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Seattle Prep Senior Holly Tonry on the Dish

Cleveland Wins a Nail Biter vs. Prep, Wins 3A Metro Title
By Colin Caruso 

The stakes were high in a rematch of their December fifth meeting; the winner to take the #1 seed into the Sea-King district.  Cleveland topped Prep by five in their first contest, 42-37.  Seattle Prep started in a defensive 2-3 and occasional box and one zone, catching the Cleveland Eagles off guard and holding them to just eight first quarter points, all by Makayla Roper.  Prep took the lead after the first 11-8, led by senior Michaela Carew with seven.

Turnovers plagued the Panthers in the second quarter, losing the ball five times compared to Cleveland’s two.  Cleveland began the quarter on a 12-2 run, led by junior Alexia Mefi with seven points.  Prep’s Mary Ann Santucci kept the Panthers in the quarter with her first five points of the contest to cut the halftime lead to just four, 22-18.

The third quarter saw back and forth scoring, with the Eagles maintaining a slight lead.  Carew led the Panthers again in the third with eight points, while five Eagles scored field goals in the quarter.  Cleveland took a 36-31 lead into the final period.

Both teams maintained their excellent defense in the fourth quarter.  Each team forced five turnovers and neither team was able to get into an offensive rhythm.  Carew went down early in the fourth with an ankle injury, but Prep continued to battle without their leading scorer.  Clutch baskets down the stretch by Eagle junior Alexia Mefi secured the win for Cleveland, 43-40.

Top Performers:
Seattle Prep
Michaela Carew (16),
Nicole Hall (9)
Mary Ann Santucci (9)

Cleveland
Alexia Mefi (15)
Makayla Roper (15)