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There was excitement in the air at Our Lady of Lourdes High School on Dec. 20 when the Poughkeepsie Pioneers arrived to battle the homestanding Warriors. The crowd was near capacity for a game that stayed close throughout, with the Pioneers finally shaking off a game-long malaise to take control in the fourth quarter and win 52-47.
Poughkeepsie head coach Brian Laffin said after the game that the team “wasn’t feeling too good in the first three quarters.”
But their determination eventually paid off.
“We didn’t bring our ‘A’ game, and we were kind of scrappy,” he said.
After a defensive-minded first quarter, Lourdes held a two-point edge at 13-11 with six minutes left in the second period. The Pioneers struggled with turnovers, and despite the Warriors fouling themselves into penalty, the Pioneers could not seem to profit from the free throws off personal fouls.
Lourdes continued to lengthen its lead before Poughkeepsie’s Brandon James halted the momentum with a bucket a minute before the half, but a quick answer from Lourdes made the score 21-14 Warriors at intermission.
Trading baskets seemed to be the theme of the night, with Lourdes answering nearly every Poughkeepsie score through the first three frames. The third quarter was a repeat performance from both teams, with Lourdes hitting a three-pointer at the outset and adding three free throws to bring the score to 27-14 to start the action.
Faced with a 13-point deficit though, Poughkeepsie fought back, using pressure defense to create scoring opportunities. Capping a 10-4 run, a Pioneer basket by Taquan Webb brought the score to 31-24, but an immediate Lourdes putback off a missed basket restored the Warriors to a nine-point margin.
The teams then traded three-pointers, with Poughkeepsie’s Antonio Williams answering a Lourdes shot with one of his own with under two minutes left in the third period, and the quarter ended with Lourdes up 36-28.
Pedal to the metal
But as the fourth quarter began, the Pioneers awoke from their slumber, leaving the Warriors in their wake.
Early in the period, some deft passing between Williams, Webb and Duane Clark resulted in an easy Clark basket, keeping Poughkeepsie close. Two minutes into the quarter, the score was 40-34 when Webb drove undefended down the middle and dished to James for a short jumper.
The crowd tried to urge Lourdes back into the game but Poughkeepsie kept the pressure on, and when James nailed another basket with about five minutes left, the Lourdes lead was cut to two at 40-38. The Pioneers kept coming, as Webb blocked a three-point shot, recovered the ball and drove the length of the floor for a wide-open dunk. At the two-and-a-half minute mark, Poughkeepsie’s Dayvone Whitaker forced another turnover with a mid-air steal before passing downcourt to Clark, who made the shot to give the Pioneers a three-point lead, 48-45.
Making up for lost opportunities throughout the first three quarters, Poughkeepsie ratcheted up the pressure as Clark nailed another shot with under 45 seconds left. After getting the ball back from Lourdes, Poughkeepsie ran the clock out with the final score 52-47.
Laffin said his team was able to overcome the poor effort through three quarters by keeping their defensive effort throughout.
“We fought through the adversity and turned up the juice on the pressure,” Laffin said. “Lourdes is a great team, but we got some pressure on the ball.”
The Pioneers will be in action this weekend as a part of the Dutchess County Coaches Association Annual Holiday Tournament, which takes place through Dec. 30 at Lourdes High School.
