By Gene Helfman
Weekly contributor
The Lopez home crowd got their money’s worth in games against Providence Christian on Dec. 4. Both girls’ and boys’ games went down to the final seconds before the Lobos emerged victorious. The Lady Lobos established a 13-4 lead after the first eight minutes of play. Neither team generated much offense in the second period, the half-ending Lopez still ahead 9 points, the score 19-10. That lead evaporated in the second half as Lopez grew cold from the floor, and Providence mounted a successful attack, including several steals off errant passes. After three periods of play, the score was Lopez 21, Providence 18. The pace picked up as the teams exchanged steals and fouls, Lopez just staying ahead thanks to a strong defense that frustrated the Providence offense. With only 30 seconds remaining, Dani Arnott hit a vital free throw, giving Lopez a crucial 4-point advantage, which meant the Highlanders would have to score at least twice. The Lobos’ defense held, and Lopez managed a 25-23 win when the final buzzer sounded. Arnott led all scorers with 13 points, followed by Betty Burt with five, Saskia Fischer with three, and Josie Luckhurst-Slattery and Ruby Ervin-McLean with two each.
Coach Karrie Warner explained the letdown early in the second half as the girls losing their rhythm when people were playing them tight. “But our new defense has been amazing; it really has put us on a different level and it probably made us win the game. It was our defense that did it. And Dani had a great game.” The Lady Lobos now have a four-win, one-loss record.
The boys’ game took a different path to a similar ending, Lopez falling quickly behind the Highlanders, the first period ending Lopez 10, Providence 17. Lopez narrowed the margin in the next eight minutes, but the Highlanders still led at the end of the half, 22-19. Something clicked coming out of the locker room as the Lobos began scoring more successfully and eventually pulled ahead 30-28 halfway through the third period. Ethan Patrick drove the length of the court for several dramatic layups, and the Lobos had what seemed like a comfortable 48-38 advantage with only three minutes left to play. But Providence went on a run and pulled within a point, the score Lopez 48, Providence 47, with only a minute and a half to go. The Lopez defense, encouraged by a raucous crowd, stiffened. When the final buzzer sounded, the score was Lopez 48, Providence 47 score. But Providence was awarded a non-shooting foul as time ran out, and the officials put 2.5 seconds back on the clock. The inbound pass and resulting desperation shot flew over the basket, preserving the Lobos one-point victory. At which point, the faithful fans went wild. Patrick led the scoring with 25 points, Benji Stephenson contributed six, Andris Meissner and Tristan Dyer with five each, Silas Gronley four, and Huck Henderson three.
Coach Shane Patrick explained the second-half improvement as the result of the team recognizing that they were better than last year. “We needed to come out and redefine this team. This year is a lot different from last year, and these boys are lot more accountable to each other. They took it personally when I said they were playing like last year’s team, and they went out in the second half and poured it on.” The boys’ record is now even at three wins, two losses. Fortunately for the Lopez faithful, two of those wins have come at home. The next home games for both teams aren’t until after the holiday break, the boys on Jan. 7 and the girls on Jan. 13.
