McAuley surives frantic finish vs. Barrington

With just 17.6 seconds left and down by 2 points to Mother McAuley, Barrington’s girls basketball team inbounded the ball and sprinted down the court in enough time to pull up and look for the open player.

Kelly Katis got the ball and saw an opening, splitting defenders on the left side of the basket for what seemed like a sure game-tying basket.

But it wasn’t to be, as a third Mighty Mac player slid in and was able to get her hand on the ball and knock it away after a lot of contact and a no-call.

That ended the comeback attempt for the Fillies, who fell 56-54 on Friday night in the quarterfinals of the 31st annual Charger Classic at Dundee-Crown.

The Fillies (12-2) will face Maine West (10-4) today at 5 p.m.

Trailing by 10 going into the second quarter, Barrington struggled to get any offense going early. The Fillies eventually found their rhythm, thanks to Angie Kirchoff, who finished with 14 points, hitting back-to-back baskets including a 3-pointer.

Barrington was able to battle back in the second quarter.

The Fillies went on a 14-0 run that chewed up almost six minutes on the clock and saw them gain their first lead.

“To be able to come back, cut the lead and then to go ahead, I was really proud of the kids,” said Barrington coach Babbi Barreiro said. “I thought their rebounding was the difference in the game.”

Megan Talbot was huge throughout the game for the Fillies, finishing with a game-high 18 points and 6 rebounds. She was especially important in the second quarter, where she hit 4 baskets all in the paint to help Barrington take the lead.

“I thought she did a really nice job battling tonight,” Barreiro said. “She had key buckets for us and she was aggressive tonight. I thought she really gutted it out and had one of her best performances offensively.

“I also thought Carrie Madden had a spectacular game. She sparked the comeback for us and held (Elizabeth) Nye to 11 points.”

The Mighty Macs (11-2) had a mini run of their before the half ended, scoring the final 4 points of the half to knot it at 29. Molly O’Malley, who finished with 17 points and went 8-for-10 from the foul line, scored all 4 of McAuley’s points in the spurt.

Before that run, McAuley had turned the ball over on 7 straight possessions and they only finished with 4 shots from the field in the period.

“We got a little stagnant (with the ball) in the first half,” Mother McAuley coach Ashley Clanton said. “We got away from the stuff that made us good — moving the ball and sharing it around.”

That was not the case in the second half, as both the Mighty Macs and the Fillies found the right person for the best shot multiple times. The Fillies trailed by 1 going into the fourth, eventually trading the lead with McAuley 5 times before the final buzzer put the Mighty Macs on top for good, thanks in part to the clutch free throw shooting of Jasma Williams, who finished the game with 11 points.

McAuley finished with 24 attempts at the line compared to just 4 for Barrington.