Massive rally powers Waterloo state title: 'We put a lot of heart into this moment'
TROY - There really is no other way to put it: It was all heart.
The Waterloo girls, down by 10 at the end of the third quarter of Saturday’s Class B state championship game, found the spark for a massive rally that sent the Tigers to a 58-48 win over Putnam Valley and the first state championship in any sport in school history.
“No words,” said senior Jazzmyn Lewis, whose smile actually said plenty.
“We put a lot of heart into this moment,” senior Morgan Caraballo said.
C H A M P S !!!!!
Waterloo is a 58-48 winner in Class B! pic.twitter.com/JIHoznfWqb— Bob Chavez (@MPN_bchavez) March 18, 2023
Putnam Valley, with its clear height advantage, led 39-29 at the end of three quarters. But then the Tigers found a gear, getting baskets from Caraballo, an and-1 from Lewis and a 3-pointer from Caraballo to open the fourth and cut PV’s lead to 39-37.
The teams traded 3-pointers after that but then the Tigers cashed in with 3s from DiSanto and Addison Bree for a 48-42 lead. And while the Tigers were threatened in the final minutes, they never trailed again.
“That’s just what we do,” coach Mike Bree said. “In the fourth quarter, we were just waiting for that little spurt … we started getting some looks.”
Indeed, the Tigers closed the game on a 29-9 run. The 29 points in the fourth quarter matched their output for the first three.
“We just didn’t want to give up,” said Lewis.
What it means
Waterloo (26-1) is a state champ for the first time advances to next weekend’s Federation matchup.
Putnam Valley, which lost to Waterloo in last season’s state semifinal, ends its season with a 26-2 record.
Key moment
The start of the fourth quarter was the run that’s become as reliable as clockwork for Waterloo, even if it was a little late.
In the last three games, the Tigers used big runs in the third quarter to dispatch foes. But on Saturday, Waterloo trailed by 10 at the end of three.
The Tigers opened the fourth with 11 unanswered points, then got 3-pointers from DiSanto (twice) and Bree to take a 48-42 lead with just less than two minutes to go and clearly, Putnam Valley was rattled.
“Once we got the first couple of points in that quarter, we knew we weren’t done yet,” said DiSanto. “Once one person starts going, we just feed off each other.”
By the numbers
▶ Waterloo’s record over the last four seasons is 84-5.
▶ Waterloo went 10-for-12 from the free throw line in the final 1:29.
▶ Lewis led Waterloo with 20 points, Caraballo scored 17 and Bree scored 14.
▶ Naieliz Torres led Putnam Valley with 18 points and Eva Dechent scored 17.
▶ Putnam Valley had 12 steals, led by 5 from Dechent.
Caraballo drive for Waterloo.
Tigers lead 11-10 with 6:23 left in Q2 pic.twitter.com/ldvzC032D5— Bob Chavez (@MPN_bchavez) March 18, 2023
They said it
▶ Caraballo: “After last year’s loss, we came here to win it.”
▶ Coach Bree: “I didn’t know if we had enough to get back here this year, if we had enough height. But then our 3-point shooting took off. When you’re hitting 11 or 12 a game, that puts a lot of pressure on teams.”
▶ “We get to play again next week. When you have a group this long they’re really family. They finished it off the right way this year.”
This article originally appeared on MPNnow: Waterloo powers past Putnam Valley for state girls basketball title
