Summary of Ct Breeze Tourney
       Game 1 vs Mass Lady Warriors: Both teams had decent offensive starts, then 16 Red went through a 4 minute scoreless streak; decent defense kept them in the game as we maintained a slim 4 point lead. Then the Red kicked it into overdrive as they pressed and ran themselves into a 30 -19 halftime lead. The run was sparked by Lindsay Karle(Lyman Hall) attacking the hoop two times in a row, Sara Kelley (Newtown) finished two fastbreaks, one on a sweet bounce pass from Damika Martinez (Platt). The second half was dramatic in that Alexys Vazquez(Berlin) put on a two minute performance that Kobe Bryant would have been proud of. She hit a three off a set play, then a three on the next possession in transition from 6 feet behind the line, then Sara Kelley gave her a nice dish in the corner and she drained her 3rd three and suddenly the Red was up by 17. As Coach Lewis likes to say: "Vazquez warmed up a little". The Lady Warriors wouldn't go away but the Red went to Martinez when they needed a hoop and she responded shooting 4 for 5 in the second half and had two assists to Elise Chase (Rockville) that kept the Warriors at bay. Final score 61-42.
       Game 2 vs Mass Sharks: Maybe we shouldn't let them eat between games because we came out flat, didn't shoot well, didn't communicate well, didn't box out and had trouble defending in transition and in the half-court set. Hopefully the picture is clear now! Still, we were leading at halftime by 5 , but the Sharks went inside and scored 7 straight to go up by 5 with about 4 minutes left. The Starters got 8 second half points from Jen Ruys (Lyman Hall) including a banked in three and 8 second half points from Damika Martinez (Platt), but little else offensively. A late full-court press reduced the deficit but the Red couldn't quite get over the hump and lost 52-47.
       :Game 3 vs Mass Thundercats: Alexys Vazquez (Berlin) got warm early scoring 11 first-half points on 4 of 6 shooting, including three 3's, and Sara Kelley (Newtown) and Damika Martinez (Platt) got warm late scoring 9 and 13 second half points respectively as the Red led 28-14 at the half and finished it off with a convincing 68-39 victory. Jen Ruys(Lyman Hall) added 8 points and Lindsay Karle (Lyman Hall) added 11 points and 3 assists to forwards off of dribble penetration. Reynesha Archer (Manchester) had 4 points 5 rebounds and several key hustle plays to keep the team's intensity up the whole game.
       Game 4 vs NJ Extreme: Great start as Amanda Cormier (Wethersfiled), Alexis Vazquez (Berlin) Lindsay Karle (Lyman Hall), Sara Kelley (Newtown) and Jen Ruys (Lyman Hall) all had at least 2 baskets in the first half as the Red cruised to a 45-20 halftime lead. The second half was a little sloppy but nevertheless the Red sauntered to a 74-51 victory. Highlight had to be Elise Chase (Rockville) catching a pass one-handed while fixing her hair and managing to pass it to a teammate without ever letting go of her strands. After all, what is truly important?

       This weekend the 16 Blue team traveled down to Fairfield for the CT Breeze tournament.
       Game 1 vs. CT Rain was coached by Coach Burts & assisted by former Starters player, Edna Caamano. All players contributed on the scoring end, with Mariah Berry leading all scorers with 9 points with Lindsey Henry following with 7. Alexa Vernadakis knocked down two 3’s, while Becca Pope shot 100% from the free throw line. We led 28-27 at the half, and then outscored the Rain by one point in the second half to win by 2. The final score was 46-44.
       Game 2 was vs. another CT Rain team and this also ended up being a close win.. We came out on fire the first 4 minutes of the first half (both offensively and defensively) but we allowed the fire to be blown out. At the half, we were up 22-20. The second half we came out lackadaisical and had some trouble maintaining the lead. Towards the end of the game, the girls did a very good job executing and staying disciplined during “crunchtime” (one of the areas that was stressed at the beginning of the season and they have improved greatly). Kelly Riddle (9), Becca Pope (9), and Mariah Berry (14) were the games top offensive contributors. Maura Hall and Ellen Donahue were aggressive and led the charge in our 1-3-1 half court trap. The final score was 48-46.
       Game 3 was vs. a chaotic Hudson Valley Breeze team and was a tough loss. We started off the game a little shaky versus their full court run ‘n’ jump press, but after a few adjustments we were able to break their press and advance the ball up court for scoring opportunities. Maura Hall led all rebounders with 7, and made several hustle plays on the defensive end for us. The Breeze led 28-12 at the half, but in the second half we came out with enthusiasm and regrouped. We had some trouble containing Hudson Valley's top 2 players, and with us struggling to score on offense, we ended up losing 51-27. I was proud of the girls for not giving up and playing hard.
       Our final game of the weekend was vs. the host CT Breeze team; we were down to 8 players after losing Ashley Jordan to an eye injury during our previous game. Kelly Riddle (13) and Maura Hall (11) led the offensive scoring. Alexis Marek led all rebounders with 6, while Ellen Donohue contributed 3 assists. Despite allowing 27 and 20 points to be scored in each of the halves, we were able to take control of the game and finished with a 52-47 victory (another game that was sealed with us executing at the end of the game).

       15 Red-Breeze Tournament, June 13-14th.
       Saturday morning started with a tough match up with the Connecticut Basketball Association. The game was fast paced and a game of runs. Ashley Kinney and Megan Roux both were the reason for the Starters success with their intense defense and consistent offense. Ashley led the scoring with 12 points and Megan Roux chipped in with 10 points. The Starters were up only one at the half and the second half were outscored by one which means the game was tied at the end of regulation. The Starters were down one with 11.4 seconds to go. The ball is in play and about three shots went up before Megan catches the ball at the free throw line and shoots. As the ball is in the air, the buzzer sounds. The ball bounces off the top of the backboard and in the basket. The Starters pull out the win, 54-53.
       The second game of the day was against the South Central Sharks. We had faced them in Rhode Island and beat them by five. However, Sarah Benedetti had 21 points and she was not going to be playing Saturday because her high school team was in the State Finals for softball. The Starters that were in attendance were not about to lose. The first half was a battle and the Starters were only up two at half time. Ashley Kinney, Jessica Frawley, and Loren Pachesa all had 11 points to keep the Starters ahead on the scoreboard. Sarah Raftery had five steals and three assists and Kerri Stolle had 8 rebounds and three steals. Taryn Roy scored 9 points and pulled down 7 rebounds. The second half was controlled by 15 Red and the final score was 53-44. Another great win which allowed the Starters to finish 2-0 for the day.
       Sunday morning 15 Red faced off against Waterbury PAL. Unfortunately, they were no match for the Starters. Within minutes the Starters had control over the game and were ahead by double digits. Sarah Benedetti wanted us to know she was back, and a state champ, scoring 17 points in the first half with a final tally of 27 points. At the half the score was 51-18. So, the second half was the perfect time to run through plays and execute the offenses. Loren Pachesa was strong offensively scoring 16 points and Kerri Stolle had a great all around game with 8 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and three steals. Both Ashley Kinney and Jessica Frawley played great defense coming up with 5 steals a piece. The final score was 75-33.
       After a great afternoon lunch at the Berman’s, the Starters had to play their final game of the weekend against the Albany Capitals 16’s State team. 15 Red came out a little flat and found themselves in a game early. With little defense being played the Starters had a hard time putting the Capitals away. The halftime score was 32-24. Sarah Benedetti dominated the first half with 16 points and forced Albany to play a box and 1 on her. So- the Starters posted her on the block in the second half and she still managed to score another 12 points and grab 11 rebounds giving her another double-double this season. Ali Berman had a pretty solid game hitting two huge three pointers which helped the Starters build their lead back up to eight after the Capitals had cut it to 5 points. Tara Higgins went 4-4 from the free throw line and also scored two baskets with a total of 8 points. The Starters held on again for the win with a final score of 70-62.
       The weekend was another 4-0 record for 15 Red. The Starters are now 25-7 on the season. We would like to give a very big thank you to Mr. and Mrs. Berman for having us all over for lunch. Ali - we will miss you and wish you luck on your trip to Israel. Sarah Benedetti – congrats again on your state championship! Practice this week is Wednesday 6-8pm at east Catholic!

       The Ct. Starters Red 12 Team played in the CT Breeze Classic over last weekend.
       Starters had a 9 am start game vs. the L. I. Extreme, a team they had never played before. Neither team got off to a fast start as the score was 6-2 with 10:15 left in the first half. NiKki Nash started the scoring with a nice rebound and put back. Caroline Teti answered with a steal, a pass to Lily Dolyak and a return pass for a side jumper to put the team up 4-0. Lily Dolyak stole the ball off an errant pass giving the Starters a 6-0 lead. Before the Long Island team could score, Missy Bailey drained a 3 pointer and this one looked like it had the beginnings of a route. Missy hit a running one hander to increase the lead before half when the Extreme finally scored their first hoop. The Starters controlled both ends of the boards with Kelsey Clemens leading the way with 5 rebounds and Sarah Thompson snaring 3. The Starters led at the half 14-2. The Starters began the second half pressuring the ball in the backcourt and the Extreme could not handle this pressure. Turnovers, errant passes and missed shots by the Long Islanders fueled a great second half scoring barrage by the Starters. Lexy Prince had a great second half of basketball. Not only was she rebounding strongly, but her inside game produced 8 second half points. Mika Howard helped out off the bench to create pressure on the small Extreme guards. Margaret Frawley played inspired ball with great defense and court leadership. Over the last couple of games there has been a balanced scoring attack by the Starters. Again this was the case with no one scoring in double figures. Missy Bailey and Lexy Prince each had 9 points followed by Caroline Teti with 8 points. Final score CT Starters 39 L. I. Xtreme 8
       The R.I. Breakers were the afternoon opponent at the New Haven Fieldhouse. The Starters jumped out to a 24-10 halftime lead as Missy Bailey had 9 points and played great defense. The Starters had 11 free throw attempts and made 7 in the first half. Kelsey Clemens hit on all 4 of her free throw attempts while rebounding the ball with ease on the defensive end. Lexy Prince also had a nice game rebounding the ball and scoring 2 baskets while converting 1-2 at the charity stripe. Lily Dolyak and Caroline Teti each had 3 first-half points. With the Starters leading this game at halftime 24-10, the second half saw Nikki Nash entering the game after a nice 3 pointer by Caroline Teti. Nikki responded with 6 points in her time on the court with a pair of put backs off the offensive boards and also draining an outside jumper as she helped blow this game wide apart with her effort. Lily Dolyak hit a left handed layup, giving the Starters an 18 point lead. Lexy Prince and Margaret Frawley each had a bucket giving the team an insurmountable lead. Mika Howard's bench play was strong. The Starters outscored their opponents in the second half 16-7, as a balanced scoring attack and hard work on the defensive end gave the 12 Red squad a 40-17 victory.
       The New England Crusaders gave our girls the best competition and brand of play we have seen all year. The Crusaders were a quick and well disciplined team. Trailing by only by 3 points at halftime to the New Englanders, the Starters lost their shooting touch in this game. Our frontline rebounded the ball well offensively, but we just missed too many easy put back shots in this one. With the Crusaders holding onto a 10-7 at the half there seemed to be optimism going into the 2nd half. Missy Bailey played her heart out in the first half scoring 5 points with Lexy Prince chipping in 2 points. It would take a much greater effort from this team to nail down their third victory of the tournament. The second half of play was a shoot out. Missy Bailey and Margaret Frawley each drained shots from beyond the three point stripe keeping this game close; Nikki Nash and Kelsey Clemens each had 4 points and Lexy Prince added 2. Lily Dolyak had a put back of a missed shot at the 9 minute mark. The Crusaders converted on 7 of 9 free throws in the half, while the Starters were just 1-6 and this game ended up a 37-26 Crusaders victory. Final score New England Crusaders 37 CT Starters 26.
       Our final opponent of the weekend was the CT Premier team. In this game 12 Red started out strong as Lily Dolyak and Missy Bailey each scored 7 first half points. Nikki Nash had 4 points with Kelsey Clemens, Sarah Thompson, Lexy Prince and Caroline Teti scoring single baskets. Any letdown from their early morning loss was not to be as the Starters rolled to a 29-9 halftime lead. Premier tried to make a game of it in the second half by outscoring us 12-11. The shooting star for the Starters was Caroline Teti as she found her shooting touch to score 9 second half points and lead all scorers with 11. Nash ended up with 7, along with Missy Bailey. Mika Howard showed why she gets playing time off the bench whenever she enters the game, her quickness and ballhandling ability keeps Team Starter rolling along. Margaret Frawley played her usual strong game off the bench and Sarah Thompson added 5 points. Final score Ct. Starters 45 Ct. Premier 36.

Back to Weekend Updates