McLean Comeback Bid Falls Short

The Stone Bridge Bulldogs surprised everyone but themselves by beating McLean handily in regulation time, 47-34, to advance to the district final on Friday night against the defending champions, the Madison Warhawks, who pulled off a come from behind over Fairfax, 44-38.

“Give credit to Stone Bridge, they played great defense,” said McLean coach Mike O’Brien. “They took away what we like to do, and we just couldn’t get it done.”

Early on, it looked like it was going to be yet another nip and tuck affair, with Stone Bridge leading by just one, 11-10, at the end of the first period. But the Bulldogs went on an 11-1 run to start the second quarter behind two big 3-pointers from Kayleigh Guzek. With a minute left in the half, the Highlanders had just one point in the quarter, but then managed to hit two late baskets to cut the lead to 24-15 at halftime.

“They played really well on defense. I think they knew what was coming, having played us twice before,” said sophomore forward Lexi Slotkoff. “Some of it was just us having a bad shooting night, but they were really strong in the post area, as well.”

In the third quarter, Stone Bridge sophomore forward Murielle Tiernan took over, popping in six of her game-high 14 points, staking her team to a 12-point lead, 32-20.

But McLean made a run early on in the fourth period, ignited by senior guard Andie Romness, who literally ripped the ball out of a Bulldog's hand, and then dished to freshman guard Christy Warren, who hit a layup, was fouled and then converted the 3-point play. McLean then cut the lead to seven on the next possession, with another big steal, which was capped by a layup from Lisa Murphy, who finished with a team-high 12 points.

“Both teams had open looks, they hit theirs, we didn’t, and then the lead widened, and then you start missing your free throws and it got harder to chip away.” O’Brien said.

Indeed, McLean would get no closer, as Stone Bridge's stifling defense limited Romness, McLean’s leading scorer, to just four points, while the Prince sisters, Nicole (10 points) and Cori (six) complimented Tiernan’s strong play to ice the game.

After the game, the O'Brien was already looking ahead to the regional tournament next week. “We’re not going to learn how to play new plays, it’s just a matter of coming back strong next week,” he said. “It’s a matter of learning how to handle pressure defense, and hopefully our offense will start to click more than it was tonight.”