By: J. Daniel Pearson
No. 3 state-ranked Gateway left no doubt in the Orange Belt Conference girls basketball championship, jumping out early and rolling to a 64–29 victory over Harmony to secure its second straight OBC title.
The Panthers (17-2 ) jumped out in front early, built a 35-point lead by the third quarter and cruised to a 64-29 win over second-seeded Harmony (13-3). It was total dominance by Gateway, who outscored its opposition by 121 points in its three tournament wins (200-73). All three games went to a running clock in third quarter under the FHSAA “mercy rule”.
Gateway jumped out to a 18-6 lead in the first period as sophomore Ashlynn Day scored six points. Day and Evana Rivera added six more each in the second frame as the Panthers pushed the lead to 28 at 40-12.
The Panther defense limited the Longhorns to just six points in each of the first three quarters and when Rivera hit a three-pointer at the 3:33 mark of the third period, it pushed the lead to 35 and triggered the running clock.
Day, who scored a game-high 21 points, added seven more in the third to push the lead to 54-18. From there the Panthers coasted to the win. Rivera added 15 in the game and senior captain Alyssa Marino scored 10 while directing the Panther offense.
Harmony, was held to just six made field goals in the first three quarters, were led by Emerson Aslan and Jayme Montanez – who scored nine points each.
“Despite the overall talent level in the county being down, winning OBC’s still means something to our players. They have been competing against each other since middle school so I know they were excited to take care of business tonight. Still, playing these three games ended up hurting our strength of schedule and could hurt us in the rankings,” Gateway Coach Justin Marino said.
Fortunately for the Panthers, they will have plenty of opportunity build their resume in the final two weeks of the regular season. After a home game against Four Corners (1/20), the Panthers will finish the season facing three teams that are all ranked in the FHSAA Top 20 in their classifications.
Those contests include a Jan. 24 road game against Bishop Moore (15-4), the state’s top ranked team in Class 4A. The Panthers will also face Central Florida Christian Academy (13-4, #11 in Class 1A) on the road and take on Villages Charter (13-7, 14th in 3A) in the regular season finale.
“There’s no better way to get ready for the post-season that heavy load the back end of the schedule,” Marino said. “Right now I like the way we are competing and playing and look forward to the challenges ahead.”
Orange Belt Conference Girls Basketball Championship
Quarterfinals (1/13)
Tohopekaliga 32, St. Cloud 25
Harmony 47, Liberty 6
Gateway 65, Osceola 22
Celebration 52, Poinciana 40
Semifinals (1/14)
Harmony 45, Tohopekaliga 28
Gateway 73, Celebration 22
Championship
Gateway 62, Harmony 29
