Roman rallies to dethrone Saints

And so, when Wanamaker finally checked back in - only 4:21 later - the Cahillites had weathered a Neumann-Goretti storm, and it was time for the 6-foot-4 guard to unfurl his own blitz.

Keying a 17-4 run to end the game, the Pittsburgh-bound Wanamaker spurred a Roman comeback of epic proportions as the Cahillites dumped two-time defending champion Neumann-Goretti, 59-56, in an exhilarating Catholic League championship yesterday at the Palestra.

While it only took the Cahillites a little less than five minutes to recover from a 10-point deficit, a few more moments of Wanamaker on the bench could have thwarted any potential rebound.

"If we go down," said Roman coach Dennis Seddon, "we're not going to go down with our best player sitting on the bench."

When Wanamaker exited after his second offensive foul of the game, the score was knotted, 36-36. When he was sent back out, Roman trailed, 48-40.

"We were standing around waiting for Brad because everything runs through him," said Brian Wanamaker, Brad's twin. "But he was on the bench."

The Cahillites, though, continued to sputter. When Neumann-Goretti's Rick Jackson (20 points, 18 rebounds and 5 blocked shots) scored on a feed from Antonio "Scoop" Jardine, the Saints owned a 52-42 cushion.

"We kind of celebrated too early," said Jardine, who is headed to Syracuse along with Jackson. "But I kept trying to tell them, 'We still have five minutes left.' "

Wanamaker went to work. In the next 50 seconds, he scored seven straight points as the Cahillites sawed the margin to 52-49. Then the rest of Roman (25-3) stepped up its effort, with Courtney Stanley and Maalik Wayns scoring fastbreak layups to give the Cahillites their first lead since early in the third.

After Neumann-Goretti (24-5) briefly went ahead, and then the score was tied, Roman went ahead again, 58-54, when Will Kirkland scored off a Brad Wanamaker assist.

Brian Wanamaker added another two points, and Jackson two more for the Saints before a wild finish.

Here's the final minute sequence: First, Brad Wanamaker had a shot blocked by Jackson. Then Jardine missed a runner and Jackson turned over the rebound. Then Brian Wanamaker traveled. Then Mark Hatty air-balled an open three-pointer for Neumann-Goretti.

Kirkland made the front end of double-bonus free throws and Stanley missed two from the line after gobbling up Kirkland's second miss. And finally, Hatty's desperation 25-footer as time expired was wide right.

Whew.

With the victory, Roman claimed its first league crown since 2000. For the all-time winningest program, in terms of titles, the seven-year drought was the Cahillites' longest since the 1960s.

"They were a hungry team," said Neumann-Goretti coach Carl Arrigale.

For Seddon, it was his 10th Catholic League plaque, a league mark. It may have been his finest job, working without a rotation player taller than 6-foot-4.

"We don't have anyone taller than 6-4," said Seddon, "but we've got 7-foot hearts."

Roman Catholic15 19 6 19 - 59

Neumann-Goretti15 15 16 10 - 56

RC: Brad Wanamaker 17, Brian Wanamaker 10, Maalik Wayns 13, Will Kirkland 12, Courtney Stanley 7.

NG: Rick Jackson 20, Antonio Jardine 7, Jamal Wilson 10, Tony Chennault 13, Rashad Savage 2, Mark Hatty 2, Wali Hepburn 2.