SALISBURY, MD. – The Apprentice School Lady Builders went 8-for-8 from the foul line in the last 53 seconds as they came from behind to defeat Salisbury 65-60 in the final day of the Optimist Classic.
With the win they extend their school best start to 7-0 and defeat Salisbury for the first time in school history after losing the previous four matchups.
Salisbury opened the game on a 7-2 spurt to take that advantage on a Nicole Sisco layup with 16:37 left. Apprentice School scored the next six points to take its first lead on a Jasmine Pringle 3-pointer 49 seconds later. The score was tied three times over the next 4:34 before a pair of Sisco free throws gave Salisbury a 14-12 lead with 11:14 left.
The hosts pushed that lead to nine points on a Sisco layup with five minutes left for a 25-16 lead. Salisbury took an eight point lead into halftime on the strength of a Glen Charlton layup with 20 seconds left for a 34-26 lead.
In the second half, Salisbury scored the first four points to take its largest lead of the night at 38-26 in a Milan Dry jumper a minute into the final stanza. Apprentice School cut the deficit to 43-40 on a layup from Arynn Easom with 13:34 left, but Salisbury quickly pushed the lead back to eight points at 51-43 on a pair of KC Curran free throws with 9:40 remaining.
The Lady Builders didn't take their first lead of the second half until a pair of Courtney Collins free throws with 4:12 left gave them a 54-52 lead. Salisbury tied the game twice more and took what turned into its final lead on a Curran 3-pointer with 1:26 left for a 58-55 advantage.
A pair of Tysheka Simpson free throws with 53 seconds left cut the lead to one and following a turnover Simpson hit a layup with 27 seconds left to put Apprentice up 59-58. After another Salisbury turnover Pringle hit a pair of free throws with 22 seconds left to push the lead to 61-58. Chante' McKinney scored with 11 seconds left for Salisbury cutting the lead down to 61-60, but Pringle hit another pair of free throws with five seconds left for a 63-60 lead. On the ensuing possession, Ashley Johnson stole the ball and hit two free throws with one second left for the 65-60 win.
Danita Whitaker and Johnson were the leading scorers with 11 points apiece for the Lady Builders, while Pringle chipped in with 10 points. Curran was the top scorer for Salisbury with 15 points.
Apprentice School next faces Rochester College (Mich.) in the Penn State Brandywine/USCAA Invitational on Friday night in Media, Pa. at 6 pm
APPRENTICE 65, SALISBURY 60
APPRENTICE (7-0): Danita Whitaker 5-8 1-1 11; Ashley Johnson 4-6 3-3 11; Jasmine Pringle 1-1 7-8 10; Courtney Collins 3-10 3-3 9; Tamara Davis 1-4 4-5 6; Tysheka Simpson 2-9 2-2 6; Tyisha Battle 1-5 2-2 4; Denise Hamilton 1-9 1-2 4; Christina Licano 1-3 0-0 2; Arynn Easom 1-2 0-0 2; Brittanie Herriott 0-0 0-0 0; LaTorya Grimes 0-1 0-1 0. Totals 20-58 23-27 65.
SALISBURY (3-4): KC Curran 5-11 2-2 15; Nicole Sisco 5-9 4-7 14; Glen Charlton 5-15 1-5 12; Meghan Dunn 3-7 0-0 6; Katie McGahagan 3-6 0-0 6; Milan Dry 1-6 1-2 3; Emily Bowles 1-3 0-0 2; Chante' McKinney 1-4 0-0 2; Tabitha Russell 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-61 8-16 60.
Halftime- Salisbury 34-26.
3-point goals--Apprentice 2-9 (Denise Hamilton 1-2; Jasmine Pringle 1-1; Tamara Davis 0-1; Tysheka Simpson 0-2; Christina Licano 0-1; LaTorya Grimes 0-1; Ashley Johnson 0-1), Salisbury 4-10 (KC Curran 3-6; Glen Charlton 1-4). Fouled out--Apprentice-None, Salisbury-Nicole Sisco. Rebounds--Apprentice 40 (Danita Whitaker 7; Courtney Collins 7), Salisbury 37 (Katie McGahagan 8). Assists--Apprentice 9 (Courtney Collins 3), Salisbury 15 (KC Curran 6). Total fouls--Apprentice 16, Salisbury 25. Technical fouls--Apprentice-None, Salisbury-None. A-105
2010 Optimist Classic