Thoughts From St. Frances at McDonogh

In this pandemic shortened season it was awesome to see St. Frances and McDonogh,  two perennial IAAM A conference contenders get a chance to square off. There were questions about whether or not there would even be a season due to Covid19, but these teams were able to schedule 10 or so games, this one being the marquee matchup for both. There will be no IAAM post season so this was as close to a championship game that we will get. Mcdonogh jumped out to a big first quarter lead, St. Frances rallied in the second and took the lead in the third. The teams traded blows in the fourth quarter and Mcdonogh made just enough plays down the stretch to pull it out 60-58 behind two late free throws by [player_tooltip player_id="27873" first="Nekhu" last="Mitchell"]. [player_tooltip player_id="136403" first="Jayla" last="Oden"], 2021, McDonogh, Point Guard Jayla had a strong game, leading all scorers with 26 points. She came out the gate firing and help the Eagles build a big lead, then made big buckets down the stretch to help close the game out. She’s headed to Illinois next year and looks ready. [player_tooltip player_id="27870" first="Jalyn" last="Brown"], 2022, St. Frances, Wing Jalyn had a really solid game overall scoring 22 points and making some big buckets to keep the Panthers in it. Her versatility is what makes her so tough. She’s a sniper from long range, and at 6’2" can play four positions on both ends of the court. A couple of miscues down the stretch tarnished what was a solid effort. She is sorting through a number of big time offers. <strong>Keonte Lewis, 2021, Guard</strong> It was good to see Keonte get some meaningful minutes in a big game like this. She came over from Pikesville last year where she was a starter logging heavy minutes, and barely played at St. Frances. She looked good in this game and gave the Panthers some strong minutes, knocking down a three pointer and playing her signature strong defense. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="238688" first="Tatum" last="Greene"], 2024, Wing</strong> I’ve known Tatum since she was about three years old so it was good to see her for the first time in a high school game. At 6'1 she's much taller than when I first met her. She played like a freshman, rushing some shots on occasion but she never looked overwhelmed. She shot the ball with confidence and knocked some shots down. Defensively her length and instincts really bothered whoever she was guarding. She's a good rebounder and her ball handling is emerging. She's going to have a good career and already has some Power five offers in her pockets. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;