By Jill Warnke
The first round of sectionals occurred on Saturday, February 18th, and pitted the Varsity Girls’ Basketball team against the Blind Brook Trojans.
Irvington lead a slow start in the first quarter. Blind Brook worked efficiently and doubled the 7 points that Irvington made, resulting in the score of 7-14 and only scoring more baskets from there.
Fortunately, the Bulldogs later turned the tides of the quarter in their favor. By halting the Trojans at 18 points with strengthened defensive play, the Bulldogs worked to win every point back. By the end of the quarter, they managed to tie the game at a score of 18-18 with a three-pointer from Irvington freshman, Kayla Clinton.
From there on, Irvington and Blind Brook played in a very close competition. For almost half of the third quarter, Irvington’s impenetrable defense helped them score 10 consecutive points, having an 8-point lead in the score, 43-35, and futile opposition from Blind Brook.
Irvington finished quarter three with a more than favorable outcome of 54-44. After that, quarter four was completed and the Irvington Bulldogs’ tasted victory with a final score of 64-48.
“The other team was really good. They played really hard and we struggled a lot in the beginning,” admits the Irvington sophomore, Alyson Raimondo. “But we all picked it up and came out with the win.”
Alyson Raimondo led the team’s scoring in this close match with 27 points. Amanda Raimondo made 12 points while Anders Knapp and Emmaline LeBuhn scored 10 points each.
Their slow start might have hindered them at first, but the Bulldogs were able to acclimate to their opponents’ relentless behavior and also managed to gain the upper hand numerous times. This intense basketball game had captivated the audience in a thick atmosphere and concluded the first round of sectionals in a triumphant manner.
The playoffs continued on Tuesday, February 21, when the Varsity Girls Basketball team played against the Croton Tigers, a formidable rival they had lost to in the past. This loss would unfortunately be repeated in the second round of the class B sectionals.
The Bulldogs had already gotten off to a rocky start early in the game and Irvington would have to work hard to make up for Croton’s efficient offense and strong zone-defense. The Bulldogs fought their way back up the scoreboard, but were still down 23-17 at halftime.
Midway through the third quarter, the Bulldogs were able to redeem themselves and their rough beginning. Amanda Raimondo fueled this comeback, scoring a basket that put Irvington in the lead, 26-25.
Notably, the different members of the team had a variety of unique ways to contribute to the success of the team. For instance, Irvington junior Emmaline LeBuhn is constantly aiming to amplify the team’s tactical strength.
“I’m always looking to try to get as many rebounds as possible,” She said. “I know that getting the rebounds turns into good offense and good defense.”
Irvington had been winning 33-30, but was tied by Croton, 33-33, two minutes into the final quarter. The Tigers made basket after basket, acquiring an 11-point advantage over Irvington in a score of 33-44, with less than 3 minutes remaining in the game.
The Irvington team toiled against these odds to gain back the points, but Croton again proved themselves to be quite a proficient opponent, winning the game with a score of 45-35.
In this game, the team had gotten yet another slow beginning which was pointed out by Irvington’s seasoned basketball coach, Gina Maher.
“We got a bad start,” Maher said. “Something that has unfortunately happened to us a little too much.”
Junior player, Emmaline LeBuhn, shared her viewpoint and said that “We were very evenly matched, though we had some trouble getting started in the beginning which worked against us in the end.”
By the time they regained their flow, it may have been too late for them to turn the tables in hopes of victory. “Croton did many great things and we just didn’t have an answer for it.” said Maher.
Even though the game marked the end of the girls’ season, which was concluded sooner than the team would’ve liked, Gina Maher knew that they gave it their all.
“We had a lot of injuries, a lot of sicknesses, and we faced all that and still had a great season.” the coach remarked, a silver lining in the bittersweet atmosphere of the gymnasium.
Emmaline LeBuhn led Irvington’s scoring with a total of 11 points and 15 rebounds. This was followed by Amanda Raimondo with 9 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 assists, and Claire Friedlander with 8 points, 2 three-pointers, 2 steals, and 2 assists.
LeBuhn, like many of her teammates, had no regrets about being part of the team.
“One of the things I love about VGB (Varsity Girls Basketball) is that it’s like a family, so we’re always there for each other even after the hard losses and the great wins.” LeBuhn voiced with certainty.
