Tigers win title for fourth straight season
For the second straight year, Tuckahoe defeated Haldane in the girls’ basketball Section 1, Class C final on Saturday (March 8) at the Westchester County Center in White Plains.
The Blue Devils, seeded No. 3 in the four-team field, upset No. 2 North Salem earlier this week to reach the championship game but were no match for the No. 1 Tigers, who won, 50-29. This is the fourth straight year that Tuckahoe has won the Gold Ball.
Photos by Skip Pearlman
The Tigers jumped to an 11-0 lead to open the game, and Haldane did not score until there was 2:27 left in the first quarter.
The Blue Devils began to hit shots in the second quarter: seventh-grader Mackenzie Tobin sank a corner 3-pointer, Marisa Peters hit a mid-range jumper and seventh-grader Nora Jean Cotter had a steal that led to another Peters basket.
With 2:59 left in the half, Cotter hit a three to cut the Tuckahoe lead to 23-16, but the Tigers closed out the half with an 11-2 run behind Ava Rogliano, who hit four 3-pointers in the first half. Tuckahoe’s size also caused problems for Haldane under the basket. The Tigers went into the fourth quarter with a 41-25 lead.
Video by Jeff McDaniel
After scoring 25 points in the semifinal, Peters was held to six in the final. She and Kayla Ruggiero were named to the All-Tournament team.
The Blue Devils finished the season at 5-17 but will lose only one player, Martha McBride, to graduation. Next year Coach Scott Timpano said he hopes to find more reliable shooters. “We’re hoping that they’ll be able to mesh better,” he said.
