Innovation girls basketball heading to 1st CIAC final after defeating Lakeview in Division V
· Yahoo Sports
BRISTOL - The Innovation girls basketball team came into this season on a mission. In each of the previous two seasons, the Ravens had been the No. 1 seed in their division. Each time, they had lost their first game.
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A CREC magnet school in New Britain, Innovation had not yet won a state tournament game in its 10-year existence.
Well, the Ravens have cleared that hurdle and are soaring ever higher. After a convincing 44-31 semifinal victory over Lakeview, this year's No. 1 seed in Division V, on Monday night at Bristol Central, the Ravens are headed to their first state title game.
Fifth-seeded Innovation (19-6) will play No. 7 North Branford, a 39-36 winner over Haddam-Killingworth in the other semifinal, in the Division V final at Mohegan Sun Arena this weekend.
"We have a chip on our shoulder. We had a lot of people that doubted us, and we took that as fuel to say we're here, we're ready to play. We want to show you what we have," said senior guard Maiara Rodriguez. "I felt like we are the underdog. Nobody expects a small school from the (Greater Hartford Conference) to make it all the way to the state championship. I think the girls wanted to prove people wrong."
Fourth-year head coach Cris Irizarry made sure his experienced team would be ready for the state tournament by beefing up the schedule. The Ravens played seven teams from the Central Connecticut Conference, reputedly the state's toughest league, and beat four of them.
"I told the girls, ‘Hey, I'm going to challenge you this year,'" Irizarry said. "I said, ‘You guys want to fight? We're going to fight. We're going to go out there and play.' And here we are."
Senior forward Symber Sutton scored 21 points, including the first nine of the game for Innovation. The Ravens were up 9-5 at that point with just under three minutes left in the first period.
Rodriguez then scored from the baseline, Kalani Rivera banked in a nifty, spinning layup on a fast break and Phoebe Candy closed out the quarter with a rebound basket for a 15-5 lead that had the Ravens' rabid fans roaring.
Lakeview (21-4) was in a 9½-minute scoring drought that bridged the first two periods. The Bobcats were down 20-12 after Allie Pape hit three free throws with 32 seconds left, but Candy scored inside in the final seconds for a 22-12 halftime lead for Innovation.
Lakeview got within six points 24-18 in the second half, but never any closer.
"Our defense keeps us in games, holding teams to 30 points or less," said Irizarry. "I told the girls first team to 40 every game (wins). We are at 44, and we came out with the win."
The first team from their league to reach a state final, the Ravens have held opponents under 40 points in 15 games, winning them all. Against Lakeview, they also dominated the boards 37-27. Candy had 10, Sutton nine and Rodriguez seven.
"Rebounding definitely was the key," said Sutton. "We knew this team wouldn't be easy. They're the No. 1 seed. Our guards did a really good job feeding me. They're really good."
"Symber came up big today. I knew she had it in her," Irizarry said. "I was telling her for a couple of years, ‘You're our key down low. If you get going, everybody gets going.'"
Lakeview struggled with its shooting, especially from outside, making only one of 20 3-point attempts. Pape led the way with 13 points and Addie Foss had 12. Christina Barone grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.
The CIAC will release its championship schedule for basketball later this week. Mohegan Sun will play host to five finals on both Saturday and Sunday.
Player of the Game
Symber Sutton, Innovation:The senior forward had 21 points, including the first nine of the game for her team, and also grabbed nine rebounds.
Quotable
"Our boys have won two state championships, and everybody at our school is, like, ‘When are you girls going to win one?' It kind of gets aggravating to hear when you put your all into the court. I think everybody came to play, we came to work, and we're ready for Mohegan Sun." - Innovation guard Maiara Rodriguez.
Innovation 44, Lakeview 31
INNOVATION 15 7 9 13-44
LAKEVIEW 5 7 10 9-31
Innovation: Maiara Rodriguez 3 1 7, Kalani Rivera 2 1 6, Mya Saldana 2 0 4, Aubrey Mercado 0 0 0, Symber Sutton 10 1 21, Phoebe Candy 3 0 6. Totals: 20 3 44.
Lakeview:Addie Foss 6 0 12, Ella Turturo 0 0 0, Alyssa Barone 0 0 0, Allie Pape 4 4 13, Teagan Moran 1 0 2, Christina Barone 1 0 2, Mickie Rea 1 0 2, Dorothy Olmstead 0 0 0. Totals: 13 4 31.
3-point field goals:I-Rivera 1. L-Pape 1.
Team records: I 19-6; L 21-4.
This article originally published at Innovation girls basketball heading to 1st CIAC final after defeating Lakeview in Division V.