Mixed emotions
Butler ruins NC's shot at perfection

By John Enrietto
Eagle Sports Editor

NEW CASTLE — The original plan wasn't working, so Butler girls basketball coach Dorothea Epps turned to an old friend: straight up man-to-man defense.
"We've won a lot of games with that over the years," Epps said.
The Golden Tornado won another one with it Friday night, rallying past New Castle for a 47-41 victory.
The Red Hurricanes (20-3, 13-1) sank 13 of 22 shots in the first half and had a 32-23 lead at intermission.
"Our plan was to play a sagging man-to-man and take away (Jaleesa) Sams' production in the post," Epps said. "But Jaleesa was still too involved in their offense. She's a good passer and was able to dish the ball back out.
"We wanted to force (Nikki) Karatinos and (Logan) Hartman to hit shots, and, to their credit, they did."
Karatinos sank a 3-pointer in the second quarter and Hartman connected on four jumpers to help New Castle build its first-half lead.
"Up by nine at halftime. … We needed to do something with that," New Castle coach Luann Grybowski said.
They didn't.
The 'Canes sank only 3 of 23 field goal attempts while scoring only nine points in the second half. Butler (16-7, 9-5), which hadn't led since the 3:05 mark of the first quarter, finally regained the lead, 42-41, on a short jumper by Amy Achesinski with 3:29 left in the game.
Achesinski scored nine of her game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter.
"I'm one of the captains on this team," Achesinski said. "I felt like I needed to take control."
Sams was in foul trouble and so was 6-foot sophomore forward Hartman. Both fouled out late in the game.
"I wanted to double-team Achesinski down the stretch," Grybowski said. "With our foul situation, we didn't have that luxury."
Butler wanted to put the game away at the foul line. It just didn't.
From the 2:05 mark to the 30-second mark of the final quarter, the Tornado missed seven consecutive free throws while clinging to that 42-41 lead.
"I kept thinking, 'Here we go again,'" Epps said. "We've lost so many times in the fourth quarter because of our inability to make free throws."
Maria Baroffio missed a pair of free throws with 30 seconds left to complete the run of seven errant attempts. Hartman snared the rebound for New Castle.
Baroffio stole Hartman's lob pass, drove to the hoop, laid it in and was fouled. She completed the three-point play and Butler had a 45-41 edge with 26 seconds left.
Julie Ehrman and Achesinski added a free throw each in the final seconds to account for the final score.
"It's so tough making foul shots in those situations," Baroffio said. "Everybody in the place is screaming, you're trying to stay focused and the ball feels like it weighs 50 pounds.
"When I missed those shots, I felt terrible. I just wanted to redeem myself. I jumped in front of that pass and the ball landed right in my hands. … I got lucky."
Achesinski had seven rebounds to go with her 22 points. Samantha Karns contributed eight points and six boards for the Tornado.
Butler had clinched a playoff spot Thursday night when Shaler lost to Fox Chapel. The Tornado's win Friday denied Shaler a playoff berth.
"What happened Thursday took the pressure off us," Achesinski said. "We still wanted this game, though. This gives us momentum and a better position in the seeding."
Hartman led New Castle with 12 points. Ryenn Micaletti added 11 and Sams had seven rebounds, but only four points.
A New Castle win would have made the Hurricanes the first team ever to go unbeaten in Section 3-AAAA play. Friday's loss also spoiled a previously perfect record at home.
"We were going for history. It just didn't happen," Grybowski said.
"I guess we're kind of like the Steelers," Epps said. "We play better on the road than we do at home."
Butler heads to the WPIAL playoffs riding a three-game winning streak, including road wins at Seneca Valley and New Castle.
"We fought our way in," Epps said. "And I like the way we're playing right now."
BUTLER 47
Abby Herrit 1-1 0-0 2, Rachel Barry 0-0 0-0 0, Lyndsy Day 1-2 3-5 5, Amy Achesinski 8-14 6-8 22, Maria Baroffio 1-1 2-5 4, Julie Ehrman 1-6 1-4 4, Samantha Karns 4-9 0-2 8, Ashley Nocera 1-1 0-0 2, Michelle Ritchey 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 17-34 12-24 47
NEW CASTLE 41
Ryenn Micaletti 4-12 3-4 11, Abby Allen 1-2 0-0 2, Nikki Karatinos 1-7 2-3 5, Logan Hartman 5-11 2-2 12, Shirl Jones 1-2 0-0 2, Jaleesa Sams 2-9 0-0 4, Kara Joseph 1-1 0-0 3, Julianna Guido 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 16-45 7-9 41
3-point goals: Ehrman; Karatinos, Joseph