Girls Hoops Notebook

Yorktown off to Impressive Start, Panas Remains Unbeaten

By Tony Pinciaro

Nine games into the season and YORKTOWN has established itself as a team on the rise. Yorktown won two of three games, improving to 7-2 on the season. The Cornhuskers ran away from Horace Greeley with a strong surge, 62-47. In the opening game of the Peekskill Tournament, Yorktown handled the host, 64-34. White Plains surprised Yorktown in the final, 48-42.

The Cornhuskers (7-2) trailed Greeley, 43-41, in the fourth quarter, but closed the game with a 21-4 run. Ashley Zeola had a game-best 23 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, and eight rebounds. Kat Severino added 20 points, six rebounds, four steals and three blocked shots and Melissa Severino collected five assists and five steals.

“We started getting the ball inside and converting a lot more, where we kind of got stagnant and didn’t move enough on offense in the third quarter,” said Yorktown Coach Brian Mundy of the Greeley game. “We got into a situation with fouls in the third quarter and we had to change some personnel, but they were able to hold it together. The girls really stepped up and were able to get some turnovers with the press, which allowed us to get back on track.”

The victory over Greeley came in a league game which also pleased Mundy.

“Any league wins we can get are a huge boost for our team,” Mundy said. “The teams in our league are all so close in talent level and all the games are so tight, that any time you gain a little momentum you try to build on that and hope it helps carry you through.”

Severino scored a season-high 31 points and Jesse Barer added 21 points as Yorktown held a 25-point lead over Peekskill at halftime.

“We went in knowing that if we could limit Peekskill in the paint, we would put ourselves in a good position to win,” Mundy said. “And the girls did that without zone. We were also able to outscore them on points off turnovers and get out to a solid first-half lead.”

Severino led Yorktown with 19 points in the loss to White Plains. Barer finished with 10 points and Zeolla added nine points.

PANAS continued rolling, adding two more victories, 44-34 over BREWSTER and 44-42 over SOMERS, improving to 10-0 this season.

The Panthers used a staunch defensive effort against Brewster, limiting the Bears (7-5) to 10 points in the second half. Panas also utilized pin-point accuracy from the free-throw line, going 6 for 6 down the stretch to cement the win.

Cailean Nolan and Kristen Cinquina each had 13 points and Emma Anderson added seven points.

Panas battled back from an early 13-point deficit in the first quarter against Somers (7-3), which played without injured All-Section G Hannah Angelini.

“In games where we start to get ourselves into trouble it tends to be our coaches that keep us in it,” said senior Julia Araujo. “In the Somers’ game, specifically, we had a slow start and we relied on each other to keep our spirits up. We knew once we started to get going offensively that we’d be fine and that’s what we told each other. Overall, we just make sure to keep positive attitudes and we turn out fine.”

Panas Coach Matt Evangelista said the score was tied with three minutes remaining in the game when Panas stepped to the foul line and converted seven of 10, including five by Araujo.

“Our game against Somers came down to free throws at the end, but thankfully that is something we practice daily,” Araujo said. “We start every practice with form shooting and free-throw drills which definitely come in handy in a game like the Somers’ one. When I’m at the free-throw line, even if it’s an intense game with high stakes or a noisy crowd, I really don’t get nervous. I’m a pretty good free-throw shooter, so I just take a deep breath, dribble the ball three times and shoot it.”

Kristen Scrobola scored 10 of her team-best 15 points in the second half. Cinquina finished with 12 points and Nolan added 10 points. Nolan had five in the fourth quarter, including a ‘dagger’ 3-pointer, according to Evangelista.

HEN HUD extended its winning streak to three in-a-row with victories over Beacon, 41-34, and Poughkeepsie, 53-36.The Sailors (6-5) trailed Beacon, 18-13, at halftime, but took control in the fourth quarter.

Caitlin Weimar finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds, Thalia Oliveira added 10 points and five rebounds Grace Moretti contributed eight points and 11 rebounds.

“We played an awful first half,” said Hen Hud coach Ken Sherman of the Beacon game. “We played better in the scond half. We did a better job of limiting our turnovers and got some easy baskets off of our press.”

Moretti finished with a season-high 18 points, five steals and four assists and Weimar added 16 points and 15 rebounds. It was the first game that Weimar did not lead the team in scoring.

“We kind of fed off the energy from the second half of the Beacon game,” Sherman said. “We got off to a good start and never looked back.

“Grace, once again, had a complete game which, as I have sasid, makes our team better.”

LAKELAND won two of three games. The Hornets sandwiched wins over Peekskill, 50-42, and Beacon, 55-29, around a setback to Brewster, 54-46.

Alexa Cole turned in a huge game against Peekskill with 27 points and 12 rebounds and Sarah Carroll finished with 10 points.

Cole had a double-double, 21 points and 10 boards, against Brewster. Tyler Hormazabal had nine points and five assists and Bri Monte added eight points and three blocked shots.

Cole closed out the week with her third consecutive 20-plus-point game, hitting for 25 in the triumph of Beacon. Point guard Amanda Cole collected a team-high 10 rebounds and Hormazabal scored eight points.

BREWSTER dropped a 44-34 verdict to Panas, but rebounded to overcome Lakeland, 54-46.

“We were only down 27-24 at the half, but went ice cold in the third and fourth quarters,” said Brewster Coach Mike Castaldo of the Panas game. “Our defense was solid but we just couldn’t score.”

Maggie DePaoli finished with 17 points.

“Grace Galgano had a huge and-1 that sealed the deal for us,” Castaldo said.

DePaoli led a balanced Brewster scoring with 13 points, Kristen Stefanick and Megan Beal each had 12 points and Galgano scored 10 points.

 

PUTNAM VALLEY suffered its first loss of the season, 42-34, by defending sectional champion Irvington. The Tigers shook off any ill effects of that loss with a dominant 58-28 victory over Ardsley as Cyera Daughtry had a team-high 19 points and Kelli Venezia added 15 points.

“We worked hard, however, our defense was not the same and Irvington took advantage of that, and our shots were not falling,” sophomore Arianna Stockinger said. “To bounce back against Ardsley was awesome. We had to get back in our groove and that was a great game to build everyone’s confidence as a team and individuals, as well. Cyera had an amazing game and really stepped up, leading to our success.”

OSSINING was upset by Our Lady of Lourdes, 55-41, sending the undermanned Pride (8-4) to its second consecutive loss. It was the second straight game Ossining was without Jaida Strippoli. And the Pride are still without Aubrey Griffin. Kailah Harris led the Pride with 21 points and 13 rebounds and Ashley McFadden added nine points.

Ossining will play Central (Ma.), Friday, 9 p.m. in the Hall of Fame Classic at Springfield College.

“We are close to being healthy and onvce we get our kids back on the court, I expect things to turn around,” Ossining coach Dan Ricci said.

MAHOPAC Coach Chuck Scozzafava said his team played really well in both games, but came away with a split – a 66-61 loss to Arlington, then a 53-40 victory over arch-rival Carmel Saturday.

“Arlington was a back-and-forth game with numerous lead changes,” Scozzafava said. “Unfortunately, we are having trouble finishing games. Carmel was a nice win for us after losing a couple of close games.”

Caitlyn O’Boyle poured in a game-high 24 points against Arlington. Mia Klammer led a balanced scoring effort with 11 points against Carmel. Claire Cody finished with a game-leading 17 points for Carmel and is close to 900 points for her splendid career.

SOMERS had an uncharacteristic 0-2 for the week – 41-30 to John Jay-Cross River and 44-42 to Panas.

Jordan May finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds against John Jay and Dani DiCintio had a team-leading 15 points against Panas.