The Ansonia High Girls Basketball team opened their season Friday night in thrilling fashion.
The Lady Chargers defeated the St. Paul Falcons 42 – 37 in overtime at Thomas McQueeney Gymnasium in Ansonia.
Ansonia trailed for most of the 2nd half but their defense keep them within striking distance and they were able to pull away in overtime.
After a St. Paul 3‑pointer pushed the Falcons lead to 34 – 25 at the beginning of the 4th quarter, Ansonia’s defense tightened up and didn’t allow a basket the rest of the 4th quarter. The game was tied at 35 at the end of regulation.
The Lady Chargers used a 10 – 0 run in the 4th quarter to take a 35 – 34 lead with less than a minute to play.
Senior tri-captain guard Melissa Tirella scored all 10 of those points for Ansonia with her only three of the game, a three point play and two driving layups.
Tirella was 5 for 8 from the field in the 4th & OT after missing all but two of her shots in the 1st 3 quarters. She ended up with a game high 19 points.
Tirella took over in the fourth quarter after struggling with foul trouble earlier in the game.
The scoring outburst and a full court press led by tri-captains Tierney Lawlor and Quanisha Finney were the difference late in the game. Lawlor forced bad passes and Finney helped trap St. Paul guards to force several turnovers in the 4th quarter.
From the 7:45 mark of the 4th until a put back with 3 seconds left in OT, Ansonia’s defense held the Falcons to 1 point.
Everyone contributed for the Lady Chargers in the win.
Along with Tirella’s 19 points, she had a career high 8 rebounds. Lawlor controlled the offense as the point guard and added 8 points. Finney had 6 points and 4 rebounds. A trio of juniors rounded out the scoring. Morgan Westine hit 2 jumpers and played well defensively, Devon Champen hit a 3 pointer and collected 3 rebounds and Grace Keener was all over the court defensively and hit a driving bank shot in OT to push the lead to 42 – 35.
Ansonia travels to Watertown on Tuesday and hosts Valley rival Seymour Friday night.