Lynch Explodes for 40 Points to lift No. 3 St. Rose over No. 1 RBC

BELMAR — In one of the greatest individual performances in recent history, junior Jada Lynch scored a career-high 40 points in 28 minutes to lead No. 3 St. Rose over No. 1 Red Bank Catholic, 61-54. 

Lynch started the game off scoring 12 points in the first quarter all on 3-pointers to help the Roses get out to a 16-11 lead. Lynch would put St. Rose up 21-13 early in the second quarter before she sustained a cut above her right eye while fighting for a rebound. She would miss four minutes of action and did not return until there was 45 seconds left in the half. 

“I was itching and I could not wait to get back in,” Lynch said. “I asked my dad about three times in the span of three minutes or four minutes that I was out to go check the score. Honestly I was not even thinking about my cut. They were talking about maybe getting stitched up and I was like whatever it takes to get back in the game is all I cared about.”

After outscoring St. Rose, 11-7, in the second quarter, the Caseys came out strong in the third quarter and were able to take their first lead of the game two minutes into the quarter 26-24. 

Junior Tessa Liggio was able to give Red Bank Catholic its biggest leads of the game in the third quarter with her 3-point shooting, but the Roses had a response each time. Liggio knocked down one of her four 3-pointers to put the Caseys up, 32-27, but Cassidy Kruesi responded with a 3-pointer of her own. Liggio, who finished with a team-high 16 points, gave RBC its biggest lead, 36-30, on a 3-pointer midway through the quarter.

St. Rose did not panic. Senior Caroline Conforti cut the Casey lead in half with a 3-point play after she put in an offensive rebound and got fouled. That started a 12-0 run to end the third quarter for St. Rose. Lynch scored the final 9 of her 13 points in the quarter to put St. Rose up, 42-36.

“She knows we’ve been through that,” said Lynch about St. Rose coach Christine Hatfield not calling a timeout after RBC took a six point lead. “She puts us through a lot of great drills at practice. She puts through a lot of running when we are not locked in. We had to lock in at practice when we were not locked in and that is what we did now. We said it is just like practice and we have to flip a switch and thats what we did.”

The Caseys were able to start the fourth quarter on a 5-0 run to make it 42-41, but that was as close as they would get the rest of the game. Lynch responded with her fifth 3-pointer of the game and Brooke Missry followed that with her second 3-pointer of the game to put St. Rose up, 50-43. 

“I could not be more proud of this group,” Hatfield said. “I wanted to let them play and they responded. The winner of this game was who stayed in it mentally. I felt it was a mental game for us. If we could make mistakes and stay in it, then we could win. With RBC, its a rivalry and sometimes the girls take it personal and we do not play our best against them. I really feel they all did their job today.”

St. Rose sealed the game at the free-throw line, shooting 9-for-12 in the fourth quarter. Junior Belle Alvarado went 3-for-4 and Kruesi went 2-for-2 to close the game out. Lynch shot 11-for-14 throught the game from the free-thow line. 

After a lopsided 66-41 loss to Gill St. Bernard on Monday in the Holiday Hoopfest, Lynch and the Roses had something to prove against the top team in the Shore Conference. 

St. Rose improved to 4-2 with the victory and played their third game out of their last four against an opponent ranked inside the Top 10 in New Jersey according to NJ.com. Before their defeat to No. 8 Gill St. Bernard, St. Rose defeated No. 4 Rutgers Prep, 46-41. 

“Jada Lynch was unbelievable tonight and they could not stop her,” Hatfield said. “She recovered from a game that she had a tough night against Gill St. Bernard and you never know how someone is gonna respond. She came out tonight and played like the player she is supposed to be. When she is feeling it she is feeling it and I try not to say a word to her and just let her do thing.”