The future could make people forget about the
Irvington girls basketball team's recent past.
And that's a scary thought, considering the Bulldogs have won 51 of their last 53 games and back-to-back New York State Public High School Athletic Association championships.
Their latest title came Saturday with a stunningly easy 91-52 victory against Rochester powerhouse Aquinas. Irvington put up 30 points in the second quarter alone and was scarcely challenged after opening the game on a 10-0 run.
It was trophy No. 3 for New York Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Gina Maher, and it came courtesy of impressive balance. Tournament MVP
Alexis Martins had 27 points and 16 rebounds,
Brittni Lai chipped in with 30 points and seven steals, and
Marley Giddins posted 18 points, 14 rebounds and three steals.
Remember those names, too, because they'll be around awhile. Martins, Lai and fellow starter
Ryan McMahon are sophomores, and Giddins is a junior.
Kelly O'Donnell has been the only senior starter this season.
Irvington (25-1) moves into the Federation Class B semifinals Friday against
Scholars Academy (Queens), the PSAL Class B champion.
The Bulldogs extended Section I's run of success in Class B to four straight years. Briarcliff won the NYSPHSAA tournament in 2008 and Nanuet won it in 2009.
MaxPreps New York girls basketball playoff bracketsHere's a look at the other finals at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy:
*
Cicero-North Syracuse continued to sail along, beating Gates Chili 75-54 in Class AA to bring Section III its first championship in any class since 2006. The Northstars advance to the Federation tournament in Albany against
Bergtraum (New York) of the PSAL on Saturday, with the winner meeting
Nazareth (Brooklyn) for the crown the next day.
Tournament MVP
Breanna Stewart, a junior who has already committed to the University of Connecticut, highlighted the final with 29 points and 16 rebounds,
Kelsey Mattice scored 13 and
Sarah Bowles chipped in with 11. The Northstars have waltzed through three state tournament games with an average margin of victory of 23.3 points.
* Like Cicero-North Syracuse,
Peekskill brought home its first state championship, beating upstart Averill Park 58-35. In fact, the Red Devils hadn't so much as won sectionals until this month.
Senior leadership paved the way in the title game. The Red Devils got 20 points from
Sheridan Taylor, 17 by
Jazmin Garcia and 14 from
Tasia Nolan. Junior
Asia Jackson, the tournament MVP, had scored 24 a day earlier to help surprise Grand Island 41-34 in the semis.
Peekskill draws the bye in the Federation tournament and puts a 22-game winning streak on the line against the winner of the game between
Archbishop Molloy (Queens) and the PSAL champion.
* Gananda Central (Walworth) closed out the Class C final on a 12-2 run and defeated Harpursville 61-51 for the school's first state crown in any sport. Harpursville senior
Hannah Kimmel, who scored 32 points, forged a 49-49 tie with two free throws. Tournament MVP
Shannon McGinnis (20 points, 15 rebounds), put Gananda back ahead with a basket and
Shawna Van Etten made four free throws in the decisive five-minute stretch. The Panthers finished their season 25-0.
* Junior guard
Makenzie Burud scored 27 points to go with 10 rebounds and nine steals as
Coleman Catholic (Hurley) defeated Chateaugay 44-26 for the Class D crown, salvaging a weekend split for the school. The Coleman boys lost to New York Mills in their final a night earlier. Coleman (20-2) outscored Chateaugay by 19-8 in the second half to pull away and close out its season successfully.
John Schiano, who has written about high school sports in western and central New York for more than 25 years, covers New York for MaxPreps. He may be reached at john.schiano@maxpreps.com.
