Despite having only five players on its roster, Goodfellow Printing/Imprinted Sportswear was able to pull off a 79-70 overtime victory against Active Endeavors/McCurry’s in Game Time League play Thursday night.
With 10 seconds remaining in regulation and the contest tied at 66, Iowa sophomore Shante Jones of Goodfellow/Imprinted drove the lane and pulled up for a 10-foot jumper, but it was off the mark.
Incoming Iowa freshman Jamie Printy then launched a last-second half-court shot for Active Endeavors/McCurry’s that bounced off the side of the rim.
Goodfellow/Imprinted took advantage of the overtime period and put a dagger into the hopes of ActiveEndeavors/ McCurry’s when Brooke Quigley of Ellsworth Community College finished a three-point play to push the score to 72-66 with 1:50 left in overtime — its largest lead of the game to that point. Goodfellow/Imprinted eventually took an 11-point lead after Jones sunk two free throws with 30 seconds left to make it 79-68.
Jones had a spectacular game, scoring a game-high 30 points on 12-for-26 shooting from the field and contributing six assists.
The Dayton, Ohio, native attributed pushing the ball up the court and making smart passes as keys to the win. The team kept a positive attitude the whole game despite having no one to come off the bench, she said.
“We were just really optimistic,” Jones said. “Even though we had five, we just kept telling ourselves we are going to win tonight, and we just kept motivating ourselves.”
ActiveEndeavors/McC-urry’s started the game hot, riding the back of Iowa senior-to-be JoAnn Hamlin, who scored 10 first-half points. Active Endeavors/McCurry’s led by as much as seven in the first half, but every time it appeared poised to pull away, Jones and Goodfellow/Imprinted had an answer. The squad came back to force a 36-36 tie at the half.
“When you only have five players, it’s really tough,” Goodfellow/Imprinted head coach Brendan Unkrich said. “We just tried to slow the game down as much as possible, and we played really good defense. The girls deserve so much credit; they played hard the whole game.”
The team’s competitive drive was an important component of the win, he said.
“When you play the game, you always want to win,” he said. “As long as you can keep it close, the energy comes because you just find it. It’s the adrenaline.”
Active Endeavors/McCurry’s was able to hold the lead for most of the second half but could never push it over four points. Goodfellow/Imprinted eventually took a 61-59 lead with four minutes left in regulation, and three more lead changes followed.
Her team down 66-64, Printy was fouled with 25 seconds left. The Marion native showed impressive clutch shooting, hitting both free throws to tie the game.
Printy struggled from the field in the first half, only scoring four points, but she warmed up in the second half and finished with 15 points.
She credited Goodfellow/Imprinted with making big shots down the stretch and said the loss could be a good learning experience for her team.
“Anytime you lose a close game like this, it can make you stronger as a team,” Printy said. “Hopefully, we can learn from our mistakes and play better next time.”