BALTIMORE, MD-Sophomore guard April Sparkman
(Walkersville, Md./Walkersville) poured in a career-high
21 points to lead the York College Spartans to a 70-61 victory over
Johns Hopkins in the championship game of the Mike Durgala Memorial
Tournament in Baltimore on Sunday afternoon. The Spartans improve
to 3-1 overall as they have won three straight while the tournament
hosts fall to 1-1 for the campaign.
Sparkman was big for the Spartans all weekend
as she gotten off to a great start in her second year in the green
and white. With the Blue Jays leading 33-32 early in the second
half, Sparkman hit back-to-back threes that kick started a 9-2
Spartan run that gave them a lead they would not relinquish the
rest of the way. Hopkins cut the lead to four at 45-41 but York
fashioned an 8-1 run that pushed the Green and White lead to 11 at
53-42. Hopkins couldn't get any closer than eight until
Caitlin Sloane hit a three with 10 seconds left in the game to cut
York's lead to seven. Senior Amanda Andrews
(Fallston, Md./Fallston) drained a pair of free throws
with eight seconds left to ice the win and provide the Spartans
with their final nine point margin of victory.
The first half saw the Spartans hold a majority
of the momentum but York was unable to deliver the knockout blow in
the opening 20 minutes. York held a nine point lead at 26-17 on a
Sparkman three with 6:39 remaining in the half but the Blue Jays
responded with an 11-2 run to tie the game at 28. That was the
third, but not last, tie of the half as the two teams traded free
throws in the final 1:47 of the half. The game went to the break
tied at 30.
Sparkman finished the game with five rebounds,
three assists, and two blocks in addition to her game-high 21
points. Sparkman was 5-for-9 from three and 4-for-4 from the
charity stripe en route to her career-high scoring night. Senior
Keli Ward (Nottingham, Pa./Oxford) joined Sparkman
on the all-tournament team as she tallied a double-double with 13
points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Ward added two assists and a
steal in 35 minutes of action. Senior Chanel Perez
(Biglerville, Pa./Gettysburg) was the third Spartan in
double figures with 10 points while she also pulled in seven
rebounds. Andrews contributed nine points, seven rebounds, and
three assists.
Senior forward Kristin Phillips paced the Blue
Jays with 20 points and nine rebounds. Phillips was 6-for-10 from
the floor including 2-for-4 from three while she was also 6-for-9
from the free throw line. Fellow forward Lyndsay Burton came off
the bench to recorded 11 points and six rebounds as she was only
other Blue Jay in double figures. Anastasia Wynn contributed eight
points and seven rebounds while Sloane chipped in with eight
points, two rebounds, and two assists.
The Spartans finished the game shooting
40.4% from the floor and 33.3% from three. The Spartans
won the game with their stellar 18-for-21 (85.7%) mark from the
free throw line. Conversely, the Blue Jays may have lost the game
at the charity stripe as they went a dismal 15-for-27 (55.6%). The
Blue Jays shot 32.8% from the floor while they converted
31.6% (6-for-19) from three for the game.
York won the battle of the boards for the third
time this year as they held a 45-38 edge on the glass. The Spartans
also held a 30-16 edge in points in the paint while the Blue Jays
had a 14-9 margin in second-chance points.
The tournament championship is York's
fourth straight in-season tournament championship. The Spartans won
both of their in-season tournaments last year and their second
tournament during the 2005-06 season.
York returns to action on Tuesday evening when
they travel to Towson, MD to face former Capital Athletic
Conference rival Goucher College in a non-conference contest. The
game is scheduled to tip at 5:30 pm.
GAME BOX
