Furious Late Rally Propels Kinnelon Over Butler

The third time was in fact not the charm for the girls basketball team.

Despite holding an eight-point lead with just three minutes remaining in the game, the Bulldogs witnessed mount a furious rally to post a 52-49 win—the Colts' third straight over their archrivals—Saturday morning in Kinnelon.

“It's extremely hard to beat a team three times in one season,” Kinnelon coach Stephanie Finke said. “We know their game, but they know ours, so you have to work harder to get everything because they've seen it all before.”

Facing a 49-41 deficit in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, Kinnelon's Drea Dunchus, Alyssa Schwed and Rachel Erdenberger all put their post skills on display, closing the gap to 49-47 with under one minute to play.

“It was tense, especially because I had four fouls,” Erdenberger said. “But when our team is down, we're really good at locking down and helping each other out.

Butler, attempting to run the clock out to secure the victory, had its hopes dashed when Kelly Taggart's shot was blocked by Dunchus, and Kinnelon had the ball with a chance to steal the game.

Following a timeout, Kinnelon worked the ball around anxiously, before senior Regina Zucchi stepped up and buried a 3-pointer from the corner to take the lead with less than 10 seconds remaining.

Butler had one final possession, but the Bulldogs were unable to inbound the ball and turned it back over to the Colts. When the final buzzer sounded, the team rushed to Regina Zucchi, who finished with 10 points.

“I just stood there until the ball came to me, it's a play we've run before,” said Zucchi, who said she was never worried even as her team trailed late. “We've come back in situations like this before, I knew we could handle it.”

Much like the previous two meetings, this game was as physical and scrappy throughout. Kinnelon was able to get its inside game going early, scoring its first 12 points from inside the paint.

But the Bulldogs were determined to avenge their previous losses. Butler used a pressure defense in attempt to stop Kinnelon, forcing the Colts' smaller guards to make rushed passes. This led to fast-break layups for Butler. When Kinnelon was able to break the press, the Colts found success in getting the ball to Erdenberger, who finished with 14 points.

“They were out to get us today," Erdenberger said. “It feels phenomenal to get the win, just because we know they wanted it so bad.”

In the second half, Butler came out of locker room with plenty of energy. The Bulldogs tipped balls, forced bad passes and pressured Kinnelon ball-handlers on their way to ending the third with a slim 38-36 advantage.

Leading the way for the Bulldogs was Taggart, who finished with 27 points—more than half of her team's final output.

While Butler managed to extend its lead in the fourth quarter with some key free throws, it wasn't enough as Kinnelon stormed back to steal the victory.