WILMINGTON – Saint Mark’s girls basketball team bounced back from a disastrous start to take a lead against Newark Charter early in the fourth quarter, but the Spartans fell victim to turnovers and some good Patriots shooting in a 50-46 loss on Jan. 30. The game, the opener of the eighth annual SL24 Basketball Classic, took place at the Chase Fieldhouse.
Saint Mark’s took an early 4-2 lead on a pair of buckets by Madiella Keefer, but the Patriots owned the remainder of the first quarter. They had a 7-0 run that began and ended with field goals from Brooklyn Miller, and after Mia Hussnatter scored for Saint Mark’s, the Patriots finished the quarter with an 11-0 streak.
The Spartans settled down in the second quarter and cut the Newark Charter lead in half within the first three minutes. The Saint Mark’s defense created several opportunities, and several Spartans chipped in on offense. Maddie Fausnaugh trimmed the deficit to seven after covering one of those turnovers. They stuck close, and when Sadie Neylon took a long inbounds pass from Liv Markey and beat the buzzer for two, the Spartans trailed by just two, 26-24.
They kept the momentum going into the second half. Natalie VanDzura (Holy Angels Parish) opened the scoring with a three-point shot that gave Saint Mark’s its first lead since early in the game. Newark Charter, however, made sure that lead was short-lived. The Patriots took advantage of some Spartans turnovers and went on a 13-3 run, with Mia Lang scoring the first five points of that stretch.
Again, however, the Spartans bounced back. Over the last two minutes of the third and into the fourth, VanDzura and Keefer (Holy Angels Parish) accounted for the next 10 points, putting Saint Mark’s on top, 41-40. The game was tied at 42 when Morgan Bishop hit at triple, giving the Patriots the lead for good. They made enough free throws in the last 3:48 to make that lead stand up.
Imani Harrell led the Patriots with 10 points, and Lang and Olivia Price added nine. Newark Charter (7-6) has won five straight and visits Tower Hill on Feb. 2 at 5:15 p.m.
For the Spartans, Keefer finished with 26, and VanDzura added 10. Saint Mark’s (8-7) hosts St. Elizabeth on Feb. 3 at 6 p.m.
Photos by Mike Lang.
