2 run to cut the deficit to six. But Wagner worked her way inside with 30 seconds to go in the half to give the Colts a 24-16 lead at the break.

“You never want to let a 13-point lead slip away,” Slain said. “We didn't play to our capabilities. That is what hurts most. I know we can do better.”

Charters Valley (6-4, 1-1) was led by McConnell's 14 points.

Nathan Smith is a freelance writer.

Tags: Chartiers Valley, West Allegheny