The Salem CC women’s region playoff hopes rest with the season finale after road loss to Lackawanna
By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News
SCRANTON, Pa. — If the Salem CC women’s basketball team wants to play in the region playoffs for the first time in 20 years, it will have to win its final game of the regular season. There will be no scoreboard watching, except the one in Dupont Fieldhouse. It’ll all be on them.
The Mighty Oaks lost their final road game of the regular season Saturday, 72-57 at Lackawanna. It left them one game under .500 for the season and needing to beat Division III No. 15 Montgomery County CC Tuesday in a game already steeped with Sophomore Night emotion to qualify for the Region XIX playoffs.
They last time they had a .500 or better record that would have gotten them in the playoffs was 2005-06 (14-14).
“Nothing has been easy with this team this year so why would this last game be any different?” Mighty Oaks coach Brian Marsh said. “It all comes down to one game on Sophomore Day and it won’t be handed to us. We have to go get it.
“I have faith this team will do what is necessary and come away with the win in their last home game of the year.”
The Mighty Oaks got off to a slow start against the Falcons (16-6) and couldn’t recover. They shot just 3-of-16 from the floor in the first quarter and 7-of-29 in the first half and trailed by 15 at the break. Lackawanna scored 28 points in the paint and 19 points off Salem turnovers.
“We played hard and our energy was great, but our execution was poor,” Marsh said. “We missed a lot of layups.”
Two Salem CC players reached personal milestones in the game. Maggie St. Clair led the Mighty Oaks with 15 points and went over 500 points for her JUCO career. Kathryn Laurence hit two 3-pointers among her eight points to reach 100 treys for her career. She needs three points for 500.
“Very proud of Kathryn, who in my opinion is the best shooter in program history,” Marsh said. “Maggie is a dynamic scorer, so I expect her to score for us regardless of the opponent.”
LACKAWANNA 72, SALEM CC 56
SALEM CC (11-12): RayNescia King 0-0 0-0 0, Nyaijah Jackson 5-11 4-7 14, Caroline Zullo 3-10 0-0 6, Maggie St. Clair 4-22 6-7 15, Jakayla Jenkins 1-7 0-0 2, Kathryn Laurence 3-12 0-0 8, Dani Gustin 0-3 3-4 3, Akira Chambers 2-2 3-4 7, Alexa Hopkins 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 19-69 16-22 57.
LACKAWANNA (16-6): Eternity Aiken 4-5 3-4 11, Semi Young 0-4 3-4 3, Diamond Wilson 0-6 0-2 0, Sophia Suma 0-0 2-2 2, Salote Franklin 6-11 2-2 15, Desiree White 5-14 3-6 15, Jayla South 4-14 2-2 10, Saraiah Franklin 4-8 3-6 12, Kalea Ferguson 1-6 0-0 2, Anna Crocker 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 25-71 18-28 72.
| Salem CC | 9 | 13 | 14 | 21- | 57 |
| Lackawanna | 17 | 20 | 11 | 24- | 72 |
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