16 Red writeup of Penn State
       Game 1 vs New Hampshire Shooting Stars: Whew, we crushed them just 5 weeks ago in Albany and possibly thought it would happen again. Down 23-20 at the half, the game was nip and tuck all the way down to the end, The Shooting Stars had the last shot but Damika Martinez(Platt) came from nowhere and blocked the final attempt, preserving a 53-52 victory. Sara Kelley (Newtown) had 12 points, followed by Alexys Vazquez(Berlin) with 10, Jen Ruys (Lyman Hall) with 6 and Reynesha Archer (Manchester) with 5 points and 5 rebounds.
       Game 2 vs Rim Rockers: Tight game in the first half but the second was all CT Starters as the 16 Red ran away with a 48-34 victory. Alexys Vazquez (Berlin) and Sara Kelley (Newtown) had 12 and 10 points respectively, while Elise Chase (Rockville) had 6 points and 3 steals and Lindsay Karle (Lyman Hall) had 7 points and 4 "pretty" assists.
       Game 3 vs Central Jersey Hawks: Yuck...we were lousy. There is no other way to put it. Threw the ball away, (23 turnovers), and for a team that routinely averages 26.5 first half points, we scored 22 for the game! There were no highlights unless watching my blood pressure go up counts.
       Game 4 vs Saints: 16 Red leads 29-28 at the half. That's more like it! 68-59 victory. Lindsay Karle (Lyman Hall) led the way with 14 points, followed by Jen Ruys (Lyman Hall) with 12 points, 9 rebs, Damika Martinez (Platt) with 12 points, 10 rebounds, Reynesha Archer (Manchester) with 6 points, 5 rebounds and Amanda Cormier(Wethersfield) with 5 points. This was truly a team effort.
       Final game in Penn State vs DC Heat: The dreaded 8 am game saw us make quick adjustments and jump out to a 29-16 halftime lead. A DC Heat comeback was thwarted by 15-19 from the free throw line in the second half as the Starters won 62-58. Damika Martinez (Platt) had 19 points and 4 steals, Alexys Vazquez (Berlin) had 11 points, 5 assists and 5 rebounds, Jen Ruys (Lyman Hall) had 9 points and 8 rebounds and Sara Kelley (Newtown) had 6 points and 3 steals.
       Final notes: The team played "Coach Lewis-style" Laser Tag, which means there were box outs and many, many teaching moments. Everyone seemed to enjoy the game, especially Alexys who had a few final words, and Damika who managed to find a great vantage point to shoot from. Jen Ruys was a quiet assassin and of course coach Mallorie used all of her skills to be one of the better laser tag players Penn State has seen.

       15 Red- Penn State - July 5-8, 2009
       15 Red made the long trip out on the Fourth of July to Penn State for their second to last tournament of their 2009 season. The first game was late Sunday evening against the Red Lion Flash. The gym was hot and the girls really did not know what to expect from their opponent. The good thing was that the Red Lions did not expect the Starters to come out strong and they did. Sarah Benedetti scored all 15 of her points in the first half and Ashley Kinney came up big with 12 points. The Starters took a 28-19 lead at the half. The Red Lion thought there was still a chance, but the Starters had a very different plan called defense. They held the Lions to only 7 points in the second half taking away any hope they had in winning the game. The final score was 59-28. An impressive first game win for the 15 Red at Penn State.
       Game two was on Sunday afternoon against the New Hampshire Shooting Stars who embarrassed the Starters earlier this year. The first half was back and forth and at the half the score was 25-24, New Hampshire. 15 Red knew what they needed to do to take control and make sure they were not embarrassed again. Sarah Benedetti (14 pts), Taryn Roy (13 pts), and Loren Pachesa (9 pts) led ther offense with Kerri Stolle clearing the defensive boards with 8 rebounds. The Starters went on a run and left the Stars behind with a final score of 54-36. It was a great statement for 15 Red and their improvement through the season.
       Game three was against a fellow CT team-the Storm. It was played late Sunday night on a very challenging court for both teams. Both teams were 2-0 so after the game someone was going to have to go into the losers bracket. The Starters came out slow and found themselves in a battle quickly. Megan Roux came to play scoring a quick 6 points in the first half along with Loren Pachesa who scored 7 points in the first 16 minutes. However, the Storm was on fire too and led by three at the half, 26-23. The second half the Storm started to pull away, but the Starters kept fighting. Sarah Benedetti scored 13 of her 15 points in the second half and also pulled down 13 rebounds for a double-double. Taryn Roy chipped ion with 10 points and 6 rebounds and Ashley Kinney had 8 points. Unfortunately, the Storm matched what the Starters did and then some. They took the lead and held on to it for a 9 point lead over the Starters, 61-52. It was a tough game with both teams playing hard for the win. The Starters went to 2-1.
       Monday afternoon the Starters were matched up with another CT team-the Spirit. Basically, 15 Red did not come ready to play and found themselves behind by six at the half, 23-17. The second half did not get much better for the Starters. Kerri Stolle gave a solid effort with 6 rebounds and 6 steals. Tara Higgins had 6 points and four rebounds to help out her team. Sarah Raftery pulled down 7 rebounds and had three steals and two assists, but it just was not enough. The Starters lost by ten 41-31.
       The Starters had to bounce back from two losses and hopefully beat the next team they were matched up against. The opponent was the New York Elite. The Starters came out flat and did not show much desire to win the game at hand. The Elite had a nine point lead at the half. Then Starters did come out strong in the second half and cut the lead to three a couple times, but just could not get any closer than that. The scoring was led by Sarah Benedetti with 14 points and Loren Pachesa with 9 points. Kerri Stolle controlled the boards pulling down 9 rebounds and Ashley Kinney had four assists. Taryn Roy had a pretty descent game with 8 points and 6 rebounds. The final score was 57-48. Now the Starters were 2-3.
       Wednesday afternoon was the final game of the week at Penn State and the Starters really wanted to head home 3-3. The Maryland Grizzlies were the only team in their way of that goal. 15 Red struggled a little in the first half, but found their way in the second half. The first half ended with only a five point lead for the Starters, 20-15. However, the Grizzlies did not have much fight in them after the first few minutes of the Starters in the second half. 15 Red came out strong and just buried their opponent within the first two minutes of the second half. Jessica Frawley played her best game of the week against the Grizzlies. She scored 6 points and had 6 rebounds with three assists. Sarah Benedetti found her shot again and scored 22 points with 7 rebounds. Kerri Stolle had 7 points and 6 rebounds. Megan Roux played a very well all around game, but had five steals and 3 assists. Sarah Raftery came up big with 6 rebounds and three assists and Tara Higgins played great defense pulling down five rebounds. The final score was 54-31.
       The week at Penn State was a great experience for 15 Red. We played all different types of teams and were able to grow from all of the games. We are pretty pleased with the 3-3 record, but we are happier about the growth of this team over the season. We have one more tournament together before our season comes to an end in New York. See you all Saturday and we hope to end our incredible season with four more victories!!!

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