By MIKE KEMMETER
of The Gazette
The two teams squaring off in the championship game of the CenterPoint MarketPlace 3-on-3 Tournament's Female 15-16 division had a lot in common.
Not only do the players on both teams play at Stevens Point Area Senior High, their team names were also the same.
But there was one major thing that the two didn't have in common - height in the middle - and it likely decided the game. With SPASH center Janel McCarville in the middle, The Final Four got an early lead and doubled up on The Final 4, 16-8.
The Final Four (comprised of Abbey Peterson, Michele Rosicky, Carla Zarecki and McCarville) used both McCarville's height and hot shooting from Rosicky and Peterson to pull away from The Final 4 (Nicole Gotta, Ashley Konopacki, Kara Kujawa and Susie Wolosek).
The Final Four used McCarville early for two baskets and then Rosicky and Peterson got going. The pair combined for seven of their team's next 10 points as The Final Four took a 12-6 lead.
"It was a nice lead to get. We had big leads the whole tournament," Peterson said.
Because normal two-point baskets counted as one point and 3-pointers were scored as two points, The Final 4 tried to catch up quickly by shooting 2-pointers. That strategy backfired, as the team shot just 2-of-7 from behind the arc.
With their opponent hitting nothing but iron, The Final Four wrapped up the championship game with hoops from McCarville and Peterson, and Zarecki and Peterson free throws.
Facing McCarville in the middle made match-ups tough for The Final 4. McCarville's teammates had several open shots and second chance points with the soon-to-be-junior in the post.
"We're all pretty short so Janel brought more to the game," Peterson said.
McCarville and Peterson shared the team lead with five points each. Michele Rosicky added four. Susie Wolosek had four points on a pair of 2-pointers for The Final 4.
While McCarville spent her time with the varsity team at SPASH last year, the others in the game got to play against each other in practice on a regular basis. But just because the teams knew each other very well, didn't mean the title game was anything different from a Wisconsin Valley Conference contest.
"It was really competitive. It's just like any other game," McCarville said.
Female 15-16 Championship Game
CenterPoint MarketPlace 3-on-3 Tournament
The Final Four 16, The Final 4 8
THE FINAL FOUR: Janel McCarville 4-8 1-4 5, Abbey Peterson 4-8 1-1 5, Michele Rosicky 4-8 0-0 4, Carla Zarecki 1-6 1-1 2. Totals: 13-30 3-6 16.
THE FINAL 4: Nicole Gotta 0-3, 0-0 0, Ashley Konopacki 1-5 1-1 2, Kara Kujawa 2-7 0-0 2, Susie Wolosek 2-10 0-1 4. Totals: 5-25 1-2 8.
2-point goals: The Final Four 0-0, The Final 4 2-7 (Konopacki 0-3, Kujawa 0-1, Wolosek 2-3).