It’s pretty clear with a game a little more than 12 hours later, St. Anne’s-Belfield’s girls basketball team was playing with fire Saturday afternoon in its clash with Episcopal.
“That’s the danger of playing the night before,” said STAB coach Phil Stinnie. “We played very well last night, and then when you have a short turnaround, (things get a little) stagnant. But once the second quarter came and we had that nice heart-to-heart after the first quarter, they turned it on.”
The Saints got rolling in a big way, transforming a tie game early in the second quarter into a comfortable lead by halftime as the Saints blew past Episcopal 75-39.
The Saints, ranked No. 3 in VISAA’s Division I created a rash of turnovers during the second quarter and converted them into easy points against the No. 7-ranked Maroon.
STAB point guard Bri Tinsley, coming off a 32-point performance Friday night in the 82-40 victory over Collegiate, notched her 1,000th career point in the second quarter on a 3-pointer to tie the game at 15-15. Tinsley finished with 26 points, five assists and four steals in another explosive performance against Episcopal.
“She’s a special player,” Stinnie said. “To do it this early is a testament to her hard work and to her team around her because she’s a pass first type of kid but her team looks out for her and makes sure that they give her the same passes that she gives them.”
Senior Ashley Taylor was lights out for the Saints beyond the arc, knocking down five 3-pointers en route to a 23-point night. Taylor also managed seven rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Jovia Winkey put together a strong second half finishing at the basket and also hit two 3-pointers to pile up 12 points, just three off her season high of 15. Winkey led the Saints with five steals on the night as part of an 18-steal effort as a team.
Sierra Smith, as per usual, led the Saints on the boards with 13 rebounds. She also snagged three steals.
Freshman Vanessa Woodfolk had six rebounds and two blocks to go with six points including a solid midrange jumper off a Tinsley assist in the first half.
After a six day lay-off, the Saints will host St. Catherine’s next Friday in the squad’s regular season home finale.
