The Potomac Highlands Dispatch - the online newspaper

Mitchell's rally falls short, Trojans lose
* Allegany drops tournament quarterfinal game
* A day after holding off second-half
rally, Trojans fall short on one of their own
* Team still has shot at fifth-place finish

By Kevin Spradlin
PhDispatch.com
EAST PEORIA, Ill., March 16 -- A 3-pointer by Ashleigh Fossett capped a remarkable comeback attempt by Allegany College of Maryland in an NJCAA Division II National Tournament game.

But the Lady Trojans fell just short, losing 81-75 to Monroe (N.Y.) College. Allegany trailed by 18 points at halftime.

The Trojans drop to the consolation bracket and play again Thursday, March 17 at 4 p.m. EST., against seventh-seeded Patrick Henry. Tuesday's upset win over third-seeded Kankakee was the team's 29th win of the season - a school record.

Sophomore guard Kirksten Mitchell scored 22 of her game-high 30 points points in the second half, in which the Trojans tried valiantly to cut into an 18-point halftime deficit.

Poor shooting from the field and from the free throw line, along with untimely turnovers, in effective play from the bench and a porous defense combined to put Allegany in a 44-26 hole after 20 minutes of play.

Whatever coach Garett Sherman said in the locker room must have gotten to his players, however.

It all started with a rebound. Sophomore Tamara Nesmith grabbed the first rebound of the second half - a feat the Trojans struggled mightily with only a day after dominating third-seeded Kankakee.

Nesmith's effort was contagious. The Trojans opened up the second half with an 11-0 run. A bucket by Mitchell made it 48-41 Monroe with about 15 minutes left in the game. The Mustangs answered, though. They went on an 8-4 run to open up a 12-point lead.

Mitchell helped bring it back to within nine points with 3:05 to play - 70-61 - when she made a layup and made the free throw shot off the foul. Monroe pulled ahead 74-61 but again Allegany charged - or, rather, Mitchell did. She scored six points, including two free throws, to pull the Trojans within 75-67 with 49.3 seconds left on the clock.

After a Monroe bucket, Mitchell scored again and Fossett hit a 3-pointer with still more than 31 seconds left on the clock as Allegany trailed just 77-72.

The Trojans would get closer, as Monroe suddenly had trouble hitting free throws. After the Mustangs hit only two of four attempts from the foul line, Fossett hit another 3-pointer to pull within 79-75 with eight ticks on the clock.

Shanee Williams held off any thoughts Allegany had about completing the comeback when she made both free throws with 3.2 seconds left in the game to make it a tie require at least two Allegany possessions.