Lady Owls soar past Lawrence

Lynbrook junior guard Brooke Gerstman made up for some lost time and shook off a shaky start to dominate at Lawrence last Friday night in her first action in 17 days.

Gerstman, who missed three games with an ankle sprain, managed just two field goals in the first half but exploded for 23 of her game-high 30 points in the second half to lead the Lady Owls to a 56-42 Conference A-II victory. Freshman Jen Fay added 10 points and junior Danielle Amaya had six points and 12 rebounds. Junior Gabrielle Golan paced the Lady Golden Tornadoes with 11 points.

“Not being able to play was painful, but I couldn’t rush back and make things worse,” said Gerstman, who went 11-for-12 from the foul line, including 5 of 6 in the last minute to seal the outcome. “It took me a little while to get into the flow, but when the second half started I knew I had to step up.”

It looked like Lynbrook (5-2 in Conference A-II, 8-4 overall) was going to run away and hide after Gerstman opened the fourth quarter with a pair of free throws to extend its lead to 46-26. But sophomore Natalie Leger (10 points) and junior Taylor Brady sparked a 14-2 run that brought Lawrence (5-3, 6-7) within eight with 3:25 remaining.

“It’s a positive thing that we stayed with them and didn’t give up,” Lawrence coach George Klein said. “We’ve still got our eyes on the playoffs, and the next four games will be crucial.”

The Lady Golden Tornadoes came in riding a three-game winning streak that featured a six-point victory at Bethpage, a one-point squeaker over Plainedge, and a two-point triumph over Hewlett. “We’ve managed to win a lot of close games,” Klein said. “It builds confidence. If we get into the playoffs, it’ll definitely help us.”

Lynbrook, which reached the Nassau Class A championship game last season, is chasing South Side for first place in the conference and hosts the Lady Cyclones on Friday at 7 p.m. “I’m hoping we’ll use this game as a building block,” Lady Owls coach Heather Manikas said. “Getting Brooke back is huge of course. It was nice that we had some girls step up while she was out, and I think that makes us a better team going forward.”

Fay, who averaged 22 points in the three games Gerstman missed, keyed Lynbrook’s fast start at Lawrence along with Amaya and junior Shannon Baker. The visitors led 15-9 after the opening quarter and 28-15 at halftime.

“We came out a little flat after not practicing for two days and shot poorly in the first half,” Klein said. “We hit some big threes to get back in it, but it’s tough to come from that far down against a team like Lynbrook.”

The Lady Golden Tornadoes will try to get back in the win column on Friday when they travel to Sewanhaka for a 4:30 p.m. start.