Springfield could cry foul, but pride gained in double-OT loss to Wood

ROYERSFORD — A questionable off-the-ball foul in double overtime Saturday may have prevented Springfield from winning its PIAA Class 5A tournament opener.

Maybe questionable is putting it too lightly.

“Bogus,” said one disgruntled Springfield fan.

The officials sure didn’t discriminate. There were too many head-scratching fouls called against both teams to count. But this one infraction, called on sophomore Rachel Conran as the Cougars were preparing to throw the ball in with less than a minute to play, sparked outrage among Springfield fans and coaches. One question, in particular, was left unanswered: Why would the officials make that call now?

That’s not to say Archbishop Wood, the No. 3 squad in District 12, didn’t deserve to come out with a 51-47 victory over Springfield, the third-place finisher in District 1. It was an exciting, back-and-forth game that neither team deserved to lose.

The offensive foul enabled the Vikings to expand their one-point lead at the foul line. They hit three free throws to cap the scoring.

It marked the second straight year that Wood defeated Springfield in the first round of the state tournament.

For Springfield seniors Belle Mastropietro and Jordan D’Ambrosio, who fouled out in the fourth quarter, this ended two remarkable, four-year careers. Each player eclipsed the 1,000-point plateau in her senior season. D’Ambrosio will graduate from Springfield as the leading scorer in program history.

“Here’s the deal,” Springfield coach Ky McNichol said. “Our seniors, Belle Mastropietro and Jordan D’Ambrosio, played their hearts out and left it all out there. We just fell one basket short. I couldn’t have asked for anything more on the defensive end of the floor, and every single one of those kids stepped up and did something to contribute to this game. To go out in double overtime in a states game is tough and it hurts. It’s a tough way for our seniors to go out, but I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

Springfield forced the first overtime when Conran put back an Alyssa Long miss as time expired. Ryleigh Parsons drilled a 3-pointer with 2:15 to go in OT to give Wood a 46-45 lead. Alexa Abbonizio made a free throw to tie the game at 46.

Rachel Conran puts back Alyssa Long’s miss before the buzzer!!! Going to OT@SFDgirlsbball 41, @WoodGirlsBball 41 pic.twitter.com/6Mwu5oD5p1

— Matt Smith (@DTMattSmith) March 9, 2019

The Cougars had a 47-46 lead with 1:30 left in the second extra session, with possession, and prepared to chew off as much clock as possible. But Wood’s pressure defense forced Long to take a step backcourt, one of 19 turnovers the Vikings caused.

“We knew this was going to be a good matchup. Springfield is very experienced and they played us well last year,” Wood coach Mike McDonald said. “It was a game that could’ve gone either way, it just so happened that we were the last to score.”

The first half was dominated by defensive performances. Each team managed only two points in the first quarter. Lindsay Tretter banked two 3-pointers to help Wood get out to a lead in the second period. At halftime, the Vikings were ahead 14-8 and the Cougars had attempted just six shots. Their lone field goal was a layup by D’Ambrosio, who finished with 12 points.

Belle Mastropietro bucket and the foul. 24-19 @SFDgirlsbball pic.twitter.com/gZlDwZfqqw

— Matt Smith (@DTMattSmith) March 9, 2019

Springfield allowed Wood to dictate the pace of the game in the first 16 minutes. That wouldn’t be the case in the second half.

“I think we moved the ball a lot faster, and when we knew that the trap was coming, we tried to flash someone in the middle and tried to get more shots off,” said Mastropietro, who had six points, five rebounds and four assists. “We tried to go quarter by quarter, and as we always say, we tried to put together four good quarters of basketball. Ky kept saying, ‘I believe in you guys, we’re still in the game.’ We just had to stay with our game plan.”

Long and Abbonizio each hit a pair of 3s as Springfield outscored Wood by nine points in the third quarter. Wood’s six-point lead turned into a six-point deficit entering the final period.

Tretter got the Vikings rolling again on the offensive end. Her 3-ball cut Springfield’s lead to three points, then Kaitlyn Orihel hit a handful of free throws to give the Vikings the lead. Orihel, who is Wood’s most dynamic offensive player, was held to just one point in the first three quarters but scored 11 the rest of the way. She scored all but two points from the charity stripe.

“We knew we were fine,” said Tretter, who scored a game-high 18 points on 7-for-14 shooting. She was 4-for-10 from beyond the arc. “During the season it seemed like we were always down by six at the end of the third quarter, but we always found a way to come back. We were like, ‘OK, we got this, let’s just knock down shots and hit our foul shots and we would be fine.'”

Conran, who will be a huge part of the Springfield program the next two seasons, was visibly upset after the controversial foul call. Mastropietro consoled her on the court as the game was winding down and gave her a big hug in the hallway after the game.

In those moments, Mastropietro showed what being a senior leader and role model to the underclassmen is all about.

“She’s played well all season and the whole game didn’t come down to just her foul at the end,” Mastropietro said. “There’s a lot of things that went into this game. I just wanted to tell her, ‘Hey, it’s not your fault.'”

Long had one of her best scoring games of the season, finishing with a team-high 15 points. The junior point guard will be a captain on next year’s squad.

Mastropietro and D’Ambrosio were instrumental in Springfield’s success run the last four seasons. They won District 1 and Central League titles during their careers and set an example with their talent, work ethic and dedication to the program. Mastropietro will turn her focus to the lacrosse season and will play the sport at Temple next spring, while D’Ambrosio will continue her basketball career at Widener.

Without a doubt, they will be missed.

“We couldn’t have asked for anything more from those two kids. They put this team on their shoulders for four years and missing them come next year is an understatement,” McNichol said. “They’re two great kids that came through our program and really put us on the map.”