WINTER PARK, Fla. (March 18, 2021) - March madness officiallygraced the hardwood at the Alfond Sports Center on Thursday night as the Rollins Tars battled with the Palm Beach Atlantic Sailfish in the Sunshine State Conference semi-final with a berth in the championship game on the line. It took an extra period, but in the end Palm Beach Atlantic was able to pull away and defeat the Tars 59-55.
Rollins absolutely dominated the first quarter, running out to an early 12-0 lead which included a pair of three pointers from
Niya Pluviose and
Yoke Tassent. Palm Beach Atlantic didn't get on the board until 4:19 left in the quarter when Maria Benitez-Zayas scored a layup. By the end of the quarter, Rollins had held the Sailfish to 1-11 shooting and hedla 16-4 advantage.
The tables turned in the second period as sloppy defense from the Tars put the Sailfish at the free throw line early and often. Eleven of fourteen free throws dropped in, allowing the Sailfish to wiggle their way back into the game. By the time the halftime horn sounded, they held a 25-23 lead over Rollins.
Back to back buckets in the first minute from
Paris Sharpe started things off the right way for Rollins, giving them the lead back 27-25. After the two teams traded buckets, Rollins went on a bit of a run, extending their lead as high as seven thanks to a put back by
Asia Newsome at the 1:07 mark to make the score 36-29. Palm Beach Atlantic gained a bit of momentum right before the end of the quarter when Mariyah Fletcher caught an airball and laid it in at the horn to make the score 38-34.
Rollins once again started a quarter strong, this time scoring the first four points of the fourth quarter with a free throw and a three from Pluviose, her third of the game. Palm Beach Atlantic responded with a 7-0 run over the next four minutes to pull within one. A
Rachel Jablonski three from the corner looked to be a possible dagger when it made the score 47-41 with 1:59 to go, but the Sailfish were able to answer quickly with a triple of their own from Sia Williams. A minute later, another long-range bomb from Williams tied the ballgame. After a rollins turnover, Palm Beach Atlantic had a chance for the final shot, but Jablonski was able to block the attempted shot and send the game to overtime.
Palm Beach Atlantic scored the first five points of overtime and would not relinquish the lead for the rest of the night, eventually outsocring the Tars 12-8 to earn a spot in the SSC championship game on Sunday.
The loss ends the Tars shortened season. Pluviose led the Tars with eleven points and seven rebounds.
Asia Newsome added nine points, seven boards and a pair of assists.
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