More times than not, it takes a team effort to win a game – any game.
The Franklin Academy girls varsity basketball team did just that in its matinee contest at the Eileen M. Kilcullen Sports Facility on Wednesday, as all eight players in the FA lineup made their way into the scoring column as the Huskies produced a 46-35 nonleague victory against the visiting Plattsburgh High Hornets.
The FA girls scored the opening bucket and quickly built a 6-2 advantage only to have the Hornets rally late in the first quarter and grab an 11-9 lead with time winding down. Franklin Academy freshman Raegan McArdle had another thought in mind, as she drained a long-range shot from behind the arc to lift the Huskies to a 12-11 lead just as the buzzer sounded to end the opening eight minutes of play.
The Huskies never trailed the rest of the way.
FA scored the first nine points of the second quarter to increase their advantage to 10 points, 21-11, while the FA defense kept the Hornets from recording any points during the first six minutes of the stanza. Plattsburgh connected for its first points of the second quarter with 1:55 showing on the clock, only to have the Huskies lead by six, 21-15, at the mid-game break.
Franklin Academy, now 3-3 on the season, went on a 6-2 run to up its lead back to 10 points, 27-17, but PHS closed the gap to five points, 32-27, by the end of the stanza.
The Hornets went on a 5-0 run and pulled to within two points, 34-32, early in the fourth, but the Huskies responded to the Hornets’ run, went on a 10-0 spurt of their own and built their biggest lead of the contest at 44-32 and settled for the 11-point victory.
McArdle paced the balanced FA output with a game-high 15 points, including three of the team’s four 3-point baskets. Sophomore guard Chloe LaBelle added eight points to the win, while freshman guard Adyson King (5 steals) followed with a six-point game. Junior guard Lilian-Teresa Sosa (4 steals) and sophomore forward Alyvia Roberts contributed five points each to the win, with Roberts coming off the bench to haul in a team-high nine rebounds.
“We are starting to come together as a team,” pointed out Franklin Academy coach Sam Dumont. “The girls played the game well, especially in the fourth quarter, and did a nice job of taking care of the ball at crunch time.
“You can’t teach heart, and these girls definitely play with heart,” Dumont continued, reiterating that his charges are an overall young squad. “We are young, and they will take their lumps, but the bottom line is that they are learning from their mistakes and that is the biggest take-away for such a young team (1 senior, 3 juniors, 3 sophomores, 2 freshman).”
Senior Alaska Lilliock chipped in with three points on a bucket from down-town, while sophomore Ava Lilliock and junior Alexys White completed the offensive output with two points apiece. Junior forward Hillary Baker remains sidelined as she recovers from an injury.
Cora Long led the Hornets (2-4 overall) with 11 points, including two of the team’s three triples, while Bailey Hewson and Essynce Gorham scored six points each. Calli Fitzwater added five points to the PHS cause, as Natalie Battinelli and Izzy DeTulleo rounded out the scoring with four and three points, respectively.
The lady Huskies take to the road for their next game, traveling to Beekmantown for a nonleague tilt at 11 a.m. on Friday.
Elsewhere
In other girls nonleague hoop action from Wednesday, Heuvelton defeated Copenhagen 55-43 in a rematch of last year’s Class D state quarterfinal that was held on the same Jefferson Community College hardwood. Last year’s game versus Copenhagen ended the Heuvelton season.
Also on Wednesday, Potsdam edged Brushton-Moira 48-42, St. Lawrence beat Harrisville 41-35, Ogdensburg bested Belleville-Henderson 50-20, Gouverneur topped visiting Edwards-Knox 50-30 and Wells defeated Tupper Lake 28-24 at the Indian Lake Tournament.
Potsdam 48, Brushton-Moira 42: The lady Sandstoners raced out to a 15-4 lead after the opening quarter, then held on for the six-point win against the host Brushton-Moira Panthers.
The BMC girls continuously chipped away at their double-digit deficit, but the Potsdam girls did just enough over the final three quarters to earn the win and leave the lady Panthers in search of their first win of the season. Potsdam improves to 4-3 on the season, while Brushton-Moira drops to 0-5.
Salwa Hmyene led the Sandstoners with a game-high 26 point, including six of the team’s seven 3-point baskets. Tati’ana Burks-Carista followed with a nine-point effort, as Emma Brosell and Trinidy Brothers added four points each to the win. Jadian Andrews and Mattie Lomoglio rounded out the Potsdam scoring with three and two points, respectively.
Kyla Phelan and Madyson Bellows combined for 29 points, with Phelan leading the way with a team-high 15, including the Panthers’ lone 3-pointer. Samantha Clookey finished with eight points, as Hannah Manchester completed the output with five points.
Brushton-Moira travels to Peru for a 7 p.m. start on Friday.
