The score remained close throughout, but the Indians used tremendous ball movement to control the tempo and advance to the finals with a 50-42 win.

"We played fairly well, but Pascack Valley put the clamps down when they had to," said senior point guard Sam Sinatra. "We tried our best to execute, but they came out on top."

From the start, Pascack Valley used multiple screens to set up perimeter shots. The Old Tappan zone defense kept up on the outside runners and completely shut down the Indians passes to the inside.

"In the first quarter we played really good defense moving around their screens," said sophomore forward Alex Radetzky.

The Indians missed their first five perimeter shots and the Golden Knights capitalized with a strong inside game led by senior Lisa Jaris. Old Tappan looked solid on defense blocking shots, but appeared to have some trouble boxing out, which was a foreshadow of things to come.

Alana Soumas drained a three-pointer and Sinatra sank a jumper to help the Golden Knights take an 8-6 lead by the end of the first quarter.

Old Tappan worked its game plan in the first two quarters, getting the ball inside to Chanel Van Dyke. The forward not only had a hot hand, scoring seven points in the quarter, but also made a thunderous block that wowed the fans.

"We wanted to go inside-out on them, which was to go inside, and kick it back out," said Sinatra. "They were able to make adjustments and matched up on us well."

The Indians’ perimeter shooting woes continued, but the Golden Knights were unable to consistently box out. With several chances to score, thanks to offensive rebounds, it was just a matter of time before Pascack Valley would get back in the groove.

As the first half was coming to a close, it was reminiscent of a heavyweight fight with each contender going punch for punch.

With 10 seconds left Van Dyke muscled her way inside to draw hacking defenders for the "and-one" play and Pascack Valley senior Sara Ely responded by dribbling the length of the court, slipping passed the entire opposing starting five to complete a smooth layup.

Like a slumbering volcano waiting to erupt, Ely had been held to two first quarter points before exploding for a massive second quarter. She tallied a total of 10 heading into the half, and in so doing, put her squad up 24-19.

"Sara (Ely) hit key shots," said Pascack Valley coach Jeff Jasper. "She’s a player that’s willing to seize the moment. There are a lot of great players, but there are only a few that will take that risk."

It was more Ely in the third quarter, but this time the whole family chipped in with junior Maggie Ely and sophomore Terry Ely cashing in for points. The three sisters fueled an 8-2 four-minute run.

On the other side of the hardwood, Old Tappan came out of the half still trying to work the inside, but the Indian defense deemed the paint a "no-basketball zone."

Van Dyke finally broke down the Pascack Valley barricade not only to knock down an inside jumper, but on the next possession she drew a foul while in the process of shooting.

The two teams were equally matched on the offensive-side, as each scored 10 points in the third quarter. So the score heading into the final eight minutes had the Golden Knights trailing 34-29.

There was more question-and-answer basketball to open the fourth quarter. Terry Ely questioned Old Tappan, when she nailed an open jumper. Sinatra answered with a drive to the basket. She not only finished the shot, but added a free throw.

As the game wound down, Radetzky stepped up and used her height to drive to the basket. She was fouled during every attempt to the hole.

"It was a mismatch on the court because they had all guards out on the floor," said Radetzky. "I would get the ball and since they didn’t have someone big down low, I’d use my height advantage."

Unfortunately for the Golden Knights the Indians used their superb ball movement and quickness for offensive rebounds to hold onto the victory. The Indians used this ability to control the tempo and kept the Old Tappan offense at bay.

"Our kids did a great job getting stops when they needed to, but they’re (Pascack Valley) too disciplined and very well coached," said Old Tappan coach Brian Dunn.

The Indian coach knew that when these two teams hook up, it’s going to be a classic match up.

"The county tournament is the apex of local basketball and sometimes you have be both good and lucky," said Jasper.

Old Tappan gave it all they had and although the Golden Knights are disappointed with the outcome, there was no shame at all in the team’s effort.

"It’s been a great experience to play in front of a crowd of this size," said Sinatra. "We had a good run."