Lady Panthers refocus, rout Williamsville South

Practice paid off last week for the Sweet Home girls basketball team.

The Lady Panthers dropped a 58-51 non-league home game to Kenmore East last Tuesday and responded with a 68-45 home win over Williamsville South last Thursday in its ECIC Division III opener.

Sweet Home led Kenmore East, 13-12, and 27-25, at halftime but trailed, 39-35, after the third quarter.

Lady Panthers coach Matt LaRoach said his team did not play four intense quarters of basketball.

"We needed our defense to step up and we struggled to play with the intensity we are capable of playing with," said LaRoach. "This was frustrating because we didn't play our best basketball and we were still in a position to win the game. I felt like this one slipped away from us. Give Ken East credit. They came in and made plays and down the stretch. They hit big shots when they needed to."

Ellie Allen scored 20 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and dished out nine assists. Nadia Durno had a season-high 18 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.

"Allen and Durno were forces for us offensively," said LaRoach.

Kenmore East was led by Jazmine Bell's 19 points and Cheryl Hartinger's 13 points.

LaRoach said he talked with his team after the game about learning from the loss and coming into practice and getting better for South last Thursday.

"I stressed that the only way this is a loss for us is if we do not come in to practice and get better," he said.

The Lady Panthers responded against South, building a 19-7 advantage after the first quarter and a 41-16 cushion by halftime. Sweet Home was up, 56-30, after the third quarter.

"This was an important win for us," said LaRoach. "We came back in to practice prepared for our first league game. The girls really used Tuesday's game against Ken East as a learning experience for us to refocus on our team defense."

LaRoach said his team's defense was the difference. He said his team opened the second quarter with a 22-9 run.

"They ran a half court press against us and our girls struggled dribbling into the traps," added South coach Erik Solomon. "A game like this will make us better in the long run."

LaRoach was happy that all 12 players got to play and that 11 of the 12 scored.

Allen led the Lady Panthers' offense with 26 points. Fourteen of her 18 first half points came in the second quarter.

Durno scored 10 points. Bianca Smiley added nine points.

LaRoach also lauded the guard play of Rachel Cimerman and Gleniesha Ferby.

"When they were on the floor, both of them did a nice job of running our offense and defense," said LaRoach. "This was a game where everyone was able to play and gain valuable experience."

Allen led all scorers with 26 points and eight rebounds. Durno added 10 points and grabbed five rebounds. Smiley chipped in nine points and hauled in eight rebounds.

Cassina Hyppolite's 12 points and Sarah Marcus' 11 points paced South. Claire Licata added six points. Joanna Ostroot scored four points and grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds.

Sweet Home (3-1, 1-0) played Tuesday at Williamsville East but the result was unavailable before The Bee went to press. Sweet Home hosts Iroquois at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both are ECIC Division II league games.

"Our upcoming games are going to be tough," said LaRoach.

Williamsville South

South opened its week with a 50-45 loss last Tuesday at Hamburg.

The Lady Billies trailed by three for most of the first half before Alyssa Ashcroft hit a two-pointer and Hyppolite drained a three-pointer with no time on the clock to put South ahead, 23-21, at halftime.

South went ahead by six, 36-30, after three quarters, but Hamburg clamped down defensively and played well offensively, outscoring South by 11 in the fourth quarter, to pick up the victory.

"Hamburg stepped up every aspect of their game," said Solomon. "They were doing a good job on the boards and made adjustments to their full court press and starting hitting their shots. Everything came together for them."

Marcus led South with 20 points. She hit four threes. Hyppolite added 11 points. Ostroot came off the bench to add six points and 10 rebounds. Licata added four points and six rebounds.

South (0-3, 0-2) hosted Iroquois on Tuesday but the results were unavailable before The Bee went to press. They host West Seneca East at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.

(Patrick J. Nagy contributed to this article)