Liberty’s girls basketball team found its stride in the second half of their contest against Whitehall, which led to a 52-43 victory over the Zephyrs on Dec. 4 at Whitehall.

“We’re trying to find our identity. We’ve got a lot of girls who are trying to fill shoes for some girls from last year, and once we find that, I think we’ll start to click,” said Liberty coach Jarrett Carnes. “I told the girls, we can’t start games like this all the time. From time to time, you’ll get away with it, but other times, it’s gonna bite you in the rear.”

Liberty’s full-court press and a 10 seconds call against Whitehall in the third quarter was the spark that lit up the Hurricanes, and Ava Kopetskie’s four-point play shifted the momentum all together.

Kopetskie (20 points) then intercepted a pass taken in for a layup, and teammate Ady Smith’s 3-pointer gave Liberty the lead with 3:52 remaining in the third quarter.

The Zephyrs gained four straight points from Abigail Kneller, and Liberty’s Emma Miller (12 points) drilled a 3-pointer on the Hurricanes’ inbound play.

“The first half wasn’t our best, but we shined through in the second, and it built up the score more than usual,” Miller said. “When DeLaney Foster and Ava Kopetskie were sitting up front and they were getting those steals, and then it was kicked out to three, it just kept going.”

The Zephyrs suffered a second 10 seconds call late in the third quarter, and after Liberty center Chloe Rumelhart (9 points), who had big blocks under the basket, put up four points, Kopetskie was fouled with .1 seconds left, and two free throws put the Hurricanes ahead, 37-36.

“After that 10 second call, it all went up from there,” Kopetskie said. “The whole team was into it at that point, and we were all excited that we got something good to happen. We needed an energy shift, and that’s kind of what we got there.”

Liberty compiled an eight-point lead by the 5:10 mark, and the Hurricane defense made it difficult for the Zephyr offense to get a shot off.

“I preached to them during this whole fall, prior to the season starting, that this year, defense is going to create offense for us, and it’s going to mean a whole lot more because I knew what we were gonna be built like,” said Coach Carnes. “I’m glad to see that the press started to get to Whitehall, and all it takes is one turnover and a bucket, or one type of steal, whatever it is, and then that gets you going. Momentum’s real.”