The 16 Red Girls traveled down to Richmond, Virginia for the Blue Chip Basketball Pre-Season Challenge.
       Game one was against the Central Jersey Hawks. 16 Red started off slow in the first half struggling to hit shots, thankfully we hit our free throws shooting 9 for 12 in the first half. The second half started to turn it around we connected on a handful of transition baskets. Damika Martinez (Platt High School) paced the Red team with 15 points (11 of which in the second half) 7 rebounds and 1 steal. Amanda Cormier (Wethersfield High School) followed with 8 points and 3 steals. Jen Ruys (Lyman Hall High School) Alexys Vazquez (Berlin High School) and Sara Kelley (Newtown High School) had 7 points a piece in the win.
       Game two was against the WBA Knicks Black team. 16 Red jumped out early and was able to go up 25 to 17 at the half. The second half was led by Reynesha Archer (Manchester High School) who went 11 for 14 from the free throw line. Reynesha finished with 14 points and 5 rebounds. Alexys Vazquez added 11 points Lindsey Karle (Lyman Hall High School) and Sara Kelly combined for 11 points while Elise Chase (Rockville High School) pulled down 10 rebounds against a very big Knicks team.
       Game three of the weekend was against the Pittsburgh Bruins. The Bruins jumped out early and never really looked back. The second half 16 Red made a run and was able to cut the lead to 4. Unfortunately we were unable to get it any closer. Damika Martinez finished the game with 11 points, Reynesha Archer had 8 points 5 rebounds while Alexys Vazquez chipped in 6 in the loss.
       Game four was against the South Jersey Lady Jazz. 16 Red jumped out to an early lead. Jennifer Ruys (Lyman Hall High School) led all scored with 13 points, Amanda Cormier followed with 12 points and 3 steals. Damika Martiez (Platt High School) added with a10 points and 11 rebounds. Lindsay Karle (Lyman Hall High School) chipped in 9 points while Alexys Vazquez and Sara Kelley combined for 17 points in the win.
       The final game of the weekend was against the Philly Vipers. The game was a slow paced and low scoring. The Vipers were able to hold a 16 to 15 lead at the half, unfortunately the second half saw much of the same and the Vipers were able to turn a 1 point lead into a 14 point win.

       The Starters continued their season at CCSU on Saturday against the Massachusetts Frenzy. The offense was strong for the 15 Red with Taryn Roy leading the attack with 15 points and Sarah Benedetti who scored 13 points. Ali Berman played strong and chipped in with 8 points and shot 5-6 from the free throw line. The Starters took a commanding lead by the half with a score of 31-12 and continued to control the game in the second half finishing with a score of 56-43. There were a few minutes where the Starters fell asleep at the end, but they managed to hold on for another victory.
       The second game of the weekend was against a very scrappy and intense team named Louminati. The first half was a well matched 16 minutes with the Starters only leading by 5 points at the half. Sarah Benedetti kept the 15 Red ahead in the game scoring 15 of her 23 points in the first half. Loren Pachesa stepped up her game and basically took the team on her shoulders and scored 11 points and pulled down 7 rebounds and had 4 steals. Sarah Raftery did a great job on the defensive rebounds with 8 and shot 75% from the free throw line. Ashley Kinney scored her five points in the second half and helped the Starters gain control of the game. The final score after an impressive second half was 66-47.
       Sunday afternoon the Starters were faced up against the MBR. Jessica Frawley played tough defense and Megan Roux stepped up offensively scoring 8 points and 4 assists. Taryn Roy had another strong offensive game scoring 9 points and Ali Berman had 10 points. Sarah Benedetti and Sarah Raftery controlled the boards each pulling down 10 and 9 respectively. The Starters pulled off another victory with the final score of 53-42.
       The final game of the weekend was Sunday evening against the N.H. Shooting Stars. Unfortunately, the Starters played flat and undetermined. Kerri Stolle and Taryn Roy did a great job of fighting to keep 15 Red in the game, but it just wasn’t enough. The Starters were down 8 points at the half, 24-16. The second half was a little stronger, but was still not enough to break down the Shooting Stars. Tara Higgins did a great job fighting on the boards and cashing in on her free throws. The final score was 49-39.
       The Starters were not able to end the weekend on a high note, but will bounce back and be ready for the state tournament next weekend. The Starters stand now at 10-2 and look to continue to improve. We will see you Tuesday 6-8pm at East Catholic.

       Hey Sport Fans - This is 14 Red's favorite fan Virginia reporting scores from the Mass Cheetahs tournament April 16 and 17. In the first game we played the host Cheetahs team. We were down 18-15 at the half. Cassidy Caravella (Somers HS) scored 7 in the first half. The second half was closely contested as neither team led by more than five points. We pulled out a 39-36 victory. Gabby Desisto (Hamden HS) scored all 7 of her points in the second half. Also, Kristin Van Gilst (Lewis Mills HS) scored 6 of her 8 points in the pivotal second half.
       The second game of the day was versus the CT Wave. We got off to a slow start but only trailed by 5 at the half 15-10. We had difficulty scoring and lost 42-26. Cassidy Caravella had a game high 10 points and AJ Levy (Maloney HS) chipped in with 5, including 3 of 5 from the charity stripe.
       In the first game on Sunday, we played another Cheetahs team. I have never seen so many Cheetahs in my life. Once again, we got off to a slow start and trailed 28-13 at the half. The second half saw us play some inspired basketball. We closed the deficit to 6, with the ball, but fell short by the score of 52-38. Despite the loss, the kids played hard and didn't quit when they were down 15. Gabby Desisto was high scorer with 11 and Chelsea Foster (Avon HS) added 6. Free throw shooting hurt us as we were 12-27 for the game. Claire Laing (Rocky Hill HS) and Brie McClelland (Mercy HS) played great defense during our second half comeback.
       The last game of the tournament was against the number one seed CT Cheetahs. On a side note, isn't that the name of the Frito Lay, Cheetah? We probably will also see them in the State tournament next weekend. The first half saw us play good basketball and led 25-19 at the half. Olivia Sutherland (Lyman Hall HS) scored 10 points in the half including 2 three pointers, while AJ Levy scored 8 and Ashley Petrarca (Taft School) added 7. We won by the score of 46-38. Sutherland ended with a game high 14. Kayleigh Shaughnessy (Fermi HS) hit two free throws to thwart any comeback by the Chester Cheetahs.
       With the victory, the team is now 5-3. We will prepare this week for the State tournament which starts next weekend. We open up play on Saturday versus the Renegades. Best of luck to Kayleigh who will be in Virginia on a school trip. Until next weekend, Virginia says "Work hard, play hard, and have fun!"

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