For the first time this season, Gilroy showed an ability to come
from behind and hold on at the end.
For the first time this season, Gilroy showed an ability to come from behind and hold on at the end.
The Mustangs, trailing by 17 in the first half Thursday, rallied in the last eight minutes to finish the Tri-County Athletic League season with a 48-46 win over host Alisal.
The win allowed Gilroy to finish tied with Salinas at 8-4 in the league, behind champion North Salinas. The Cowboys defeated Notre Dame 41-29.
It was a different story for the Mustangs (17-6 overall) than their previous game Tuesday against Salinas. In that game, Gilroy trailed by 14, took a three-point lead in the fourth quarter, and couldn’t hold the lead.
This time, the Mustangs were behind 29-17 at halftime. Vanessa Wilkins rallied GHS with six of her 14 points in the third period, including her third halfcourt buzzer-beater of the season at the end of the quarter. That pulled the Mustangs within 36-33.
“That changed the momentum,” GHS coach James Wilkins said. “We started playing defense very well in the fourth quarter. Laura Spellman hit a big trey and Dana Schoeneman controlled the boards.”
Schoeneman’s shot put the Mustangs ahead for the first time in the game, 38-36. Gilroy went to a triangle-and-two defense in the fourth quarter with Wilkins on Krystal Gutierrez and Laura Spellman on Valdes, and neither team scored. Hazel Gapol led the Trojans (9-15, 3-9) with 14 points.
Angela Silveira came up big offensively in the second half and finished with a game-high 15 points and had three steals. Schoeneman had 17 rebounds and three steals. Wilkins had nine rebounds and five assists.
The Mustangs have qualified for the Central Coast Section playoffs. They will find out Saturday who, when and where.
Gilroy (48)-Tabilas 0, Schoeneman 9, A. Spellman 4, L. Spellman 4, Wilkins 14, Preeshl 0, Silveira 15, Magill 0, Pineda 2. Totals 20 3-6 48.
Alisal (46)-Gapol 14, Ruvalcaba 2, Martinez 5, Valdes 6, Salvador 2, Zuvala 0, Roland 2, Bernal 5, Baracio 2, Gutierrez 8. Totals 19 1-10 46.
Gilroy 6 11 16 15 – 48
Alisal 13 16 7 10 – 46
3-point goals: GHS, Wilkins 4, L. Spellman. AL, Gapol 4, Valdes 2, Martinez.
