GIRLS’ BASKETBALL: Sanderlin shines in Rams’ victory

VOORHEES — Danielle Sanderlin had her coming out party Friday night.

In the semifinals of the South Jersey Invitational Basketball Tournament, the junior transformed into an offensive force. Her presence led the top-ranked Gloucester Catholic High School girls’ team to a 65-36 over No. 6 Rancocas Valley.

The forward finished with a game-high 24 points and five rebounds. The Rams (19-1) were able to open up a lot of opportunities for her down low and she took full advantage.

Early on, it didn’t look like Sanderlin was going to be much of a factor. She only had two points in the first quarter and got into a bit of a funk offensively.

Sensing her struggles, coach Lisa Gedaka gave her a chance to refocus.

“I thought she was frustrated,” Gedaka said. “She was missing a lot and I just said, ‘Get a drink, take a deep breath and just let the game come to you and just keep playing.’”

The move ended up paying huge dividends. A motivated Sanderlin stepped back on the floor for the second quarter and looked like a completely new player.

She collected the first basket of the quarter, then another and another. It felt like she couldn’t miss for long stretches of the period.

By the time the halftime buzzer sounded, Sanderlin had scored 10 points in the quarter and was in full control of her game.

“She’s active,” Gedaka said. “She’s very active and she’s a good player. It takes some pressure off of Mary (Gedaka). You have to be aware of Tenisha (Pressley) and Dani, and I think that will take some of the pressure off of Mary and make it a little bit easier for her.”

Sanderlin said her ability to run the floor and the Rams cycling the ball allowed her to find her rhythm. Much like last week’s quarterfinal win against Timber Creek, Sanderlin found openings because Mary Gedaka attracted a lot of attention.

“Find me a player that can do all that (Mary) does,” Lisa Gedaka said. “She struggled a little bit today scoring. … I know she’s really mad at how she played today, but you have to account for her every time down the court and I think it really opens up for other kids.”

As Sanderlin continued to find her groove, so did the rest of Gloucester Catholic.

The Rams held the Red Devils to just one field goal in the second quarter and forced Rancocas Valley (17-3) into poor shots. Airballs piled up, and for long stretches the Red Devils couldn’t hit anything.

Though the Rams weren’t shooting lights out from the field, their lead continued to grow. It was 22 at halftime and 34 after the third quarter.

“Defense makes offense, so the harder we go on defense, the easier our offense was,” Sanderlin said. “From the first half to the second half, we really had to regroup on defense more.”

Gloucester Catholic was able to coast for much of the second half. Sanderlin, Pressley, and Mary Gedaka continued to make baskets, while the Red Devils failed to find an answer.

Pressley collected 17 points, while Mary Gedaka finished three assists shy of a triple-double - 13 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists.

The win is the Rams’ 19th in a row and puts them in the SJIBT final for the third straight year — they defeated Camden Catholic in 2014 before losing to the Irish in 2015.

Daniel Spevak, (856) 486-2424; cpvarsity@gmail.com