Haddon Township girls edge Gloucester for title

Her title hopes and season looked over, but Jess Donaldson didn't want matters to end. So the Haddon Township senior put on an amazing display of clutch shooting that propelled the Hawks to a 47-46 overtime win over visiting Gloucester Monday in the South Jersey Group 1 girls' basketball championship.

Top-seeded Haddon Township (28-1) will face New Egypt in Wednesday's 6 p.m. state Group 1 semifinal at Williamstown. Second-seeded Gloucester ended its season with a 25-3 record.

Gloucester had increased its lead to 42-36 as Kathleen Velez hit two free throws with 47.9 seconds left in regulation.

That's when Donaldson went to work. She hit a three-pointer to cut the margin to 42-39 with 35.5 seconds remaining.

"It didn't look good when they got that six-point lead, but after I made that first three I settled down," said Donaldson, who had 14 points.

Her team settled down, too.

After Gloucester missed the front end of a one-and-one, Donaldson provided a repeat performance. She made another three to tie the score with 9.9 seconds left.

"It was sort of similar to the other three," Donaldson said. "We are a senior-based team and that experience helped us."

Haddon Township's Jess Brown, who had a team-high 15 points, blocked a driving layup at the end of regulation to send the game into overtime.

In the extra period, Gloucester's Cori Conner, who scored 19 points, gave the Lions a 46-44 lead on a 17-foot jumper with 45 seconds left.

Haddon Township then struck again via the three-pointer. This time it was Sara DeCinque, who provided the winning margin on a trey with 27 seconds left. Gloucester then missed a driving layup on its final possession.

"I kind of felt it when I shot it," DeCinque said. "We play such a team game that I think anybody on our team could have hit that."

Yet it was DeCinque who drilled it.

Both teams showed why they were the top two seeds, making every possession a struggle. Neither team scored much in transition.

"You have to tip your hat to them for making big shots," Gloucester coach Sean Gorman said.

The game was played before an overflow crowd at Haddon Township, where fans were lined up 11/2 hours before game time.

After the game, a few exuberant Haddon Township fans found their way into the Gloucester locker room and began cheering. A police officer said the fans were removed quickly and there was no further incident.

Gloucester   5 15 11 11 4 - 46

Haddon Township   13 6 14 9 5 - 47

G: Kathleen Velez 5, Irene Grimanis 8, Gabby Cooper 12, Joanna James 2, Cori Conner 19.

H: Sara DeCinque 11, Katie Getzinger 2, Jess Donaldson 14, Jess Brown 15, Kelsey McCullough 5.