OCEAN CITY – Despite a strong second-half performance by the Ocean City Red Raider girls, they were unable to overcome a slow start against the Camden Catholic Irish.
Ocean City High School’s basketball team cut the lead to only six points after a disastrous first half, but ultimately fell to Camden Catholic High School 52-38 on Saturday, Jan. 11. Gabrielle Henry led the Raiders with 14 points and her long-range accuracy was crucial to Ocean City’s success in the second half.
The Raiders trailed 24-10 at halftime but got to work immediately after the break. Henry made two three-pointers in a one-minute span and gave all the momentum to Ocean City. The offense fed off that momentum for a bit longer and went on an 11-3 run that brought the score to 27-21.
Kaia Chew assisted Henry on both of her three-pointers and helped on defense to keep the Irish down as long as possible. The Raiders’ halftime adjustments seemed to be working perfectly until Camden Catholic caught on.
After the Irish called a timeout, the momentum swung heavily in the visitors’ favor as they got hot from three-point range. Edore Pela made back-to-back long shots and led Camden Catholic on a 14-3 run to end the wild third quarter. Six of the points in the run were off offensive rebounds by the Irish, who took advantage of second and third shot opportunities.
Ocean City was put into the large deficit early after the Irish caught the Raiders off balance with full court defense to start the game. Each possession by the offense was met with a wall of defenders that put pressure on each pass. The relentless defense by the Irish forced some Raider turnovers and ultimately led to the Raiders scoring only three points in the first quarter.
The Raiders started to catch on in the second quarter but were still forced to battle to get to the half-court and run their usual offense. They broke the code to the full-court pressure after halftime but could not climb back after the late third quarter run by Camden Catholic.
With the loss, Ocean City’s record dropped to 4-5 so far this season after a tough start to January. The team took down Millville High School 42-32 on Jan. 7 behind 19 points by sophomore Marley Ostrander. Her 19 points were the highest of any single Raider so far this season as they took advantage of a great defensive effort to get past Millville.
Earlier that week, however, the Raiders lost a close 38-36 battle against Atlantic City High School on Jan. 3. Ocean City took the lead late in the fourth quarter after coming back from a slow start. Atlantic City closed the game out with a four-point swing in the fourth quarter.
Next up for the Raiders are three games against quality Cape-Atlantic League opponents. The first game is a trip to Egg Harbor Township High School (7-1) on Jan. 15 against the first-place Eagles. Game time is 5:30 p.m. Ocean City’s following game will be another road test against Vineland High School (5-5) at 6 p.m. Jan. 17.
Both games are against teams in Ocean City’s division within the CAL and can be vital in the seeding of next month’s conference tournament.
Finally, the Raiders will close out the week with a home game against long-time rival Mainland Regional High School (4-6) on Jan. 18. Ocean City was swept last year in the season series against the eventual Group III state champion Mustangs, but both teams have undergone major roster changes in the meantime.
Tip-off for Mainland versus Ocean City is set for 4:30 p.m. Saturday. As a part of a special doubleheader at Ocean City High School, at 6 p.m. the Raider and Mustang boys basketball teams will also meet for the first time this season.
– By WILLIAM TRUITT/For the Sentinel