The first was that, although Exodus had just squeaked by an Auburn Riverside team that had formed the core of the Washington State 3A champions, Prahalis had, in spite of an otherwise subpar game, delivered the victory with three free throws and a steal during the final 25 seconds. The second message was a benching at the start of Friday night's marquee matchup against the Tennesee Flight for bolting the team meeting earlier.

And so it was that the drama that always seems to grip and choke Exodus, one of summer's supremely talented but perpetually underachieving club teams, apparently was rearing its ugly head once again.

Samantha Prahalis is fouled from behind
by Riverside's Ireti Amojo

Prahalis had other ideas, however. Proving to be a quick healer - emotionally, at least - she poured in 20 mostly scintillating points to lead Exodus to what could prove to be a signature, 67-53 victory over the Flight, which previously had a lot to argue for being the top club team in the country. To say that Prahalis orchestrated the win would be an understatement. She not only waved the baton, she provided strings, brass, percussion and practically handed out the programs, to boot.

It got so ridiculous that, with just under five minutes to play, Prahalis spied that a defender dared sag off of her and, in spite of being a good eight feet behind the three-point line, cranked one up that ripped through the twine.

"I told myself to get it together," said Prahalis, ranked 21st in the 2008 class by HoopGurlz.com. "I told myself to just go out and play hard."

Again, "hard" is not enough to describe what transpired during the final 9 minutes, 40 seconds, most of which was gobbled up by a 28-10, Prahalis-instigated Exodus blitz. The Commack, N.Y., point guard touched off the run with a penetration and kick to Shenneika Smith for a three, then tipped a loose ball to herself for a layup. Earlier in the half, Prahalis had parlayed a quick, low crossover dribble straight into a quick-triggered three-pointer.

While Prahalis accounted for the most entertaining individual outing of the day, the most competitive game may have been East Bay Xplosion's overtime victory over North Tartan (Minnesota), which Hannah Linz nudged into the extra period with a three-pointer with just 3.4 seconds left in regulation. Alex Cowling, the Loyola Marymount commit, helped EBX overcome the temporary turn in tide with go-ahead buckets early in OT. Long, disciplined North Tartan was paced by Minnesota commit Jackie Voigt, a strong, 6-foot-1 forward with a great three-point stroke.

Other notable matchups included West Coast Elite's seven-point victory over the Cy-Fair Shock 90, in spite of an impressive outing by Nneka Ogwumike, the No. 7 player in 2008 who had 20 points. WCE was led by the 16 points of Monique Oliver, one of the nation's top 2009 prospects. Another clash of impressive post prospects saw Joslyn Tinke, a 2009, lead Big Sky (Montana) over Malia Nahinu, a 2008, and EBX Gold.

Rachel Bilney of East Bay Xplosion

But the result that had to send shock waves of trepidation throughout the field belonged to Exodus. In addition to Prahalis, the New York-based team has Division I front-line prospects in Smith, Alexa Roche and Shakeya Leary, all of whom are ranked in HoopGurlz's top 60. Krystall Parnell, a 5-5 fireplug who, like Leary, hails out of Manhattan's renowned Murry Bertraum, proved a penetrating force that was destructive to Riverside in the Exodus' first, albeit less impressive, victory.

In spite of the abundance of talent, Exodus had found ways to self-destruct, losing in overtime at the Deep South Classic to FBC and at the buzzer to the Tennessee Flight in Mason, Ohio. The latter loss was particularly galling to Paschall, who felt his team had played well enough to produce a 10-point victory. Prahalis also had become fed up with what she called her team's "collapses," and, in spite of constant double teams as well as some sluggishness induced by the demanding Nike Skills Academy, blamed herself for the near-upchuck against Riverside.

"She gets so hard on herself," Paschall said of Prahalis. "She was upset, but I am trying to make her understand that, as soon as she walks into a gym, people are going to concentrate on stopping her. When she's drawing the double teams, one of her teammates is going to have to step up and make herself available. That's not happening. But she has to understand that's not her fault."

Neither is the fact that, according to Paschall, Exodus probably practices less than most elite teams because its players are so far-flung and its practice gym doesn't even have a full court and has to facilitate as many as eight teams. Still, the team's talent screams for better results and, according to Prahalis, this victory over the Tennessee Flight may be a springboard to some.

"We haven't learned to play hard - no matter what," she said. "A game like this is definitely going to show that, if we play hard for a full game, there aren't going to be many teams that can beat us."

North Tartan's Caitlin Rowland draws a foul