Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Trending
    • Boys Basketball: Potomac Falls Cruises Past Independence in Potomac District Matchup
    • Boys Basketball: Loudoun County Holds Broad Run to Season Low in Dulles District Dogfight
    • Girls Basketball: Woodgrove Dominates Potomac Falls in Potomac District Matchup
    • Boys Basketball: Tuscarora Rolls Past Loudoun Valley in Dulles District Battle
    • Ice Hockey: Heritage-Tuscarora Spoils Woodgrove-Loudoun Valley Senior Night
    • Boys Basketball: Heritage Holds Off Park View for Much-Needed Dulles District Win
    • Boys Basketball: Woodgrove Outlasts Briar Woods in Overtime
    • Boys Basketball: Loudoun County Uses Strong Second Half to Escape Park View
    Facebook Twitter Instagram
    LoCoSportsLoCoSports
    Loudoun United
    Loudoun United
    • Schedules
      • Boys Basketball Schedule & Results
        • Boys Basketball Brackets
      • Girls Basketball Schedule & Results
        • Girls Basketball Brackets
      • Gymnastics Schedule
      • Swimming Schedule
      • Wrestling Schedule
      • Fall Schedules
        • Cross Country Schedule
        • Field Hockey Schedule & Results
          • Field Hockey Brackets
        • Football Schedule & Results
          • Football Brackets
        • Golf Schedule
        • Volleyball Schedule & Results
          • Volleyball Brackets
      • Spring Schedules
        • Girls Soccer Schedule & Results
          • Girls Soccer Brackets
        • Boys Tennis Schedule
        • Girls Tennis Schedule
        • Track & Field Schedule
        • Softball Schedule & Results
          • Softball Brackets
        • Boys Soccer Schedule & Results
          • Boys Soccer Brackets
        • Baseball Schedule & Results
          • Baseball Brackets
        • Boys Lacrosse Schedule & Results
          • Boys Lacrosse Brackets
        • Girls Lacrosse Schedule & Results
          • Girls Lacrosse Brackets
    • Standings
      • Boys Basketball Standings
      • Girls Basketball Standings
      • Fall Standings
        • Boys Cross Country Top Times
        • Girls Cross Country Top Times
        • Field Hockey Standings
        • Football Standings
        • Volleyball Standings
      • Spring Standings
        • Baseball Standings
        • Softball Standings
        • Boys Lacrosse Standings
        • Girls Lacrosse Standings
        • Boys Soccer Standings
        • Girls Soccer Standings
    • Pick’Ems
    • Commitments
    • About
      • About Us
      • Scholarship
      • Pick’Ems
        • Make Your Picks
        • Weekly Results
      • Our Team
      • Contact
    • Big Heads
    • Support
      • Frame an Article
      • Senior & Team Banners
      • Gameday Programs
      • Cheerleading Signs
      • Custom Yard Signs
      • Donate
    • Advertise
    Facebook Twitter Instagram
    LoCoSportsLoCoSports
    Loudoun United
    Loudoun United
    Home»Sports»Basketball»Girls Basketball»Girls Basketball: Tuscarora Rallies Down 17 to Defeat Rival Heritage in Overtime
    Girls Basketball

    Girls Basketball: Tuscarora Rallies Down 17 to Defeat Rival Heritage in Overtime

    Mason KinnahanBy Mason KinnahanJanuary 7, 2023Updated:January 9, 20235 Mins Read
    Grace Middleton Tuscarora Basketball
    Full photo gallery by Mike Ferrara >>>
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    Leesburg, Va. — In a highly anticipated battle between the top two teams in the Dulles District, the Tuscarora High School girls basketball team (5-0, 9-1) erased a 17-point, third-quarter deficit to secure a massive 61-52 overtime road victory against rival Heritage High School (4-1, 7-4) on January 6 in Leesburg.

    The Huskies started the game playing sloppy basketball, turning the ball over eleven times in the first half and quickly found themselves down by double digits heading into the halftime break.

    Midway through the third quarter, the Pride had extended the lead to 17 points at which point Tuscarora senior point guard Grace Middleton had seen enough.

    “I didn’t do much in the first half,” Middleton said. “I knew I had to flip the switch and take over.”

    And that’s exactly what she did. Down 33-16 midway through the third quarter, the Huskies put together an explosive 23-point run led by Middleton—who scored 14 of her 25 points during this stretch—including a 12-1 Tuscarora run where all 12 points were scored by their senior guard.

    “Things were just going really, really wrong for us in the first half; we looked really slow,” Tuscarora head coach Tayler Dodson said. “We turned it up defensively, which got Grace those easy transition buckets which got her going, and once you have her going, everything else opens up.”

    Along with 25 points, Middleton finished with 4 assists, 5 steals, and 13 rebounds which gave her another double-double.

    In the closing seconds of the fourth quarter, Tuscarora was down by two and needed a basket to win the game or go to overtime. When the entire gym believed the ball would be going to Middleton, the Huskies elected to run a play for senior forward Alysa Carrigan, who was limited for most of the game due to foul trouble. Carrigan ended up going around a screen and knocking down a short floater to tie it and send the game to overtime.

    “We wanted the ball to go to Alysa, because we figured everyone was going to be paying attention to Grace,” Dodson said. “We got Alysa the ball and let her do what she does best, which is get to the rim. We only needed two, so we just went for the two, and sent it to overtime.”

    From that point on, Tuscarora got back to business and dominated overtime, which included a 7-0 run to begin extra time. In a game where multiple players were in foul trouble, Tuscarora showed they have the depth in their roster to outlast good teams down the stretch.

    “We had three players with four fouls, so we had to play hard, but we had to play smart,” Dodson said. “We needed those three to make it through at least the first two minutes of overtime.”

    The Heritage Pride had an exceptional game plan heading into the game which included backcourt pressure against the Huskies guards. The game plan worked to perfection forcing multiple turnovers which turned into easy transition baskets for Heritage. However, the script was flipped in favor of Tuscarora to begin the second half. The Huskies started to apply their own backcourt pressure on Heritage’s guards which led to the collapse for the Pride.

    “Alysa just gets her hands on things,” Dodson said. “She gives us another big threat that teams are just naturally drawn to and paying attention to, and then everything opens up.”

    Heritage freshman point guard Riley Makitka filled up the stat sheet finishing with an 11-point, 10-rebound double double while adding 6 steals and 4 assists. Sophomore guard Kaitlyn Puzenski led the scoring for Heritage with 15 points and senior forward Ayanna McNair added 12 points and 5 rebounds. But even that wasn’t enough to keep Heritage in it down the stretch as the Pride finished with 18 second-half turnovers after turning the ball over just 8 times in the first half.

    The Pride will look to bounce back with Independence, Dominion, and Loudoun County in the upcoming week, while the Huskies have a three-game home stretch against Lightridge, Woodgrove, and Broad Run.

    “We are really focused on getting everyone involved as much as possible,” Dodson said. “We know Grace is going to get her 20; we know Alysa is going to end up with 15, so we just keep preaching that that’s going to happen whether everyone else shoots or not, so we’re really encouraging everyone to take their shots.”

    Mike Ferrara captured 150+ photos at the game!

    VIEW PHOTOSPRINT & FRAME THIS ARTICLE
    Tuscarora Stats
    TuscaroraPointsReboundsAssistsStealsBlocksFT
    Grace Middleton25134507-for-11
    Alysa Carrigan1121620-for-1
    Lillie Scheivert680104-for-6
    Paige Hahn601002-for-2
    Shaylen Rivera-Jones530303-for-4
    Colette Morris350300-for-1
    Jessica Owusu321203-for-4
    Camryn Worley210100-for-0
    Audrey Stelle000000-for-0
    Totals6134721219-for-29
    Heritage Stats
    HeritagePointsReboundsAssistsStealsBlocksFT
    Kaitlyn Puzenski1590024-for-6
    Ayanna McNair1250211-for-1
    Riley Makitka11104613-for-3
    Addy Padgett900102-for-4
    Rachel Stewart552205-for-9
    Anna Egnotovich021000-for-0
    Myah Gross000220-for-0
    Totals5231713615-for-23
    alysa carrigan grace middleton riley makitka
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Tumblr Email
    Mason Kinnahan
    Mason Kinnahan

      Mason Kinnahan is a junior at Briar Woods High School. Kinnahan regularly creates and contributes sports content to his school's yearbook, local publications, and social media. He also hosts an NFL-focused podcast called “Keeping Up with the Commanders." His favorite sports to cover are football and basketball.

      Related Posts

      Boys Basketball: Potomac Falls Cruises Past Independence in Potomac District Matchup

      January 26, 2023

      Boys Basketball: Loudoun County Holds Broad Run to Season Low in Dulles District Dogfight

      January 25, 2023

      Girls Basketball: Woodgrove Dominates Potomac Falls in Potomac District Matchup

      January 24, 2023

      Comments are closed.

      • Facebook 2.6K
      • Twitter 10.6K
      • Instagram 4.6K
      Celebrate Your Seniors, Teams, and Sponsors with LoCoBanners
      Cheer on the Loudoun United on match day!
      Cheers Sports—Where Everybody Knows Your Game!
      Locally designed and printed cards for all occasions
      Of the Month

      Men’s Soccer: Loudoun United Defender Jalen Robinson Tabbed July 2022 Teammate of the Month

      August 2, 2022

      Women’s Soccer: Washington Spirit Forward Trinity Rodman Named July 2022 Athlete of the Month

      August 2, 2022

      Subscribe to The LoCoSports Weekly

      Get the latest sports news, photos, and updates delivered right to your inbox every week!

      Subscribe to The LoCoSports Weekly

      Get the latest sports news, photos, and updates delivered right to your inbox every week!

      Facebook Twitter Instagram
      Copyright LoCoSports©. All Rights Reserved. | Privacy Policy | Web design by OG Media

      Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

      You're Invited⛳

      You’re invited to the 5th Annual Jeffrey C. Fowler Memorial Scholarship MINI Golf Tournament!

      🗓️ THIS Saturday, October 15, 2022
      🕤 9:30am
      📍 Dulles Golf Center & Sports Park
      🎟️ 18 Holes of Mini Golf, Breakfast, Prizes, and a Silent Auction

      REGISTER NOW

      Our Spring Sale Has Started

      You can see how this popup was set up in our step-by-step guide: https://wppopupmaker.com/guides/auto-opening-announcement-popups/