ALLI SAVES THE GAME....TWICE
The Four Sisters New Years Day 2009
L to R (oldest to youngest) Ashley, Kristi, Alli and Little Maddi
ALLI WINS THE GAME FOR SCHOOL SHE IS FEATURED IN THE GAZETTE SPORTS FRONT PAGE TODAY
I AM SOOOOO VERY PROUD OF YOU ALLI...WAY TO GO GIRLY!!!! YOU ROCK....ALL 6 FOOT ONE OF YOU!!!!
O**** beats buzzer, Marion clips Raiders
It was the moment, not a chill, that provided Alli O**** a goosebump moment. Alli tracked an errant shot, gathered it and scored at the buzzer to lift Class 3A fifth-ranked Marion past Williamsburg, 52-50, in a Wamac Conference West Division girls' basketball game last night at Marion High School."I've got shivers," said Alli, who bailed out the Indians (10-1 overall, 7-0 Wamac West) twice in the final moments.
Alli's three-point play gave Marion a 50-48 lead with 12 seconds left. But Brittany fouled Williamsburg's Hannah, who swished two free throws to tie the game with 10 ticks left. Sam lofted a 3-pointer from the left wing, but it was deflected and fell about 3 feet short of the rim. Alli grabbed the ball and scored as the horn sounded. "I saw Sam take the shot and I knew it was going to be short," Alli said. "I went for it, grabbed it and shot it."It all happened so fast."
Williamsburg (9-4, 6-2) rallied from a 10-point third-quarter deficit and took a 48-44 lead into the final minute. But the Indians wiggled off the hook at the end. Morgan hit a free throw with 52 seconds left, then drove for a basket with 30 seconds left to draw Marion within a point. After the Raiders turned it over in the back court, Leah fed Alli in the paint, and Alli scored while drawing a foul at the 0:12 mark."We didn't lose this game. Marion won it," said Williamsburg Coach Aaron Feddersen. "I'm really proud of our effort. We had a couple of chances to go away, but we didn't."Marion led 25-19 at halftime and took its largest advantage at 33-23 on Brittany 3-pointer with 3:30 left in the third quarter.The Raiders chipped away, tied it at 42-42 on Kiley's basket, then took the lead on Anne's hoop with 1:45 to go."(Williamsburg) just totally outplayed us," said Marion Coach Sherryl Gaffney-Paige. "Our energy was down. We were on our heels. We were out of sync."I'm looking forward to practice the next two nights. I think we'll go until midnight."Rinehart and Morgan scored 12 points apiece for the Indians. Fish and Alli added 11 each. Sam compiled 12 points and 13 rebounds for Williamsburg. Stecker scored 12. Marion will play at Maquoketa in an inter divisional game Friday; Williamsburg is at Anamosa.
ALLI IS ALSO ON TWITTER: http://jtlinder.wordpress.com/2009/01/21/oneill-saves-marion-twice/
O**** saves Marion — Twice
Alli O**** isn’t the first option in Marion’s offense. Nor the second or third.
But she saved the Indians’ bacon Tuesday night. Twice.
Alli converted a three-point play with 12 seconds left to give the Indians a 50-48 lead, then — after Williamsburg’s Hannah made two free throws to tie it — grabbed a deflected 3-point attempt by Sam, turned and beat the buzzer to give the Indians a 52-50 win.
“I’ve got shivers,” said Alli, who came into the game averaging 4.7 points per game but scored 11 Tuesday.