Panas Girls, Yorktown, Mahopac, Fox Lane, Hen Hud, Westlake, Croton Advance

Yorktown, Peekskill, Greeley, Byram, Westlake Boys Moving on #CountyCenterBeckons

By Ray Gallagher, Examiner Sports Editor @Directrays

A wild week of first-round hoops action is the focus of Direct Rays this week, including Examiner-area boys’ and girls’ teams inching ever-so-close to the Final 4 and the dream of playing on the Westchester County Center hardwood.

BOYS HOOPS

CLASS AA

No.2 YORKTOWN, No.4 PEEKSKILL and No.7 HORACE GREELEY were the only Ex-area AA teams to move on as No.14 LAKELAND, No.15 CARMEL and No.16 MAHOPAC were all bounced in the opening round after winning their outbracket matchups to qualify for the field of 16.

Carmel (9-13) ventured to Yorktown (17-4) and gave the host Huskers fits in the early going before Yorktown seized control late in the second quarter to secure a 50-37 opening-round win Saturday, which set up Thursday’s quarterfinal bout with Greeley (16-5) #WinnerGoestoCountyCenter.

Carmel led 5-0 after Ram senior Joey Loughlan hit a deep 3 ball. Yorktown senior C Ryan Duffy (16 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists) went for and-1 try for the tie, but no good, 5-4. Duffy went for another bucket for an and-1 from Brian Hansen, no good, 8-6, Carmel. Duffy then hit a 3 from top of the key for a 9-8 Husker lead at the end of the first, Duffy going for seven of the nine Husker points.

Yorktown, which knocked off Carmel in the opening round in 2024, then fouled Ram G Dylan Sullivan behind the arc and he hit three for an 11-9 Ram lead. The #SandMan, Husker wing Sander Stone, drilled a 3 ball from the corner for a 12-11 Yorktown lead. Shifty Ram Aiden White, who scored his 1,000th career point in the outbracket win over Brewster, pulled up from 17 feet for a 13-12 Carmel lead, but Duffy answered again at 4:44 for a 14-13 Husker lead, the Huskers would not relinquish.

Hansen scored a tough shot in the lane for a 16-13 Husker lead. White nailed a runner in the paint to make it 16-15 Yorktown. Yorktown All-Section senior Kaden Gonzalez (14 points 7 rebounds), who had been minimized over the first 10 minutes, hit his first hoop, a deep 3, for a 19-15 lead. Ram big man King Mercer was called for a charge and picked up his third foul of the game with 2:48 to go before the half.

Gonzo splashed another from distance, 22-15, before White answered from 22 feet for his ninth point, but Stone (11 points in all) answered, 24-18 Yorktown. A Gonzo 3 made it 27-18 Huskers, which is where we went into the half after some serious chirping between both clubs.

In the third quarter, Duffy hit from Gonzo for an 11-point lead, 29-18, at 6:40. Gonzo hit another 3 and then drew Mercer’s fourth foul on a rebound. The Rams were in big trouble at this point, trailing 32-18. At 34-22 and 2:05 left in the third, Gonzo drew an offensive foul. Colin Worden sank an easy hoop to end the third with a 37-24 Husker lead.

Duffy opened the fourth with a hoop, followed by a Loughlan 3 to make it 39-27 early in the fourth. White cut it to 10 points when he hit his 17th point off a lay-in. Then, a White 3 off a catch-and-shoot cut the deficit to seven points, 39-32, with just under six to play. The Rams refused to go quietly, despite Mercer never getting in rhythm due to foul woes.

A Stone-cold Stunner by #SandMan from distance made it 44-32 with just under 4:00 to go. Worden, off a steal, found Stone with a death-nail bucket and a 46-32 lead.

White cut the deficit to 10. Mercer, who, plagued by foul trouble, scored just one point, fouled out with 1:08 to go as the Huskers moved on despite a game-high 24 from White.

White (25 points, 7 boards, 5 assists, 4 steals) had his way in the 76-62 win over No.18 BREWSTER. Loughlin (15 points, 6 assists, 3 steals), Jair Johnson (13 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals), Sullivan (12 points) and Mercer (11points, 14 boards) were clearly too much to offset Bears Max Rivera (20 points, six 3’s) and All-League choice Will Dignan added 15 for the Bears (6-15).

No.10 Roosevelt (13-7) gave GREELEY all it could handle before the Quakers rode a monster effort from senior G Zach Boyriven to a 66-64 opening-round win Saturday. The steady Boyriven (34 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists) was unguardable from start to finish and senior All-Conference F Jake Sheehy (12 points, 8 boards, 5 assists) was a matchup nightmare.

A Boyriven 3 gave the Quakers seven point lead, 59-52, with just under 3:00 to play. At 59-54, Roosevelt took a timeout. Roosevelt’s 250-pounder, Patrick David Flores Herrera, made it 59-56. Shehey was fouled with 38.3 left and hit 1 before Boyriven iced it at the line with some seriously clutch shots at the charity stripe. He reached the line off a poke and steal where hit two for a 62-56 lead. Frank Mercedes hit for Roosevelt, an and-1 with 18.3 left, 62-59. The All-Section Boyriven, the League I-D co-MVP. went back to the line and hit two with 15.4 left. Roosevelt cut it to three with 5.7 seconds left. Boyriven, though, went back to the line to ice it, hitting two more, which were essential when Mercedes hit a 3 at the buzzer for the final margin.

PEEKSKILL drew its inevitable quarterfinal matchup with No.5 Poughkeepsie after the Red Devils eased past No.13 John Jay CR, 62-38, behind 15 points apiece from the senior dynamic duo of All-NYS swingman Jaden Chavis and All-League G Isaiah Crawford.

The reigning Section 1 champion Red Devils (15-6), ranked No.25 in NYS, have to guard against overconfidence versus a Poughkeepsie team they handled, 60-39, on Feb.1. The Red Devils have won nine of the last 10 and are hoping for another crack at state-ranked (No.7) ranked Tappan Zee in the Final 4. The Dutchmen buried the Red Devils, 66-44, in the season opener for both.

FOX LANE never found its footing against an athletic Harrison club that hung a 54-32 defeat on the Foxes (13-8), doing so behind its trademark defense and physicality and a game-high 22 points from Matt McCoy. The Foxes trailed 22-11 going into the third period and then 26-11 just seconds in before an Arthur Shevick 3 made it 26-14. But Harrison, off a quick transition outlet and layup, took a 35-17 lead at 2:17. There were far too many easy layups for the Huskies, who carried a 39-22 lead into the fourth, the Foxes having played, perhaps, their poorest offensive game of the season.

Foxes Shevick (9 points, 4 boards), Evan Mayers (4 points, 4 rebounds), Mac Keller (5 points, 1 assist, 2 rebounds), Janak Bain (4 points, 4 rebounds) and Eli Daglio (10 points, 1 assist, 2 rebounds) never seemed to find their rhythm.

LAKELAND (11-11) met its match at No.3 Rye in a 55-33 setback after defeating Saunders 61-36 in an outbracket game that saw Mike Lucia (14 points), Anthony Attanasio (14), Oban Rader (13) and Sergio Hormazabel (10) go for double digits.

MAHOPAC (9-13) crossed the Tappan Zee bridge to take on the No.1 Dutchmen (19-2) Saturday afternoon, and the hosts were not kind to the Wolf Pac, instead ending their season in a 53-36 opening-round setback. TZ led 16-6 after the first quarter, and then TZ drilled a fade-away buzzer beater from distance to take a commanding 32-13 lead into the break. Mahopac, which returns a bunch of talented underclassmen next season, held on for a 53-46 outbracket win over Clarkstown South.

CLASS A

In Friday’s game of the day, visiting No.9 Irvington edged No.8 PUTNAM VALLEY, 65-63, in OT behind a stunning late-session effort from senior G CJ Steinberg, who finished with 19 points, including the 1,000th of his career, while hitting several big shots down the stretch. Steinberg had to be clutch as PV’s All-Section senior G James Apostolico shredded the Bulldogs for a game-high 35 points while setting a new standard for career points at PV (1,422).

All-League sophomore G Logan Moriarty dropped another 18 with some unconscious shooting from the wing. The Tigers (12-9), which led 55-53 with 11.3 seconds left in the fourth, were simply not efficient enough from the free throw line, hitting just 2 of 5 late in the fourth through OT when some controversy ensued following a highly questionable call that went against PV.

Top-seeded BYRAM HILLS eased past No.16 CROTON-HARMON, 95-45, in Friday’s opening round and will get a load of Irvington in Tuesday’s quarterfinal round. The state-ranked (No.5) Bobcats (19-2) saw two-time All-Section senior C Zach Efobi lead a balanced attack with a typical double-double (16 points, 12 boards). The section’s premier rim protector, Effobi had his way while guards Chris Amenedo (14 points) and Broday Ceisler (11) dominated the backcourt and ‘Big Mike’ Nezaj (11) and Kevin Kendall (11) were big up front. The Bulldogs don’t match up well here against the reigning Section 1 champion Bobcats, who should find themselves facing the No.4 Nanuet/No.5 Obama winner at the County Center Final 4 Saturday, March 1 if all goes according to plan.

No.2 WESTLAKE has a similar plan in place after the state-ranked (No.28) Wildcats (18-3) handed visiting No.15 HEN HUD an 87-42 thumping.

Westlake junior G Marcus Jackette added to his 1,000-point career with 20 more while Brayden Lingeza (12 points) and Nick Stratigakis (11) provided Westlake with three double-digit scorers. All 13 Westlake players scored at least one point, leaving Westlake as the host against No.7 Albertus Magnus in Tuesday’s quarterfinals. The Sailors finished at 5-16, led by Jack Hiltsley (12 points) and Nasir Emery (8), in the loss.

No.14 PLEASANTVILLE was also eliminated by No.3 Pearl River, 54-42, despite the couple-digit efforts of Panthers Matt O’Neill (13 points) and Declan Bruder (10). Luke Buell and Nathan Barreto chipped in with seven points apiece. P’ville finished at 6-15.

 

GIRLS HOOPS

CLASS AA

No.4 MAHOPAC hosted No.13 HORACE GREELEY in a battle of Ex-area teams Saturday looking to advance to Thursday’s quarterfinals, which the Wolf Pac did with a 54-48 opening-round win.

Mahopac sophomore Maddie Ford and junior Ashley Koch hit consecutive layups to put Mahopac up 12-9 at the end of the first quarter. Ford hit again to open the second, 14-9 Wolf Pac. And a Ford trey at 6:14 led to a 17-9 advantage. Fiona Kelleher made it 19-9 at the 6:00-mark. Greeley’s Georgia Sack nailed a three to stop the run at 19-12. Stella Potenza made it 20-14 as the Quakers inched closer before Claire Reynolds nailed a trey to make it 22-17. Caley Salon’s eighth point led to a 24-17 Pac lead. Salon two more at the line made it 26-17. Salon found sophomore Giana Puckhaber for a 28-17 lead, but Reynolds answered with a trey, 28-20, before Salon finished in the paint before the halftime buzzer, 30-20, Wolf Pac.

Salon hit a put-back to open the third, 32-20, before Sack answered, 32-22. Pac’s Fiona Kelleher made a great steal in the paint before hitting a falling scoop shot-and-1 for a 35-22 lead at 4:30 of the third, followed by a Puckhaber hoop for a 37-22 advantage. Sack made it 38-26 off a strong move, followed by a deep Sack 3 to trim the deficit to 38-29. Puckhaber, a sophomore who did a little bit of everything and then some, picked up her fourth foul late in the quarter.

Salon scored her 18th point for a 40-29 lead. An Allie Mosca putback by Greeley made it 40-31 to finish the third. Quaker Carolina Negrin hit two at the line to make it 40-33. Niamh Kellerher scored for Mahopac to make it 42-33. A Salon putback made it 44-33, followed by a Ford 3 off the right wing for a 47-33 deathnail at 5:12 of the fourth.

Greeley wouldn’t go quietly, though, as Mosca and Negrin hit back-to-back buckets to trim the deficit to 49-40 at 3:46. Puckhaber found a wide-open Salon for a 51-40 lead. Negrin hit two at the line, 51-42. Puckhaber (6 points, 10 boards) fouled out with 2:26 left. Reynolds and the Quakers showed no quit when she hit her fourth 3 at 1:35 to make it 52-46. Mosca followed off her steal to cut it to four, 52-48. Greeley had a chance to cut it to two but failed with 22 seconds left. Ford hit two at the stripe for a 54-48 lead with 13.3 left.

Mahopac will now host No.5 FOX LANE, a 56-47 winner over No.12 LAKELAND, in what might be the top quarterfinal game of the entire tournament.

Freshman Cora Moore (15 points, 8 in the fourth quarter), junior Riley New (10 points) and freshman Morgan Clinton (11 points, clutch on boards) led the Foxes (15-6), who played with heavy hearts after losing senior G Cara Drapala (15 points) to a season-ending injury in the second half. All three underclassmen will return next season.

The Hornets (9-12) were led by talented sophomore G Riley Waters, who dropped a team-high 16 points. Amanda Franco added 10.

Top-seeded WALTER PANAS, ranked No.1 in NYS, looked like a team that was poised to repeat as Section 1 champs during a 69-42 blitz of No.16 BREWSTER in Saturday’s opening round. Panther All-NYS senior G Sofia Tavarez (26 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 6 steals) was too much to contend with as the Panthers (20-1) advanced to No.8 Nyack in the quarters. Katie Hofmann (11 points), Kiara Williams (9) and All-NYS senior G Cadence Nicholas (9) all chipped in effectively at both ends to limit Brewster’s leading scorers Lauren Leon (13), Olivia Francis (11) and Ava Fagin (10). No.16 Brewster finished at 8-14, including a 68-22 outbracket win over No.17 PEEKSKILL (6-15).

Remember, Panas, should it win the section, could see state-ranked No.2 Baldwin in the second round of the state tournament #Whoa! On March 15.

No.10 YORKTOWN also advanced to the quarters after the road warriors went south to knock off No.7 Gorton, 48-13.

CLASS A

Perhaps the game of the week pitted No.9 PLEASANTVILLE at No.8 CROTON-HARMON, and the game lived up to the billing with the host Tigers coming away with a 58-46 double OT triumph to advance to the quarters. Johanna Hough (19), Alana Walsh (14) and Ava Andrews (12) provided the Tigers (15-6) with three double-digit scorers. Meghan Raefski led Pleasantville with 20 points in a somewhat disappointing finish for the Panthers (11-10), after reaching the Final 4 a year ago before losing to runnerup Westlake. That said, you can bet your last dollar the Panthers will be determined to reach their capabilities in the 2025-26 season.

Croton will visit top-seeded Ardsley in the sectional quarters.

A legit third-seeded HEN HUD cruised past Nanuet, 75-27, in the opening round of the playoffs, doing so behind a career-high 21 points from senior F Carmen Marino. All-NYS senior Kaitlyn Raguso and sophomore G Avery Motko added 15 and 12, respectively, leading the state-ranked (No.19) Sailors (16-5) to a quarterfinal matchup with No.6 Pearl River (No.21 in NYS), who knocked off No.11 PUTNAM VALLEY, 50-30, ending the Tigers’ four-year reign as sectional champs (2020-22-23-24), plus the Covid regional title in 2021 #QuiteTheRunforPVHigh.

Know this: Pearl River is no ordinary six seed, and this matchup could be the best quarterfinal game of them all. Should it survive, Hen Hud would draw the No.2 Pelham/No.7 Irvington winner in the semis and advance to the County Center for just the third time ever since winning their only sectional title in 2020 behind Caitlin Weimar and losing in last year’s final to Panas #HistoricalNuggets.

No.5 WESTLAKE advanced to the Class A quarterfinals defeating No.12 Edgemont 64-26. A balanced Wildcat (15-6) saw nine players put up points, including 17 from senior Maggie Plotkin and 13 from junior Olivia Celaj. Eighth-grader Sara Plotkin provided a glimpse of her fancy future with a career-high 16 points for the Wildcats, who advanced to visit No.4 Bronxville in the quarters. One could only imagine the type of season Westlake could have had if fully healthy, having lost star swing Brooke Pfeiffer to a torn ACL.

CLASS B boys’ and girls’ hoops action was set to begin Wednesday.

 

DAVID TABER/CHRIS SMAJLAJ/GIL MCMAHON PHOTOS