There is stubbornness to Amani Tatum – the good kind.
Archbishop Molloy goes through the peaks and valleys of being a young team from game to game, sometimes half to half and quarter to quarter. The Stanners were in the midst of one of those lulls in the third quarter following a strong first half, but Tatum refused to let a Bishop Kearney run turn catastrophic.
“Once they started coming back I just said in my head, ‘Don’t let up.’” the sophomore point guard said. …“When they were coming back it was like we can’t let this happen. We’ve done it before, but we couldn’t allow it. I had to step up.”
Tatum didn’t get it done so much with points of her own as she did creating them for others. Her penetration and defense helped turn what became just a three-point third quarter lead into a comfortable 62-45 win over visiting Kearney in CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens Division I girls basketball at Jack Curran Gymansium Monday night. Tatum finished with eight points, seven assists and 10 steals.
“Amani is our leader on the court,” said senior guard Elizabeth (Gurt) Lynch, who scored 14 points. “It’s obvious that when she keeps her cool we can get back in it.”
Added Stanners coach Tom Catalanotto: “She is the engine to this machine.”
Molloy led 33-19 at halftime thanks to an 11-2 run to start the second quarter by turning steals into points. Kamille Ejerta hit back-to-back jumpers and Marissa Puzino buried a 3-pointer during the stretch. Lynch kept the game stabilized for the Stanners (5-3, 2-1).
She answered a 9-2 Tigers run with a 3-pointer off a feed from Tatum. Kearney would then rip off a 10-0 spurt thanks to consecutive 3-pointers from Marianne Hanning and Maureen O’Sullivan and a Sam Retas layup to cut the Molloy lead to just 38-35 with 4:30 left in the third. Retas had 18 points and nine rebounds and Taylor Raccugglia added 15 points and nine rebounds for the Tigers (2-5, 0-3).
“It was a lack of focus,” Lynch said. “We looked at the scoreboard and that woke us up. Oh my God, it was so close.”
Not for long.
Lynch converted a big putback and Alexa (Weasel) Dietrich turned a top of the key steal into a layup. Jessica Jamin sandwiched two jumpers around a Dallas Pralle basket to help build a 48-39 lead after three. Carolyn Gallagher, who also added seven rebounds, came on in the fourth to score seven of her 13 points, including a 3-point play to make it 56-44 with 4:44 left in the game.
“I talked to her at halftime and said, ‘We need you to play the way you have been playing,’” Catalanotto said. “She has put up I don’t know how many double-doubles this year. I knew she could turn it around for us.”
The Stanners, ranked No. 9 in the city by The Post, could take a big step forward in their maturing process Wednesday when they make a trip to Jamaica Estates to face rival and No. 4 Mary Louis. Consistency and mental toughness will be even more important.
“We are ready for another big game,” Tatum said. “We are not losing.”
She said the same thing against Kearney.
