Sr. Francis Girls Hoops Starts off 2010 in a Flurry
Senior League (6th-8th Grade)
Nets 27, Dragons 24 – The Nets jumped out to an 18-6 first-half lead and held off a furious comeback attempt from the Dragons for a three-point victory. Rebecca Pierce scored all eight of her points in the opening half for the Nets (3-3). Lachaea Cenescak finished with six points and Sophia Zavarelli chipped in with five points. Jessica McGonagle and Paulina Petras played well under the boards and finished with eight points and seven points respectively for the Dragons (4-2), who switched to a person-to-person defense to help close the gap in the contest.
Tar Heels 25, Angels 22 – In the closing moments of the opening half, the Tar Heels grabbed a 13-12 lead, a lead they would not relinquish in a game that lacked some intensity despite the tight score. Siobhan Turner recorded three field goals in each half for a game-high 12 points while Deanna Hardy netted seven points. Feliciana Panza had a solid game for the Tar Heels (5-1) while Natalie McAllister brought some much needed energy to the club. Kelly Foley scored a team-high 11 points and Jessica Brennan chipped in with half a dozen points for the Angels, who are searching for their first win.
Junior League (3rd-5th Grade)
Buckeyes 19, Eagles 11 – The Buckeyes poured in 13 points in the second half to remain unbeaten (5-0) and defeat the Eagles, 19-11. Daniela Bencid and Rhiannon Arnold each scored six points and Emma Czwakiel added four points for the Buckeyes, who after scoring a total of 11 points in their first two games, have averaged 17 points per game in their last three contests. Nicole Matarazzo scored seven of her nine points in the second half for the Eagles, who fall to 1-5 on the season.
Crush 16, Red Storm 10 – Five different scorers helped the Crush take down the Red Storm, 16-10. With the Crush holding onto a 10-8 lead, Abigail Cline recorded four of her eight points to provide the Crush with some breathing room. Emma Cline, Samantha Morin, Tara Foley and Madeline McAffee also netted some points for the Crush, who improved to 4-2. Hailee Farrel pushed the tempo for the Red Storm and finished with six points while Destiny Fitzgerald and Heather McShane each recorded a basket for the Red Storm (1-5).
6th Annual Medford Catholic Tournament
St. Francis Girls’ Basketball would also like to congratulate St. Joseph’s and St. Raphael’s and all the participants of the 6th annual Medford Catholic Tournament. Each Medford Parish has a rich tradition of youth basketball and the tournament was originally developed to allow the participants of their respective leagues to compete against one another over the Christmas vacation. This year the tournament was expanded to include CYO teams from neighboring towns and in a span of just three days, in five different gyms, 35 games took place. There was four divisions consisting of a boys and girls 5th/6th grade division along with a boys and girls 7th/8th grade division.
– Submitted by Brian Devine