Lady Rays upset Lady Ayuyus

The Saipan Southern High School Lady Manta Rays couldn’t have picked a better time to record their first win of the season.

After dropping all six regular season games, the Lady Rays finally got over the hill and did it when it was needed the most as they earned a slot in the finals of the 2006 MISA High School Basketball League with an upset victory over second seed Kagman High School Lady Ayuyus, 50-46, yesterday at the Marianas High School Gymnasium.

The two teams traded leads after the first two periods and were knotted at 31-31 heading into the final stanza.

Lynette Babauta was again a force for the Kagman girls as she single-handedly outscored the Lady Rays with eight points—accounting for all her team’s points in the first quarter. Saipan Southern wasn’t far behind, though, scoring five points.

To the delight of their fans, the Lady Rays turned things around in the second quarter as Sorene Maratita fueled a comeback by knocking in a triple and a regular field goal to spearhead a 15-8 run that resulted in Saipan Southern holding a four-point spread at the break, 20-16.

The Lady Ayuyus were able to kick their game up a notch in the third period and eventually erased Saipan Southern’s lead by outscoring their opponents, 15-11. By putting four points more than the Lady Rays in the stanza, the Lady Ayuyus were able to pull even at 31-31.

It was do-or-die for both teams with the loser being eliminated and the winner earning a slot against the MHS Lady Dolphins in the finals.

Game intensity was at a high level, and both teams were able to perform well despite the pressure.

The Lady Ayuyus seemed to have grabbed control as they led by six points, 44-38, however, they were not able to hold on as the Saipan Southern girls refused to throw in the towel and came storming back.

The Lady Mantas were able to pull even at 46-46, and despite missing a couple of free throws with less than a minute left, Nicole Rios was able to penetrate through the Kagman defense and score on a layup to put her team up, 48-46.

Kagman had several opportunities to retaliate but could not come through, and Rios again found the bottom of the net on an inside shot for the final score.

There was still time left on the clock. However, Kagman was unable to close in.

Kagman was hampered by fouls as Babauta and Crystal Mendiola both retired before the game was over after both were slapped with technical fouls.

Rios and Henny Elayda led Saipan Southern with 13 and 10 points while Babauta paced Kagman with a game-high 20 points.

With the win, Saipan Southern will face the Lady Dolphins for all the marbles at 4pm on Wednesday.

As of press time, defending champion Mt. Carmel School Knights and the Ayuyus were battling in the boys semifinals. The Manta Rays and Dolphins will play at 4pm this Friday, with the two winners facing off for the title at 6pm on Wednesday.

SSHS 50 – Rios 13, Elayda 10, Omar 7, Aldan 5, maratita 5, Echang 3, Coleman 3.
KHS 46 – Babauta 20, Igisaiar 8, Mendiola 7, Guiao 5, Kaainoa 4, Mabel 2.
Scoring by quarters: 5-8, 20-16, 31-31, 50-46.
Referees: Joe Mettao and Eric Artillaga.