Girls Basketball: Mariann Blass, Lizzie Baldridge take positives in York’s loss to Marist at Hoopsfest

LOMBARD – York junior guards Mariann Blass and Lizzie Baldridge kept firing away on Saturday night.

With the Dukes trailing most of the game against highly ranked Marist, Blass and Baldridge played nearly the entire game, hoping to gain valuable insight from the experience.

Blass scored a game-high 19 points and Baldridge added 13 in a 63-47 loss to Marist in the 32nd Annual Coach Derril Kipp Hoopfest at Montini High School.

“I really think we’ve been working really hard trying to stay consistent and working as a team,” Baldridge said. “We knew coming out that we were the underdogs, but we still worked hard and defended them because they’re really good. I think we did a really good job.”

The Dukes (10-10) outscored the RedHawks 16-12 in the fourth quarter to battle back from a 21-point deficit. Baldridge hit a pair of 3-pointers in a 90-second span and Blass buried a 3-pointer, all in the early stages of the fourth quarter.

“I think today we were playing against another great team,” Blass said. “We’ve had a really tough schedule. I think that’s really built us to the team we have. We have heart. We don’t have much size, so we were definitely the underdogs in this game. We can take away that we need to step up rebounding and trusting each other is a big thing. We’ve been through a lot this season, a lot of ups and downs.”

Blass shot 4-for-10 on 3-pointers to go with six rebounds, with Baldridge connected on 5-of-15 shots, including 3-of-11 on 3s. Baldridge said she’s building a strong rapport on the court with Blass that hopefully will pay off in the playoffs and next season.

“Our chemistry has improved really well over the years,” Baldridge said. “We know how to make those quick and fast passes to each other from both sides of the ball and know how to move when we don’t have the ball.”

“We’re really excited for these upcoming games. We’re really young, so I feel we can learn from this for future games and see what we can do.”

Marist (15-4) had four players in double figures, led by Leslie Ward (19 points) and Mary Clare Brusek (14 points, 6 assists, 3 steals). The Dukes shot 9-of-34 on 3s and attempted just 3 free throws.

“I thought we played well in spurts, but our size gets the best of us at times,” York coach Brandon Collings said. “They pounded it down there, and we had trouble. We weren’t able to make adjustments. Our schedule has been crazy. We’re a young team…We’re hoping that the tough schedule will pay dividends down the road. Mariann and Lizzie both played well offensively and defensively. That’s a step in the right direction for us.”

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