SHARON — Erica Gribble has taken on many roles for the Greensburg Central Catholic girls basketball team in her storied career.
On Friday, she sacrificed scoring in the first half to play relentless defense on Arizona recruit Makayla Presser-Palmer.
In the second half, Gribble, a Richmond recruit, scored 13 points as the Centurions (21-7) rallied for a 50-36 win over Northwestern in the PIAA Class 3A girls basketball second round at Sharon High School.
“It was such a big sacrifice by Erica, and she was chasing Makayla all over the floor,” said Greensburg Central Catholic coach Chris Skatell. “I told her that she’s not getting any help and to guard her closely to cancel each other out.”
The Centurions move on to the PIAA quarterfinals Friday against Trinity Camp Hill, while Northwestern ends the season 22-4.
The Wildcats held a slight lead throughout the first half but couldn’t pull away. With Gribble focusing on defense, the floor opened up for Avery Jones, who scored 14 of her 18 points in the first half.
“There were more gaps and opportunities to score with their focus on Erica,” Jones said. “We really played as a team in the second half.”
Presser-Palmer scored 22 of her 32 points in the first half as the Wildcats led 24-21 at the half. The Greensburg Central Catholic defense kept her in check in the second half.
“It was fun guarding her,” Gribble said. “We’ve played against each other and with each other in AAU as well.”
Gribble and Presser-Palmer were roommates at an Elite 40 camp at IMG Academy last summer.
Northwestern led 33-31 with the clock running down in the third quarter when Jayla Peterson, who finished with 10 points, drilled a 3-pointer.
After the quarter break, Gribble hit a deep 3-pointer and the Centurions went on a 10-0 run to put the game away.
“Those 3-pointers gave us a lot of confidence,” Gribble said. “We were frustrated for a while because it could have been our last game, but we played better as a team.”
Said Skatell: “Every bucket is big in a game like that. It was big to get something going offensively as a team after they defended their butts off in the first half.”
The Centurions return to the PIAA quarterfinals for the first time in two years at a time and site to be determined. They earned it by limiting Presser-Palmer, one of the top players in the state and the all-time leading scorer in District 10 history.
“I don’t think Makayla missed a shot in the first half,” Skatell said. “We thought that with Gribble guarding her, she would eventually get tired. Once we got Gribble some space on offense, she took over.”