30 seconds remain and Roselle Catholic leads Westfield 46-43. Westfield controlled the play, but unfortunately, did not put a shot up to the basket and the buzzer sounded, giving Westfield their second loss of the season.
Neither team had a win entering the game, with the Blue Devils having lost to Cranford by 15 in their season opener and Roselle Catholic being defeated by New Providence.
The first quarter started off at a slower pace than expected, neither team being able to hit a lot of their shots, resulting in the score being 9-3 at the end of the quarter, with Westfield in the lead.
In the second quarter, Westfield started to pick up their pace, playing staunchly on their defensive half of the court and capitalizing on their offensive opportunities. As the game progressed, the intensity and tension ramped up as the two teams drew closer together.
With 42 seconds left in the half, Westfield freshman Catherine Oliveira swished a 3-point shot to give the Blue Devils a 21-18 lead. A defensive stop with only 6 seconds left could have seen Westfield enter the second half with a three point lead, but a miscue on an inbound play led to a strip by Roselle Catholic and putting in an easy layup to cut the lead to a single point.
The third quarter began with intense back and forth play, but three minutes in, with the score at 24-24, Roselle Catholic went on a hot streak. Notching an interrupted 9 points to break the deadlock between the two teams.
Westfield entered the final quarter down 11, 37-26. A little adversity never hurt anyone, though, has it? Though the Blue Devils allowed a quick 2-point shot from Roselle Catholic, they came back to tie the game, at 38-38, morphing the game back into a competitive match. During that comeback, a captain led by example. Senior Sara Rooney finished the day with 12 points, seven of which came in the fourth quarter comeback.
Through the last four minutes, no team could hold the lead. Every basket was matched and the lead changed multiple times. With 30 seconds remaining, Roselle Catholic banked home a three point shot.
21 seconds remained and Westfield had possession. They controlled the ball for the remainder of the game, but with a three pointer being the only option, the Roselle Catholic defense held off the Blue Devils attack, preventing them from even getting a shot up.
The buzzer sounded, and Roselle Catholic notched their first win, leaving Westfield still in search of their own. “We really picked it up since we played on Thursday, our loss against Cranford. It’s a new team and I think we are going to keep on getting better every day,” said Rooney.
Westfield takes on rival Scotch Plains-Fanwood, on the road, on Tuesday, Dec. 19.
