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Ranalli has big contributions in Williamsburg win

By John Hartsock

jhartsock@altoonamirror.com

WILLIAMSBURG –Williamsburg Area High School girls basketball coach Angela Detwiler is stressing to all of her players the importance of developing the confidence to take the open shot when it presents itself.

While junior guard LeAnna Royer and sophomore forward Levada Gorsuch are counted on for a heavy portion of the team’s scoring totals, the other players on the team play very important roles as well.

“(Opposing) teams are going to key on LeAnna and Vada, and it’s been a big emphasis for us to start this year that I’m trying to get all of my players to look for their shot and be confident about hitting it,” Detwiler said. “That’s something we’ve really been working on.”

Royer scored a game-high 22 points and Gorsuch chipped in 15 Thursday night, but senior forward Anastasia Ranalli came up the biggest for the Lady Pirates in the clutch as Williamsburg overcame a big fourth-quarter deficit and outlasted Southern Huntingdon, 65-60, in overtime in an Inter-County Conference game played at the Williamsburg High School gymnasium.

Ranalli scored 20 points, including a game-tying 3-point field goal with only five seconds left in regulation to tie the score 57-57 and force an overtime session in which Ranalli scored two big field goals to put Williamsburg ahead to stay.

With Ranalli wearing the heroine’s mantel, Williamsburg carried the fourth quarter, 22-7, to overcome a 50-35 deficit and force the four-minute overtime session.

With the final seconds ticking off the clock in regulation, Ranalli found herself with an open 3-point look from the top of the circle and drained the shot to send the Lady Pirates and their fans into a frenzy and necessitate the overtime period.

“I can’t believe that I made that shot – it was exhilarating,” Ranalli said. “We had to really play smart and make good decisions, and we did that.

“I’m really proud of my team,” Ranalli added. “We made the shots when they mattered, and we did what we needed to do.”

Detwiler said that with many opposing teams double-covering Gorsuch underneath the basket, the door is often left open for Ranalli to score big outside shots like the one that she made to tie Thursday night’s game.

“Anastasia had a big game with 20 points,” Detwiler said. “With Vada being double-teamed, it leaves Anastasia open, and she knocked those shots down tonight.”

Buoyed by its game-tying rally in regulation, Williamsburg (9-1 overall, 5-0 in the Inter-County Conference) used the momentum to finish the job in overtime.

After Ranalli scored from inside to give Williamsburg a 59-57 lead in the extra session, Southern Huntingdon sophomore forward Ella Young put the Lady Rockets (7-3, 2-1) back in front, 60-59, with a 3-point shot from the top of the circle.

Williamsburg then wound up getting three shots at the basket at the other end of the floor, with Ranalli depositing a putback to put the Lady Pirates up, 61-60.

Gorsuch was fouled after collecting a rebound with 24 seconds left and made both shots, and she also converted both of her two free throws after collecting another rebound and getting fouled in the waning seconds of the game, to set the final score.

Senior guard Haley Ross scored a team-high 18 points, while senior forward Chloe Brown and junior guard Caleigh Clark added 10 apiece for Southern Huntingdon, which held a 55-44 midway through the fourth quarter. At that point, Williamsburg mounted a 10-point run to rally back on two free throws and a field goal by Ranalli, a 3-pointer by Royer, and another 3-pointer by junior guard Regan Prough, to pull to within 55-54 in the final minute.

Ross made two free throws with 17 seconds remaining in regulation to give Southern Huntingdon a 57-54 lead, before Ranalli made her game-tying shot.

“Our girls played tough and they battled, but we just didn’t close out the game when we had the opportunity,” Southern Huntingdon coach Craig Sellers said.

“(Williamsburg) is one of the best teams in the state, and we just couldn’t finish it out against them,” he added.

SOUTHERN HUNTINGDON (60): Irvin 0 2-4 2, E. Young 3 2-2 9, Brown 5 0-0 10, Ross 7 2-2 18, Thomas 3 0-0 9, Clark 4 0-0 10, Hull 0 0-0 0, Price 1 0-0 2. Totals – 23 6-8 60.

WILLIAMSBURG (65): Royer 7 2-2 22, Ranalli 8 3-3 20, Gorsuch 3 8-12 15, Prough 1 0-0 3, G. Colbert 1 0-0 3, Kagarise 0 0-0 0, A. Colbert 1 0-0 2, Alexander 0 0-0 0. Totals – 21 13-17 65.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

So. Huntingdon 18 13 19 7 3 — 60

Williamsburg 15 8 12 22 8 — 65

3-point goals: Southern Huntingdon 8 (Thomas 3, Ross 2, Clark 2, E. Young); Williamsburg 10 (Royer 6, Gorsuch, Prough, Ranalli, G. Colbert)

Records: Southern Huntingdon (7-3 overall, 2-1 in the Inter-County Conference); Williamsburg (9-1, 5-0).

Officials: Brad Martz, Ethan Vipond, Anna Musser.

JV: Southern Huntingdon, 29-12. High scorers–Fiona Price, SH, 8; Jordan Flaig, W, 6.

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