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CJ girls top Alter with strong defense

True to their motto, Eagles clamp down on visiting Knights.

Rayte' a Long (44) of CJ and Katie Bilinski (20) of Alter attempt to corral a loose ball during the rivalry game, Thursday, January 12, 2012, at Chaminade Julienne High School.

Rob Leifheit Rayte' a Long (44) of CJ and Katie Bilinski (20) of Alter attempt to corral a loose ball during the rivalry game, Thursday, January 12, 2012, at Chaminade Julienne High School.

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Photos: Chaminade Julienne vs. Alter

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By Jeff Ermann, Contributing Writer Updated 2:30 AM Friday, January 13, 2012

The Chaminade Julienne girls basketball team has a motto: There will be nights when the shots don’t fall, but you can always play good defense. And last night against Alter, it was on full display.

The Eagles suffered through a brutal second-half scoring slump that saw a once-cushy lead turn into a late-game deficit, but they used their stifling, scrambling defense to squeak out a 48-43 victory over the Knights in Dayton.

Chaminade Julienne roared to a 20-6 lead early in the second quarter and appeared on its way to an easy win before its defense began wavering and Alter’s offense came alive. But the Eagles forced turnovers on four straight Alter possessions in the final minutes, closing with a 13-6 run to win their fourth straight against their Girls Greater Cincinnati League rival.

“That’s always been the mentality of CJ basketball. Defense is what we pride ourselves on,” said Eagles senior center Raytea Long, who finished with a game-high 14 points. “Defense wins games.”

The Eagles (10-2, 4-1 GGCL) smothered Alter (10-3, 3-2) early, running out to a 15-point lead midway through the second quarter.

To Alter’s credit, it never folded, eventually taking a 35-31 lead when sophomore Kara Bockrath (team-high 13 points) dished to her sister, senior Allison Bockrath, for a 3-pointer from the corner.

But CJ ramped up the defense again, creating four of its 23 forced turnovers in a decisive two-minute span.

The Eagles regained the lead on a 3-pointer by Simone Gale (nine points, three steals) with three minutes remaining and sealed the win on another longball by Emily Michael a minute later.

The Eagles are the No. 6 team in the state Division II poll — largely because of defense.

“We always talk about making our defense our offense,” said CJ coach Mindy Myers, who played on the Eagles’ last state championship team in 1999.

“Our mission is to play harder than the other team.”

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