Strong finish propels Blazers

Stop, pop and drop.

That’s exactly what Trinity’s Monica Albano did to Mother McAuley - not once, but twice - down the stretch to carry the Blazers to a 65-59 victory Wednesday in semifinal play of the GCAC Red Playoffs.

The senior guard drained two huge three-pointers late in the fourth quarter that helped Trinity (23-5) erase a six-point deficit and turn the game in the Blazers’ favor.

“I had to make something happen,” said Albano, who finished with a game-high 25 points. “When I got the ball, I knew I was going to shoot and that’s exactly what I did.”

Up next for Albano and Co. is Resurrection, which knocked off Loyola 41-40 in the other semifinal. The title game is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Trinity in River Forest.

“We beat Resurrection earlier in the season, and all we have to do is play the same way we did last time against them,” Albano said.

After a back-and-forth first half ended with Trinity holding a 33-32 advantage, Mother McAuley built up a 50-44 third-quarter cushion thanks to Kayla Tisza. The senior scored all eight of her points in the period to spark the Mighty Macs.

But despite the overall solid play of Maureen Sullivan (17 points), Sarah Garcia (11 points) and Jen Moriarty (seven points), Mother McAuley struggled in the fourth quarter.

That’s when Shakyia Vassar (11 points), Amanda Macchione (11 points) and Divinity Brown (seven points) rose to the occasion along with Albano to help the Blazers outscore Mother McAuley 21-9 over the final eight minutes.