Only Highlands team still alive in state tournament
The Haldane girls’ basketball teams are the only Highlands varsity team still alive in the state tournament after the Haldane and Beacon boys’ basketball teams, the Haldane/Hendrick Hudson hockey team and the Beacon girls’ basketball team fell in the early rounds.
Haldane girls
Haldane (15-5), seeded No. 1 among Section 1 Class C teams, received a bye in the opening round and will play No. 4 Pawling at 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 28 at the Westchester County Center. The Blue Devils defeated Pawling twice, by scores of 64-28 and 48-26, earlier in the season.
Beacon girls
The Bulldogs, seeded No. 15 among Class A teams in Section 1, easily dispatched No. 19 Sleepy Hollow, 75-31, behind 30 points and 17 rebounds from Lauren Schetter and 18 points off the bench by Enita Rodriguez.
The team traveled to No. 3 Hendrick Hudson on Feb. 18, where they pulled off an upset, 44-42, behind 11 points and 10 rebounds from Schetter, 10 points from Raiven Encarnacion (who converted a four-point play with less than a minute left), 9 points from Anita Rodriguez and 7 points and 15 rebounds from Gabby DeMaria.
The girls next played in the quarterfinals Feb. 23 against No. 6 Tappan Zee, who they had defeated earlier this season, 45-40. But this time the Bulldogs fell, 64-55.
Haldane boys
Haldane, seeded No. 5 among Section 1 Class C teams, lost on Feb. 22 at No. 4 Hamilton (11-9) in overtime, 70-61, to finish 7-15. The Blue Devils trailed 22-7 after the first quarter and 39-19 at the half but roared back to trail by only a point to start the fourth.
Beacon boys
Seeded No. 18 among Class A teams in Section 1, the Bulldogs upset No. 15 Nyack, 60-57, in their first tournament game on Feb. 16. Beacon got contributions from a number of players, including Brandon Evans (16 points), Zamere McKenzie (13), Alex Benson (11), Andre Davis (10) and Jemond Galloway (10).
Their next opponent, No. 2 Tappan Zee on Feb. 18, proved a tougher match-up, defeating the Bulldogs, 65-44. Benson led Beacon scorers with 16 points.
After forfeiting their first seven wins due to an ineligible player, the Bulldogs finished 8-14. “This season was certainly challenging, far beyond anything we ever expected,” said Coach Scott Timpano. “Enough can’t be said about how well our players responded and carried themselves.”
Hockey
The Haldane/Henry Hudson hockey team fell on Feb. 20 in the first round to Rye, 7-0, to finish 6-14-1 on the season.
