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December 1, 2004 Record-Eagle/Lara Neel St. Patrick's Tonya Weber shoots over Leland's Ellen Cradduck during Tuesday's quarterfinal matchup.
Shamrocks oust Leland in basketball quarterfinalsSt. Patrick's cruises to 42-20 win over CometsByRecord-Eagle sports editor TRAVERSE CITY - Portland St. Patrick has played in the Class D state basketball finals seven of the last 10 years. The Shamrocks are one win away from making eight of the last 11. St. Patrick's overpowered Leland for the second consecutive season with a 42-20 quarterfinal win at Traverse City Central on Tuesday. A year ago, coach Al Schrauben's team beat the Comets 41-24. The Shamrocks (23-3) will play Carney-Nadeau in the semifinals Thursday evening at Michigan State's Breslin Center. St. Patrick's, which edged No. 1 ranked Frankfort in the regional finals, was in complete control Tuesday. Leland led 2-0, then the Shamrocks scored 40 of the next 43 points to take a 40-5 lead after three quarters. "We never underestimate anybody," St. Patrick's senior guard Mallory Schrauben said. "We didn't expect this at all." Schrauben led the Shamrocks with 15 points. Tonya Weber added eight points. Alisha Glass netted 16 points for Leland, 11 in the fourth quarter. The Comets (18-7) had trouble solving St. Patrick's zone defense. "They did a good job on us (defensively)," Leland coach Larry Glass said. "They didn't do anything unusual. I thought they might use a box-and-one on Alisha, but they didn't have to. We just didn't get many good shots." Part of that was due to the Shamrocks quickness and pressure. St. Patrick's forced the Comets into numerous turnovers. Glass was the only Leland player to score until the fourth quarter. The Comets didn't break double digits until 5:51 left in the game. "Although it may not have looked like it tonight, I don't know if we're as good defensively as some of the other teams we've had," Al Schrauben said. "But we work hard at it and the girls take a lot of pride in what we do defensively." St. Patrick's, which has won six state championships since 1994, is hoping for a rematch with Lansing Christian in Saturday's finals. Christian beat St. Patrick's 56-42 in the 2003 title game. Lansing Christian defeated St. Joseph Michigan Lutheran 85-49 Tuesday to reach the semifinals. "We want 'em," Mallory Schrauben said. "We want another shot at them. We think we can beat them." Al Schrauben thinks the time might be right, too. "We're playing as well as we've played all year," he said. The loss did not dampen the spirits of Leland's Glass. "The kids had a marvelous season," he said. "Anytime you can get to the quarterfinals two years in a row and win three straight districts - you don't have to apologize for that."
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