Plenty of chances but not enough points as Wyomissing girls fall to Bishop McDevitt
The end was painful for the Wyomissing Spartans, but not without hope.
Down three to visiting Bishop McDevitt entering the final minute of their non-league girls basketball game Saturday afternoon they had numerous chances to tie the game but couldn’t get anything to fall.
They missed seven free throws over the last 49 seconds and four straight shots and still — inbounding the ball with less than a second left — had a chance to tie it at the buzzer.
Amaya Stewart, the Spartans’ 6-foot center, had a good look on a 3-pointer but it was off the mark and the Crusaders hung on for a 48-45 win in a battle of top District 3 Class 4A contenders.
Spartans coach Aaron Anders remains hopeful despite his team’s second loss in four games following a 14-0 start.
“We’ll grow, we’ll learn from it, there’s no doubt,” he said. “We’ll figure it out.”
The Spartans (16-2) were up by as many as eight points in the third quarter when Stewart, who finished with a team-high 23 points, knocked down her first 3-point attempt.
Wyomissing, which hadn’t allowed a second-half field go to that point, led 31-23 with four minutes to go in the third quarter.
Defense is the Spartans’ forte, and after seeing Sophia Formica score 13 first-half points they made adjustments and slowed her down in the third quarter, holding her scoreless.
Formica, a 5-5 junior guard, made adjustments of her own.
She opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer, scored the Crusaders’ first 11 points over a three-minute span, and gave them the lead at 40-37 on a baseline drive with five minutes to go.
Wyomissing regained the lead at 43-41 after Stewart scored three straight baskets, the last with 3:06 to go.
Formica continued her hot shooting. Her fifth 3-pointer of the game snapped a 43-43 tie and put the Crusaders ahead for good with 2:16 left. It was the last of her game- and career-high 29 points.
That’s more points than the Berks League’s stingiest defensive team allows per game (27.7). Wyomissing has held opponents to less.
“You’ve got to give them credit,” Anders said. “(Formica) really came on; she did a nice job.”
The Spartans were within 47-45 with 37 seconds left after Annie McCaffrey and Stewart each hit 1-of-2 from the line.
Stewart went to the line for a one-and-one with 31 seconds left. Audrey Hurleman grabbed the miss, setting off a flurry of activity. Abby Zechman was fouled going to the floor for a loose ball but missed twice at the line. The Spartans got the rebound and three more shots from underneath but missed each.
Alexis Hardy gave her team another chance with a steal of an inbounds pass with eight seconds left. Hurleman was fouled but missed twice at the line. Maddie Campbell rebounded the second shot but missed her follow.
“That’s all you can ask for,” Anders said of the effort at the end. “We couldn’t get it in the bucket, and maybe that’s because we had a little bit of pressure. Ultimately, we’ve gotta make those chippies.”
There were a lot of bad numbers to point to at the end for the Spartans: They turned it over 26 times and allowed a single player to score 16 fourth-quarter points.
The glaring number was the one from the free throw line: 2-of-11 in the final quarter. The Spartans are barely over 50 percent from the line for the season; two starters are at 40 percent or less.
“If we want to do what we want to do — hang a banner — we’ve got to make those freebies,” Anders said.
The loss could cost the Spartans come district playoff time. They entered the day ranked No. 4 in the Class 4A power ratings, one spot ahead of the Crusaders (13-3). The No. 4 seed will host No. 5 in the district quarterfinals.
“It’s gonna be alright,” Anders said, confident that his team can clean some things up over the next few weeks. “We’re gonna be there.”
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Bishop McDevitt | 9 | 12 | 8 | 19 | 48 |
| Wyomissing | 12 | 8 | 15 | 10 | 45 |
| Crusaders(13-3) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Osevala | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Grella | 0-8 | 3-6 | 0-3 | 0 | 4 | 3 |
| Formica | 11-23 | 2-4 | 5-13 | 2 | 4 | 29 |
| Dickerson | 0-5 | 3-4 | 0-1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Jenkins | 3-11 | 0-0 | 1-4 | 0 | 4 | 7 |
| Walker | 0-1 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| Culver | 1-4 | 0-0 | 1-4 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| DeAntonio | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 16-54 | 9-16 | 7-26 | 3 | 19-25 | 48 |
| Spartans (16-2) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Hardy | 2-4 | 2-2 | 1-1 | 1 | 4 | 7 |
| Hurleman | 2-5 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Campbell | 0-5 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 3 | 6 | 1 |
| Stewart | 9-13 | 4-7 | 1-2 | 0 | 17 | 23 |
| McCaffrey | 3-6 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 2 | 4 | 7 |
| Loeb | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Zechman | 1-7 | 0-2 | 0-1 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
| Marshall | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Totals | 17-42 | 9-21 | 2-6 | 9 | 45-48 | 45 |
Turnovers: Bishop McDevitt 14, Wyomissing 26.