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CHICAGO HEIGHTS — A lot of things went the way Providence Catholic‘s girls basketball team wanted it to Thursday against Marian Catholic in the Class 3A Marian Catholic Sectional championship game.
Unfortunately for the Celtics, the final score didn’t end up how they wanted, as Marian Catholic came away with a hard-fought 33-29 win, ending Providence’s hope for its first sectional title since the 2019-2020 season.
“We were in a position to win it in the fourth quarter,” Providence senior guard Molly Knight said. “Their defense sped us up and we didn’t get a lot of the shots we wanted, but our defense kept us in the game. We were able to slow the game down and not let them get out and run.
“I am very proud of this team. We gelled as the season went on and we were playing our best at the end, which is what you want to do.”
Knight, a University of Illinois-Springfield recruit who had seven points and eight rebounds, got the Celtics off to a 3-0 lead by hitting a 3-pointer for the game’s first basket nearly two minutes into the first quarter. Marian Catholic took a 10-7 lead late in the first, but Providence, which finishes with a record of 23-12, got a basket by Claire Wajda and a 3-pointer by Eilish Raines to end the first with a 12-10 lead.
The Marian Catholic defense clamped down on the Celtics in the second quarter, allowing just one point - a free throw by Knight - and the Spartans were able to take a 17-13 lead into halftime.
“We turned it over too many times in the first half,” Providence coach Eileen Copenhaver said. “We needed to take care of the basketball better, and we did that in the second half.”
Scoring remained at a premium in the third quarter. Marian Catholic got a 3-pointer from Taylor Bolton (13 points, 10 rebounds) to start the quarter before Taylor Healy, who had a game-high 17 points to go with 10 rebounds, scored for Providence off an assist from Knight. Bolton added a putback basket for the Spartans, and Knight hit a 3-pointer late in the quarter as Marian took a 22-18 lead into the fourth.
With Providence trailing 24-20, Healy converted an old-fashioned three-point play to make it 24-23 with 2:45 to play. Marian’s Autumn Poisson then delivered a 3-pointer from the top of the key for a 27-23 lead with 1:53 to go. At the 1:23 mark, Healy scored underneath for the Celtics, tightening things up to 27-25. Bolton then hit a pair of free throws with 1:07 left before Healy scored again 10 seconds later.
Poisson hit a free throw with :41 to play, and teammate Gracie Jensen did the same at the :25 mark to make it 31-27. Healy scored for Providence to make it 31-29 with 12.2 seconds left, but Bolton iced it with a pair of free throws with 11.4 to play.
“I am so proud of these girls,” Copenhaver said. “This was one of those games where if one or two plays go our way, the game goes our way. That didn’t happen for us tonight, but the girls did awesome.
“Molly and Taylor have been leading us all year and they did again tonight. This is the last of nine years for me with a Knight starting at point guard. Molly’s two sisters started before her. It’s not a bittersweet ending to that run. It’s just bitter that I won’t have any more.
“This team had great energy all year. Not just the ones who got the most playing time, but every single girl. They went hard in practice and pushed their teammates. That competition was what made us better as the year went on. It wasn’t coaching or anything like that. The girls did it themselves, and I think that was fantastic.”