Rocket Flames finish 2nd in YBOA Maryland qualifiers Day 2 pictures 6-April-2008. The Rocket Flames ended up in second place at the Maryland YBOA qualifier played in McDonogh High School and Garrison Forest, MD. The Rocket Flames dug themselves into a small hole against Hoopsmart on Sunday morning but used outstanding defense to come back and beat them 18-16 with a buzzer-beater basket by Dominique. The girls had 13 turnovers against a team that had beaten Jankowski's girls by 14 points the day before. The Hoopsters, from Millersville, MD (southeast of Baltimore) played a combination of full court press and zone defense keeping the Flames on bay with only 8 points in three quarters. Dominique, one of our best defensive players, didn't score any points on Saturday, but became the hero on Saturday morning with a long shot from the left side of the court, where we usually don't attack. The Rocket Flames started the fourth quarter down by eight points (16-8) and it looked like they wouldn't pass the test. But persistent defense and great hustle in the last three minutes put them within 2 points (14-16). Sydney drove to the basket and was fouled with 35 seconds left. Calmly, Sydney made both free throws to tie the game, silencing the Hoopster fans in the gym. Before Sydney's free throws, the team had had a very poor shooting from the line, converting only 4 out of 20 shots (10%) and that made this turnaround difficult to believe. She also had 5 rebounds (4 offensive) and 5 steals. Cameron, Jasmine, Kelly and Adjowa also had 3 steals each, while Adjowa and Janel had a couple of offensive rebounds. In the ensuing possesion, the Hoopsmart lost the ball against our full court pressure and after a couple of missed attempts, Dominique grabbed a rebound, sank the shot and it was pandemonium. The Rocket Flames had won games in the last seconds but never had one at the buzzer. And it felt good! everybody was jumping in joy, hugging and crying. Half of the points (9) came from Jasmine converting 3 out of 8 Field Goals and 3 out of 9 FTs. Kelly, Dominique and Adjowa added one basket, Sydney added two points (2 FTs) and Danielle added one point. Hoopster's Coach Bill Giblin said after the game "We thought we had the game in our pockets, but their resilience is extraordinary. They deserved to win.". Then, on Sunday afternoon, the girls faced the Flames National team in the championship game. Coach Tony said "The final game was simply icing on the cake and all of the players shared playing time in the championship game. Although the Cinderella team didn't win the first place trophy we did finish as runner-ups in the State YBOA Championships and surpassed everyone's expectations of our team. Now the team will go back to the gym and build upon a strong foundation." Thanks to the families, friends and fans of the Rocketflames. We appreciate your commitment and support of the team." added Tony after the game. In the championship game, the main highlight for the Rocket Flames was Babette's first three pointer at the end of the third period, again beating the buzzer. Adjowa had four points while Megan, Kelly and Janel added two points. Danielle made on free throw. The team struggled again at the free throw line, converting 1 out of 13.

Ravens vs Elite (Akers)

Rocket Flames clinch YBOA semifinals Day 1 pictures With victories against the Maryland Grizzlies and the Elite, the Rocket Flames advanced to the YBOA State qualifier semifinals and also got a spot to the YBOA Nationals in Florida. The first game (against the Grizzlies) was not pretty. In offense the girls committed 13 turnovers, scoring only 9 points in the first half. The girls reacted in the third half outscoring the bears 14-3 to take a 23-16 lead. Kelly shone in offense with eight points and five rebounds while Sydney added 11 rebounds. Adjowa added five points, Danielle and Sydney 4, Cameron and Babette 3, and Meghan 2. The second game (against the Elite) started very sluggish, with the girls trailing 6-0 in the first 3 minutes and ending the half time ahead only 13-9. A strong reaction in the third quarter lead by Danielle made the difference. Sydney had a great game scoring 11 points and Babette, who scored only one free throw out of eight in the first game, redeemed herself converting 4 of 6. Cameron had a very nice drive to the basket, while Kelly converted a very timely three pointer when the Elite was pushing to get closer. Babette contributed with 5, Jasmine, Danielle and Kelly added 4 points, Adjowa 3 and Janel and Cameron had 2 apiece. The Flames National team crushed the Columbia Ravens 46-5 and overwhelmed the MD Elite (coached by Brian Akers 48-18). Montana Wigfall was the best scorer in both games with 12 and 11 points respectively. The Force won their pool too. The Force dispatched the Southern Maryland Lady Steel 31-27 and beat the (Owings Mills) Lady Tigers 37-16. In Pool B, The Hoopsmart beat Flames/Jankowski 35-21 and defeated the Central Maryland Attitude 29-21. Tomorrow, the Rocket Flames will play the Hoopsmart in the first semifinal. In the other Semifinal, the 96/Flames National team (coached by Mike Baker) will face the Freedom Force. The winners will meet at 12:45 at Garrison Forest for the tournament title.

2008 YBOA Maryland Qualifier - 11U

Games to be played at McDonogh School. (mcdonogh.org)

Pool A	Pool B	Pool C	Pool D

YBOA MD Qualifier - 5-Apr-2008

Pool Games - McDonogh High School

	Court 1			Court 2
Tip Off	Pool	Home	Away	Pool	Home	Away
8:00am	A			C
9:15am				D
10:30am	B			C
11:45am	A			D
1:00pm	B			C
2:15pm	A			D
3:30pm	B

2008 YBOA Maryland Qualifier - 11U

SUNDAY Games

	Court 1			Court 2
9:00 am	3rd Place Pool A vs 3rd Place Pool B			3rd Place Pool C vs 3rd Place Pool D
10:15 am	1st Place Pool A vs 1st Place Pool B			1st Place Pool C vs 1st Place Pool D
11:30 am	2nd Place Pool A vs 2nd Place Pool B
12:45 am	CHAMPIONSHIP GAME @ Garrison Forest (Court 1)			2nd Place Pool C vs 2nd Place Pool D