With the regular season over, the Girls Varsity Basketball team secured their first Queens Borough playoff win earlier this evening against August Martin High School with a final score of 47 to 35. They now move on to face Beach Channel Educational Campus this Wednesday. With a 12-2 regular season record, the team is in a strong position to advance further. The only two league game losses being against Metropolitan High School. Despite this, the team will not have to face Metropolitan High School again in the Queens Borough playoffs, as they were defeated by Beach Channel Educational Campus, ending the game with a score of 43 to 42.
The team’s second loss against Metropolitan occurred at the February 1 senior game, the final home game of the season where the team plays and the seniors celebrate their accomplishments afterwards. Facing Metropolitan added pressure to the game, and the Hawks ultimately lost 61 to 35.
Reflecting on the senior game, the Girl’s Varsity Basketball Coach Lauren Caiaccia, said, “There were added mental and social factors that impacted players’ performance that day. Is that something we can control? No, on any given day, different athletes will handle different scenarios in a variety of ways. I thought that we played a strong game, but I don’t think we made our baskets and ultimately basketball is a game of scoring points.”
The athletes shared their experience playing against strong competition.
Junior Amala Madubuko said, “The environment of the Metropolitan High School game was really intense as they are a really well matched team for us. The crowd was also very loud and packed which can cause a lot of distractions if our girls are not disciplined.” Additionally, freshman Sophia Madrazo said, “The environment of our last Metro game was very loud and energetic. A lot of people came to support our seniors and our last game of the season.” The turnout of friends, family, faculty, and alumni definitely created an intense yet exhilarating atmosphere for the athletes.
“We had a nice turnout in terms of family and friends who came to support us and other members of the school community, staff and teachers, who were in the stands and tuning in to our live stream on [the] Classic TV Youtube [Channel]. I think that was really phenomenal,” said Ms. Caiaccia.
To guarantee the team was properly prepared for the game, they reviewed previous recordings of their games, held strategy sessions, and implemented what they believed would work best against their opponents in game-like scrimmages.
In addition to this preparation, each athlete has their own pre-game routine to get into the right mindset. Freshman Jayla Leandré likes to do “different shooting drills” and listen to her favorite songs, while senior Captain Audrey Lin (Classic Opinion Editor) ensures that her teammates are focused and prepared by “reviewing game film or reviewing states.”
Despite the loss, there were several positive moments from the game. Senior Captain Caylin Chan (Classic Sports Editor) said, “The crowd was incredible and it was so nice to see so many people come out and support.” Similarly, Audrey said, “It was heartwarming to see the bleachers full for the Metro game. I think it gave me extra motivation to hear the cheering, especially when we were having a rough play.” Ms. Caiaccia added, “We had a really good start to the game which is something we struggled with in the past… I thought the way we were able to come out in the second half and play even shows that we have the ability and skills to compete at that level. To me those are all great things, and the fact that we were honoring three to four year members of the program was really special and something that I’ll always remember.”
The senior game came with many festivities, including a guitar performance of the national anthem by one of the team’s players, junior Loise Arcega. Before the game began, Ms. Caiaccia delivered a heartfelt speech to her graduating seniors. Shortly after, the underclassman on the team exchanged hugs with the seniors and gave their senior gifts.
Each athlete looks forward to something different as they welcome a new playoff season and advance in the Queens Borough tournament. Amala said, “I look forward to playing other teams, growing our team chemistry and furthering my skills in basketball.” Audrey said, “I look forward to playing tough and new competition. Even though it’s one game elimination in the postseason, high risk means high rewards.” Ms. Caiaccia said, “My coaching philosophy when it comes to playoff competition has always been that you have to take each game one at a time. Additionally, [in] playoffs, when you win, you advance and if you lose, the season’s over, so [I remind] student-athletes that [they] can’t leave it for tomorrow because there might not be another chance to play this year.”