McGlinn claimed a 41-33 victory over Pasquerilla West after a stellar second half Monday night in the women's Interhall championship game.
From tip-off and an early 3-pointer, Pasquerilla West took over the first half, and maintained a lead it kept well into the second half.
"In my opinion, we were definitely the better skilled team, but McGlinn was very aggressive," Pasquerilla West junior guard Lindsey McMahon said. "They rebounded very well, and played as a team."
The tide of the game started to turn right at the half, as McGlinn's talented guard was fouled just as the buzzer went off and the scoreboard turned red. She made her shot but missed the free throw, pushing the score to 16-13, still in Pasquerilla West's favor, but close enough to keep the Shamrock's hopes elevated, which changed the entire dynamic of the second half.
McGlinn brought a new offense to the court after halftime.
"I thought we were slow tonight though," McMahon said. "We never got into our rhythm, and our shots were just not falling at all."
McGlinn changed up its offensive strategy and the Pasquerilla West defense was unable to stay with them. With four minutes left in the second half, the Shamrocks were up 33-30 when a breakaway drive by Pasquerilla West's center gave the Weasels one last attempt to challenge the bold offensive movements of McGlinn. A Shamrock guard obtained a crucial rebound, and scored from the field, making it a five-point game in McGlinn's favor.
The Weasels began to foul with only seconds left, were unable to score, and the Shamrocks claimed the season's title.
"Our team morale is great; we're all really close and play all the sports in Pasquerilla West together," Weasels junior forward Molly Bruno said. "Even the coaches are some of our best friends."
The Weasels concluded their season with an undefeated record in the regular season and a large point differential, but McGlinn dominated the second half and were able to claim this season as their own.
