St Mirren turns Rocks to rubble

St Mirren v Rocks U18 Women’s Cup Final

This was a very closely contested match from the start. St Mirren won possession from the tip, and pressed the ball hard on defence, making it difficult for the Rocks to bring the ball up the court from the beginning. The first points of the game came from Saints Lauren McKinlay, but Stacey Allan of the Rocks soon responded by converting a shot from the offensive rebound, tying the score. Both teams continued to run a full court press, battling hard for possession. Rocks captain Erin McGarrachan then scored two baskets off a lovely drive into the key in close succession, only to be answered with a 3 from Jenny Lynn at other end of the court. Midway through the first period, the score stood at 9-6 until Stacey Allan of the Rocks scored from the fast break, however Saints responded with a run of their own, taking the score to 15-8. Rocks however continued to cause the St Mirren defence problems with their speed going up the court, until Jennifer Crawford was fouled going to the basket and made both her shots to extend the lead to 9. Crawford then committed a foul in the following offence from Rocks, sending Stacey Allan to the line to close the gap again. Erin Gilbride too converted both of her free throws, although Saints answered with another basket of their own. St Mirren linked up well on offence, with excellent passing allowing them to increase the score to 27-14. The quarter finished with end to end play, although no baskets.

Rocks came back to the 2^nd quarter determined, and almost instantly reduced Saints lead with a basket through Erin Gilbride, followed closely by another two points from Stacey Allan. Rocks continued to use their speed to beat Saints press, although Jennifer Crawford took advantage of the fast break opportunities for St Mirren and calmly made two shots which brought their lead back to 13. Rocks worked hard to cut this lead once again, and Stacey Allan stepped up to the line, making both shots and bringing the score to 31-24 to St Mirren. Saints however hustled hard on defence, forcing the Rocks to turn the ball over, and take possession, allowing them to extend their lead once again. Saints had a run of 11 points with no response from the Rocks, until Erin McGarrachan was fouled and scored both free throws, making it 42-26 with a minute left to play. Gemma Black of St Mirren then scored a 3 in the last seconds of the half. At half time, the score stood at St Mirren 47 – 26 Glasgow Rocks.

St Mirren started the 3^rd quarter strong, making it difficult for the Rocks to score on offence, although Rocks Captain Erin McGarrachan did well bringing the ball up and scoring from the drive. With just under four minutes of the 3^rd played, St Mirren’s Sarah Thomson converted two free throws and took the score to 57-28. She then hit a three a minute later, increasing their lead to 30 points. St Mirren continued to drive hard to the basket, and the Rocks called a time out with 5 minutes to play this period, in hope of coming back and reducing St Mirren’s lead. This wasn’t the case however, and the Rocks could do little as St Mirren continued to score quickly on the break, but they ended the quarter on a high with two baskets in quick succession, meaning the teams went into the final period with the score St Mirren 69 – 35 Glasgow Rocks.

Erin McGarrahan continued her strong run of shooting as the 4^th quarter got underway, scoring twice in the opening moments. The Rocks pushed hard on offence, and Erin Gilbride added another two points from the fast break, taking the score to 71-44. St Mirren however came back with some excellent shooting of their own to restore their lead to 34 points. The game continued with excellent offence from both sets of players, and the Rocks dealt with St Mirren’s pressure well going up the court. Erin McGarrachan in particular stood out, scoring numerous times in the last two minutes to reduce the lead. Stacey Allan too was then fouled on the fast break, and McGarrachan won the rebound from her second free throw to add another two to her tally. Thanks to a foul against her in the last five seconds, she again stepped up to the free throw line and scored both shots to take the score to 83-59, to finish an exceptional run from the Rocks. The game ended with St Mirren coming out winners by a big 24 point difference, although it has to be said that the Rocks put up a great fight right until the end.

St Mirren’s coach Lorna Norman was pleased with the win and said “the girls joined up well and played well under lots of pressure.”

Rocks’ coach Jim Lay said “St mirren thoroughly deserved to win today and Gemma Black gave an outstanding performance. I was really happy how the girls played up till the end. There was a lot of dignity in the game.”

Game Stats (box score)