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High School Basketball:
Haddonfield Pulls It All Together Against Haddon Heights

Tuesday, March 7, 2006

By Susan Hall
SJSports Special Correspondent

It was a battle between two familiar opponents competing in the South Jersey Group 2 girls' basketball finals being held at Williamstown High School. The top ranked Lady Garnets from Haddon Heights were hosting the third seeded Bulldogs from Haddonfield and it would be another game to remember. These two teams from the Colonial Conference met twice during the regular season with both teams winning on their home court. This time at a neutral site, the Garnets halftime lead would be quickly erased during the third quarter and Haddonfield would control the game and the lead from that point on. The Lady Bulldogs would capture the Group 2 championship title with their 42-36 come from behind victory.

Haddon Heights had claim the Colonial Conference title this year beating out Haddonfield. In this finals game, it would be a chance for the Garnets to continue on their winning ways or Haddonfield to even up the title claim. Haddon Heights would struggle a bit during the opening quarter. The Bulldogs would watch their five point lead dwindle away as Heights would outscore their opponent by ten to take a 22-17 lead at intermission. During the first half, both teams would have a ton of support at the game which resembled playing in a big time college atmosphere.

The turning point of this game was the third quarter. After Haddon Heights led by five at halftime, Haddonfield held the Garnets scoreless for the first five and a half minutes of the third quarter and outscored Haddon Heights 14-4 in that quarter. During their initial minutes, Haddonfield went on a 9-0 run. The Garnets would battle back during the final quarter pulling to with three with a minute remaining in the game, but Haddonfield would be able to connect on their free throws down the stretch. Ryanne Donnellon (11 points), Annie Maloney (10 points) and Martha Lupinski (10 points) led Haddonfield in scoring. Meredith Kennedy led the Garnets in scoring with 13 points.

Photos by Mark Fletcher

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