COUDERSPORT—Coudersport’s first half struggles were simply too much to overcome on Tuesday night.
The Lady Falcons (1-2) put up 33 points in their attempted comeback in the second half, but Wellsboro ultimately held on for a 62-54 win in non-league play.
The Lady Hornets (3-0) jumped out to a 36-21 halftime lead behind some tremendous perimeter shooting and a defense that held Coudersport to only seven points in the first quarter.
Even more impressively for Wellsboro is that they forced the Falcons into double-digit turnovers in the first half, and more than doubled Coudy’s totals on the boards. It was all part of that pregame strategy, according to their head coach.
“I told the girls tonight that to have a chance against a team that was taller than us at every position, we have to fight for every loose ball,” Wellsboro head coach John Davis said. “Every defensive player was crashing the boards and we knew they could run the floor well so we knew we had to get back on defense. We had a tough task tonight, and I couldn’t be prouder of the girls.”
That size difference did play a factor down the stretch, as Coudersport was able to get to the free-throw line 15 times, while Wellsboro only had one free-throw attempt. But the Hornets consistently made clutch shots and got stops on defense when they were needed.
Coudersport eventually started to chip away at that Wellsboro lead at one point was as many as 23 points. Haley Keck, who went over 1,000 points for her career in Coudy’s last game, took over in the final 16 minutes of play. She finished with 21 points in the game, and wasn’t afraid to draw contact from the defense. Keck went a perfect 7-for-7 from the charity stripe.
Despite falling short on the scoreboard, Falcons head coach Brian Green is gaining a better understanding of what he can expect from his squad. Green, who previously spent six years in charge of the girls basketball team almost a decade ago, returns this year to begin his second stint behind the bench.
“Like I told my players, as they’re learning from me, I’m learning from them,” Green said. “We made a good comeback and got it under 10, but they’re a good team. They shot lights out in the first half, and we were cold pretty much the whole game and we had a lot of turnovers. But I’m proud of the way the kids battled back. We only had four turnovers in the second half. We shot better and we played better defense and we have a long way to go in this young season. Wellsboro is a quality team that will probably compete for a district title.”
A big reason Wellsboro thwarted Coudy’s rally in the final minutes was their ability to hit from behind the arc. The Hornets went 6-for-12 from three, while Coudersport could only manage one make on 18 attempts. Two of Wellsboro’s threes came from point guard Tory Self, who had a tremendous all-around game. Her quickness and decision-making ability made Coudy’s full-court press essentially a non-factor for the entire contest.
“She is a good leader on the floor,” Davis said. “She’s very quick and has good vision. She has seen this kind of pressure all her life so it wasn’t anything knew to her and she kind of welcomes it actually. She was excited about playing Coudersport tonight.”
As for Coudersport, they’ll return home to face Bradford on Thursday night. With only a few practice days, Green said he’s going to make his message very simply to his team on what he wants to see from his team going forward.
“Conditioning, boxing out and taking care of the ball,” Green said. “Like we did in this game, we focused on our job in the second half. We made a more concerted effort and the results showed.”
AT COUDERSPORT
Wellsboro (62)
Emma Poirier 10 0-1 22, Cathryn Brought 7 0-0 14, Tory Self 5 0-0 12, Lizzie Poirier
5 0-0 12, Tuttle 1 0-0 2. Totals: 28 0-1 62
Coudersport (54)
Haley Keck 7 7-7 21, Shaelyn Black 6 3-5 13, EmmaRae Easton 6 1-2 13, Plumstead 1 0-0 3, Chambers 1 0-0 2, Page 1 0-0 2. Totals: 20 11-15 54
Wellsboro 18 36 50 62
Coudersport 7 21 37 54
Three-point goals: Wellsboro 6 (Self 2, L. Poirier 2, E. Poirier 2), Coudy 1 (Plumstead); total fouls: Wellsboro 12, Coudy 11; fouled out: none
JV: Coudy won 41-9
