SUAMICO – Beginning a tough stretch of games, Ashwaubenon’s Gianna Guarascio made sure her Ashwaubenon girls’ basketball team came out with a victory over conference rival Bay Port.
The senior sharpshooter nailed a three-pointer as time expired in overtime in the Jaguars’ thrilling, 53-52 Fox River Classic Conference (FRCC) victory over the Pirates on Jan. 28.
Ashwaubenon (9-7 overall, 6-5 FRCC) trailed 52-45 with about a minute remaining in the extra frame but ended the game on an 8-0 run to steal the victory.
With the Pirates (11-6, 7-4) in possession of the ball and a 52-50 lead, the Jaguars forced a jump ball, giving them possession with 14.3 seconds showing on the clock.
After Ashwaubenon Coach Mike Radue called timeout to set up the last play, Guarascio hit her three from the top of the key, sending the Jaguars’ bench into a frenzy.
“It felt great,” Guarascio, who ended with a game-high 17 points, said. “We needed to get a shot up, and I knew I had to shoot. Luckily, it went in. I wasn’t the first option on the play. It was amazing to see the teamwork we had (in overtime). We were coming off a hard loss to (Green Bay) Preble last week, so this was a great victory.”
The Jaguars bolted out to a 29-14 halftime lead before Bay Port forced overtime by outscoring the visitors 31-16 in the second half.
Bay Port freshman Kailynn Thompson had a big second half and finished with 16 points before fouling out late in regulation.
Trailing 45-43 with 4.9 seconds left in regulation, Ashwaubenon’s Jordyn Whiters calmly drained a pair of free throws to tie the game.
Bay Port’s Division I recruit Melia Lemorande had her deep three-pointer bounce off the rim at the buzzer, forcing overtime.
In overtime, Ashwaubenon’s Bella Daul was fouled on a three-pointer and drained all three free throws before a Guarascio bucket made it 52-50 with 25 seconds left.
Entering the game, the Pirates had won five straight.
“Hats off to Bay Port,” Radue said. “We built ourselves a nice first-half lead, and they battled back. In the first half, we executed better than Bay Port did, but in the second half, they executed better than we did.”
Radue said of the last possession, “Guarascio was probably the sixth option.”
“That wasn’t the plan that was drawn up,” he said. “We had a lot of time remaining there, so we knew if we didn’t get the first or second option, we had time to work our offense a bit. An open three for Gianna Guarascio is one that I’ll take any game.”
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