By:Brian T. Dessart
Central Valley, N.Y. -- As Melissa Gelb left the court with 11 seconds left to play, cheers erupted for the second highest career scorer in East Rockaway girls' basketball history. But there was more meaning to Gelb's last basket, 31 seconds before she left the game, than the cheers could explain: This was her last high school game. Gelb has been East Rockaway's sole starting senior this season.
Despite Gelb's 10 points, eight of which came in the fourth quarter, East Rockaway lost to Haldane, 44-35, in the Class C Southeast Regional title game at Monroe-Woodbury High School last Sunday.
There was more to this game than just numbers on a scoreboard. For East Rockaway assistant coach Tim O'Hagan, this was the end of an era. Three seasons ago he met Gelb, who was then a freshman. From that point on, O'Hagan grew to know a girl who was more than just an exceptional athlete.
"[Gelb] keeps everyone together," said O'Hagan, who also refers to Gelb as "glue." "Whatever problems may occur during the season, she takes care of them. She is the most respected high school athlete I've ever seen -- on and off the court. She is the best kid I've ever coached."
For East Rockaway, which outscored Haldane 23-18 in the second half, the momentum came too late. The Lady Blue Devils held the Lady Rocks to just 12 first-half points.
After Meredith Levison nailed a 3-pointer from the left side arc with 3:35 left in the first quarter, moving East Rockaway up by one, 7-6, Haldane went on a 9-0 scoring spree in the last 3:01 of the quarter, due largely to Adrienne Juby's 7 points, which helped the Lady Blue Devils to a 15-7 lead. "Midway through the first quarter we had a little run," said fourth-year Haldane coach Bill O'Neill. "That was a momentum shifter and set the tone for the rest of the game."
Gelb scored the Lady Rocks' first basket in nearly five minutes with 6:53 to play in the second quarter. But Haldane again came alive, outscoring East Rockaway 5-0 to take a 26-12 halftime advantage.
"I don't think we played up to our potential," said East Rockaway head coach Karin Leary. "We came out sluggish and weren't boxing out. We didn't start going until the second half."
After Haldane's Brittany Shields' 6 third-quarter points put the score at 32-17, East Rockaway's Brittany Fuller hit for 2 points and then 3, keeping the Lady Rocks within shouting distance, 35-22.
East Rockaway's Levison secured 13 points, while Haldane's Juby, Shields and Olivia Nastasi contributed 11 apiece. "I think man-to-man we were pretty even with them," Leary said. "They just had the better game."
