Hello Sports Fans - My name is JP Glenwood and I will be giving you updates weekly on the CT Starters 16 Blue team. This past weekend, we finished 3-1 at the annual CT Storm Mother's Day Classic. It could have and should have been a perfect weekend. But, that's behind us as we continue to gel on and off the court.
       The first game on Saturday was versus the SEC Chargers. Like most of our games this year, it was a close one. We led 22-19 at the half and won by the score of 40-35. Leading the way for the 16 Blue Wrecking Crew was Emily Kessler (Ethel Walker) with 10 points. She scored 8 of them in the pivotal second half. Rachel Karlins (South Windsor HS) added 9 including 3-4 from the charity stripe. Tae Rentas (Sabis School, Springfield, MA) also helped the cause with 8 pts.
       The second game on Saturday saw us play the host CT Storm team. We got off to a very good start, jumping to a 15 point first half lead. Claire Laing (Rocky Hill HS) hit two 3 pointers to get us going. Ashley Petrarca (Taft School) hit the first shot of the game from 3 point land also, as we led 32-25 at the half. In the second half, we did not let up and won by the score of 52-39. Karly Turgeon (East Longmeadow HS) was high scorer with 10, while Emily Kessler had 9 and Ashley Petrarca scored 7. Emily Stetkiewicz (East Longmeadow HS) chipped in with 6 and had a bunch of rebounds, too.
       After a relaxing night at a nearby casino (they dont need any advertising), we played another CT Storm team for the second time. We had defeated them earlier in the year. The rematch was a very good game also, but for whatever reason, Coach C decided to spilt the time evenly in the first game. Subbing 5 for 5 the entire game. We got off to another fast start, and led 21-15 at the half. The second half saw the Storm make three 3 pointers to catapult them to a 38-33 victory. It was a loss that goes directly on the shoulders of the coach! Emily Kessler had a team-high 9 points, including two 3 pointers to get her team rolling. Tae Rentas and Alex Williams (Sabis School, Springfield MA) each scored 6 points.
       The last game of the tournament saw us play the CT Fire. On a cold and windy day, the 16 Blue was the exact opposite. We played some very good basketball, both on offense and defense, and led 18-14 at the half. The second half was a very good one for 16 Blue as Claire Laing and Nikki LaPierre (Windsor Locks HS) hit 3 pointers to propel us to a 43-38 victory. Lapierre was high scorer with 9 points, while Rachel Karlins had 7 points and was tough defensively with many steals. Ashley Petrarca, Emily Kessler, and Chelsea Foster (Avon HS) scored 5 points each.
       Notes: The team is off this weekend after playing 5 consecutive weeks. We will practice four times to get ready for the Albany tournament starting on the 22nd of May. Dont forget, folks, the first-ever CT Starters Bowling Tournament will be held in Albany on Saturday night May 22. 16 Blue will be ready to knock some pins down for sure. After a slow start to the season, the team now is 7-11 overall. A speedy recovery to Karly Turgeon as her shoulder continues to be cranky. Get better soon, Karly. Til next time sports fans, this is JP Glenwood of 16 Blue saying "may your days be good and your week better"!

       Starters 15 RED- Mother’s Day Tournament hosted by the Storm, May 8-9
       The 15 Red returned to the competitive courts after having a weekend off against the Rhode Island Breakers. The Starters came out strong and opened up a 14 point lead at the half, 37-23. Haley Cole had an all around game with her first double-double of the season. Haley scored 18 points and had 14 rebounds. Both Olivia Sutherland and Kristen Van Gilst chipped in with 9 points. Haley Northup did a great job on the offensive end working the high low with Rachel Franzluebbers tallying 5 assists and Rachel scored 8 points. Kathleen MacCormack scored six points and had four steals to help seal the win. The Starters fell a little flat in the beginning of the second half and let the Breakers get within 4 points, but the 15 red finished strong and pulled out the win with a final score of 72-55.
       The second game on Saturday was against the CBC, a team the Starters had lost to a couple weeks ago. 15 Red came out playing hard but still found themselves down 9 at the half. In hopes of evening out the record between the two teams, the Starters fought every possession but were not able to get enough defensive stops to slow down the opposition. Genelle Green (6 steals) led the scoring with 12 points and Haley Coley added 8 points. Haley Northup fought hard inside pulling down five rebounds and added some offense with five points. The final score was 51-32 in favor of CBC.
       Mother’s day started off exciting for 15 Red. The opponent was the R.I. Cyclones and they had some strong shooting threats that would challenge the defense of the Starters. The Starters found themselves in a good place going into the half up 1 point, 25-24. The second half went back and forth, but the Starters never lost the lead. Kathleen MacCormack had the game changing play when she scored. Rachel Franzluebbers had a great game pulling down 10 rebounds and 3 blocks. Genelle Green led the offense with 13 points and 13 rebounds while Olivia Sutherland scored 8 points. The Starters fought hard and played a tough defensive second half and held on for the win with a final score 44-40.
       There was one more team left for the Starters on Mother’s Day weekend. The R.I. Cyclones were a tough team that the Starters new were going to be a challenge. However, Kristen Van Gilst started the game off very strong scoring an impressive 6 consecutive baskets to keep the Starters fired up and focused on the win. The Starters only had a 6 point league at the half, but turned it on in the second half and took control quickly. Maggie Donahue played really hard and had a great game scoring 8 points and pulling down 11 rebounds and 4 steals. Jackie Riera also played hard and had a great all around weekend. The Starters finished a tough weekend 3-1 with a final score of 50-34 over the R.I. Cyclones.

       14 Red entered the CT Storm Mothers Day Classic and our first game of the weekend was against the RI Cyclones. The girls struggled out of the gate and fell behind 9-2, after a time out to regroup, the girls answered with 11-0 run to take the lead! The girls held onto the lead until the final seconds of the half when the Cyclones hit a 3 pt shot at the buzzer making the score 18-17. The second half started much like the first half began with the Cyclones out working the girls on both ends of the floor. Slowly but surely we started to make our run led behind the hot shooting of Carrie Polomsky (13pts, Wethersfield Hs) and Zoe Fanolis (10 pts, Hamden HS). Unfortunately, the Cyclones answered the challenge by hitting two big 3pters when we closed the gap to 3 pts. Final Score, RI Cyclones 47 CT Starters 42.
       After tasting defeat in the earlier game the girls were ready to answer with a W. They almost had to do it without their coaches as Sam and I ran into the gym moments before the game's tip….. Thank you TOM TOM! Behind our 2-2-1 press we jumped out to an 11-0 lead causing the WBA Knicks to call a time out! After the time out it was much of the same as our pressure and our fast break offense didn't skip a beat and we found ourselves up 32-13 at the half. We saw in the second half the girls play with composure as they moved the ball around and found open teammates in our half court offense as we saw everyone score in this contest. Megan Schuppe (9 pts, Northwest Catholic) Molly Jalbert (8 pts, Cheshire HS) and Alex Marquis (7 pts, Newington HS) led the offensive attack. Paige Young (Berlin HS) and Sara Hubbard (Wethersfield HS) chipped in with 6 apiece. Final Score CT Starters 53 WBA Knicks 27.
       Our third game of the weekend was against Team BSB from Rhode Island. Both teams struggled early as both teams were trying to impress their Mothers on Mothers Day. This wasn't your typical aau game as it seemed more like a high school game inside your league, as both teams were patient on the offensive end. The score at the half was 18-18; Megan Schuppe and Paige Young led us offensively with 5 pts apiece. The second half continued to be a chess match but Team BSB found themselves up 8 with fewer than 3 minutes to go. Coach Sam's idea of a full court man-to-man defense gave the Starters a second chance. Pressure D led by Juliana Houldcroft (Newington HS) Brenna Roy (Stafford Springs HS) and Sara Hubbard forced costly turnovers for Team BSB and we closed the lead to 1 with 12 seconds to go. Needing to stop the clock, we fouled intentionally to send Team BSB to the free throw line. They missed both free throws, however, we failed to box out and they scored on and offensive rebound. Our girls had one final chance but our 3 pt shot was unsuccessful. Paige Young and Megan Schuppe led us in scoring with 16 and 9 pts respectively. Final Score TEAM BSB 40 CT Starters 37.
       Our last game of the weekend was against the Mass Renegades. This was a hard fought game from start to finish. We trailed 26-15 at the half as the Renegades executed on both ends of the floor. In the second half, the girls woke up and cut the lead to 1 with less than 4 minutes to go; causing the Renegades to use a time out to regroup. That's what exactly they did as they answered with a 7-0 run to put the game away. Sara Hubbard led us with 12 pts while Amanda Curvino (Canton HS), Zoe, and Carrie combined for 23 pts. Final Score Mass Renegades 55-47

       The Connecticut Starters 13 Red team played in the CT Storm Mother's Day Classic this past weekend. The Starters first round opponent was the host team and 2-time state champion CT Storm. From the tipoff, Coach Eco couldn't find the right combination on the floor. The immediate result had the host team storming out to a quick 10-2 lead. The Starters had trouble guarding the perimeter leading to open jumpers successfully made by the Storm. The Starters could only muster 5 field goals in the first half with Caroline Teti and Kelsy Clemens connecting on 3 point shots. Missy Bailey hit a jumper from the top of the key to keep the deficit at 10 points, while Darien Dunham and Tiana Conway each had put backs of missed shots to keep the score close at the half. The Starters entered the second half behind 27-15. Missy Bailey opened up the scoring with consecutive 3 pointers and she found Kelsey Clemens deep in the corner who drained a 3 pointer from a foot behind the 3 point stripe. The Starters defense forced back to back turnovers and our girls quickly narrowed the gap as the game was winding down. Outscoring their opponents by 7 points in the 2nd half kept the game close but the Starters inability to convert their foul shots, (2-9 in the second half and 5-13 overall) was the difference in this one. Despite playing a strong 2nd half, the Starters fell short 40-35.
       In game 2, the Starters played the Rhode Island Lady Cyclones. Whether it was our inability to play with intensity or our "playing down" to our opponents level, our girls fell behind in this one at halftime by 5 points. Foul shooting seemed to be our achilles heel as our girls could only convert 6-16 from the charity stripe in the first half. Missy Bailey led Starters scoring with 6 points, while Nikki Nash contributed 4 points and Lexy Prince chipped in with 2. Darien Dunham rebounded strongly with 7 in the first half. Tiana Conway and Darien controlled the boards while outrebounding their opponents 14-4. Starting the second half behind 24-19, Missy Bailey took over with a scoring barrage that produced 10 second half points. Lexy Prince chipped in with 5 along with Nikki Nash drilling a 3 at the halfway mark in the second half. Dominique Woods took a defensive rebound and outran our opponent for an uncontested layup with 4 minutes left to play. Coach Eco inserted Lily Dolyak and Caroline Teti to pressure the Lady Cyclones guards and the resulting effect was the Cyclones only scoring 2 second half field goals and a total of 8 points. Mika Howard played 4 strong second half minutes along with Kelsey Clemens to help put the Starters at 1-1 in tournament play.
       The Starters returned to Stonington High School Sunday morning for Game 3 vs the CT Wave. For the first 11 minutes of this game our girls played as good a first half of basketball as you could ask of a team. Tiana Conway had 4 first half points and 5 rebounds. Kelsey Clemens found her touch from the 3 point stripe at the 6 minute mark to put the Starters in a controlling 6 point lead at the midway point of the first half. Lily Dolyak made a nifty baseline jumper. Missy Bailey took an outlet pass of a missed Wave shot and drained a 3 with 2 minutes remaining in the first half. Darien Dunham rebounded well, grabbing 6 in the first half and chipping in with a bucket just before halftime. With the Starters enjoying a 19-15 halftime edge they needed to duplicate their effort in the second half to win this one. The Wave outshot our girls in the second half hitting 6 field goals to our 4 but had a rough time defending their end of the court. 8 of our 10 players went to the foul line resulting in a commanding point production from the charity stripe. The Starters shot 10-18 from the stripe while the Wave could only hit on 2 of 8. The Starters took it to their opponents, wearing them down which resulted in a hard-fought 38-30 victory. Missy Bailey led the Starters scoring with 9 points, while Kelsey Clemens and Tiana Conway added 7 points each. Darien Dunham and Dominique Woods each contributed 5 points, while Nikki Nash had 3 points and Caroline Teti, Mika Howard and Lexy Prince all played strong minutes.
       The last time the Starters played their afternoon opponent was in the Albany Capitals Tournament last year. The Capitals hosted their own tournament and played the Starters in the finals. At that time both teams were undefeated, but our girls won the game in a route. Sunday's game against the Capitals saw Missy Bailey, Kelsey Clemens and Nikki Nash all make 3 point FG's in the first half to easily coast to a 28-17 halftime lead. Tiana Conway, Darien Dunhan and Dominique Woods controlled the boards, while the Starters went to the charity stripe 13 times in the first half (converting 6 vs our opponents 1-4). Lexy Prince had 4 second half points and Caroline Teti had two 3 point shots in the second half to complement Tiana Conway's 5-point second half effort, while Nikki Nash also scored 5 second-half points. Lily Dolyak and Mika Howard came off the bench and played strong defense to help hold their opponent to 13 second-half points. The Starters won this one going away 50-30 to finish the weekend at 3-1.

       In the opening game of the Connecticut Storm tournament on Mother's Day weekend 13 Blue came out strong crushing the Storm 46-19 for our second win of the season. It was a total team effort with three players in double figures including Maura Fitzpatrick (10 pts, Cheshire), Natalie Ruel- (10 pts, Burlington), and Taylor Perzan- (10 pts, Burlington) who had two 3-pt. field goals. Mary Ponziani (Avon) started the team off strong with 6 first half points. Melissa Grocki (Prospect), Brittany Legowski (Farmington), and Zoe Lavoie (Berlin) hustled all over the court while picking up steals and loose balls whenever possible. Paige Cunningham (Cheshire) and Leah Franzluebbers (Wethersfield) contributed as well by keeping the Storm off the boards.
       Game 2 of the Mother's Day tournament we ended up on the short end of a 46-33 score against the R.I. Cyclones. Having only 9 players, the team struggled early on with foul trouble leading to problems later on with subs. Paige Cunningham had an aggressive game with 4 fouls followed by Brittany Legowski and Leah Franzluebbers (5 pts) with 3 fouls. Our defense kept the Cyclones to only a 17-point half, but free throws and lay-ups hurt us in the long run and on the offensive end. Our three high scorers were Catherine Ponziani (7 pts), Zoe Lavoie (6), and Paige Cunningham (6).
       Game 3 of the Mothers Day Classic was against another CT Storm team. The girls were clicking on all cyclinders and raced out to a 12-0 lead forcing the Storm to use a timeout to regroup! The Storm battled back holding the Starters to only ten more points in the first half, making the score 22-12 going into half. The Storm's intensity level picked up on both ends of the floor making the second half very competitive. But our 12-0 run in the beginning of the game was just too much for the Storm to recover from as we held on for a 43-31 win. Our two high scorers of the game were Taylor Perzan and Leah Franzluebbers with 9 points each.
       Our final game of the weekend was against the WBA Knicks. The girls struggled from start to finish with execution and scoring. They had spurts of their true potential from time to time, but it just wasn't enough to take home a win. Or maybe they just wanted to end their weekend a little early to spend more time with their mom's on Mothers Day. Either way the team had a great finish as they ended up with their first 2-2 record for a weekend. Great job girls!

Back to Weekend Updates