John Jay Escapes with 38-35 Victory over Lakeland

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On Thursday February 13, John Jay had senior night on the final game of the regular season and a .500 season was on the line. Lakeland coming in to spoil the party, the Hornets took a five point halftime lead, and the prospects of breaking even were in doubt. So the Wolves took a chill pill.

“We just needed to relax,” said Natalie Ellrodt, and a quick third quarter turnaround led to a 38-35 victory.

But a back and forth began the action, and Jane Brennan and Sela Halaifonua did the opening act. Halaifonua went around Jaime Bartley-Cohen’s pick, and with the backdoor open, Brennan’s loft turned the key for her fellow superhero. “The dynamic duo,” boasted Bartley-Cohen, and more was to come.

Of course, Lakeland had some playmakers too, and Riley Waters did it herself to get her team started. A tough drive through the paint yielded an underhand layup, but the tie score let Halaifonua team up with someone else. Jordan Kauftheil this time, she saw Halaifonua on the cut and rifled a lead pass for another layup.

Waters wasn’t impressed, though. The guard answered with a three and then went to the line for a 6-4 Lakeland lead.

So Halaifonua did it on both ends. She blocked Liliana Aguirre on the fast break and engaged in more synergy. Give and go from the corner, she took the pass back from Ellrodt and the knot was tied again.

2:54 remaining, the first quarter would go to Lakeland. After Brennan to Halaifonua made good again, Carina Cannizzaro dropped a triple to close at 11-8.

Onto the second, the give and take continued, but it took a little time. Turnovers and misses going both ways, John Jay finally turned their own miscue into offense. When Brennan lost the ball on the dribble, her diving tip found Halaifonua, and she bolted for a runner over two defenders with 6:02 left in the half.

Next, Halaifonua sort of went solo. Set up when Bartley-Cohen ripped an offensive rebound, Halaifonua hit from downtown when Aguirre decided to give the senior space to shoot.

Burying three, the game would get its first real separation, and Waters forged the crevice. A steal for a fast break layup, and a three from in front of the Jay bench made it 18-13 at 3:11.

Timeout for the Wolves, Brennan and Halaifonua kept the game from getting away. Brennan answered with a corner three, and scored one from the line on Halaifonua’s find from above the arc.

Still, Lakeland closed the quarter. Emily Hahn came around a pick and hit a two from the key.

22-17 when the teams returned, John Jay got right to work, and Halaifonua started by getting on the tricycle. Above the arc, she found Kauftheil behind the defense in the paint, and no hesitation, Ellrodt received her teammate's bounce pass for a straight on layup off the glass.

Halaifonua wasn’t done spinning her wheels either. She turned a steal into a layup and scored two of her 23 on Brennan’s inbound.

A 23-22 lead, Bartley-Cohen took pause in the spectator sport aspect of having Halaifonua as a teammate. “Watching her play is amazing,” boasted the senior.

Lakeland didn’t blink, though. Hahn scored on a fast break, Aguirre scored two at the line, and a turnover had Waters give her team a 28-23 lead on the foul

4:48 left in the third, John Jay called for time, and reseting, the deciding run began with defense. Kauftheil blocked Waters’ deep three, and moments later, Bartley-Cohen drew contact in the paint.

One from the line, Halaifonua did her teammate two better and didn’t accrue any bruises. Left wide open, her downtown train got the Wolves within one at 2:30.

Then she put Bartley-Cohen on the express. With her center having post up position to the hoop, Halaifonua lofted over, and Bartley-Cohen closed the third quarter scoring.

29-28, Bartley-Cohen kept it going. While her half court steal only returned two missed free throws, she got the offensive rebound, and Kauftheil turned the hustle into a reverse layup at 7:37.

A Lakeland turnover later, Bartley-Cohen avoided the line all together. She rolled to the hoop, and the lead was now 33-28.

7:09 left, Halaifonua retook the spotlight. First she hit from downtown, and after Bartley-Cohen scored another layup, Halaifonua added one of her own for 38-30 lead at 4:30

Those were the last John Jay points, though. Turnovers and a procession of missed free throws would eventually give Lakeland the ball with a chance to tie with 10.8 remaining. The final three going up, an in-and-out skipped the beat of the entire gymnasium.

Escaping, the closeout that counted most was the turnaround from 0-4. “We hit a low point, but we put in the work,” concluded Ellrodt.