It has been an exciting season for Garnet girls. The 8-3 team has posted big wins against some stellar teams and beloved senior co-captain Maddy Eck joined the 1,000 Point Club January 8. Only four other Garnet girls have achieved this milestone; the most recent was Lillian McCabe in 2011.

By Melanie Cane

It has been an exciting season for Garnet girls. The 8-3 team has posted big wins against some stellar teams and beloved senior co-captain Maddy Eck joined the 1,000 Point Club January 8. Only four other Garnet girls have achieved this milestone; the most recent was Lillian McCabe in 2011.

Among the Garnets’ hard-fought wins was over rival Harrison, away on January 12. The tone was set early. Rye won the opening jump ball, but Harrison stole the ball and missed their shot. Rye rebounded and missed again. Then Rye stole the ball from the Huskies and Katie Popp scored on a breakaway. Harrison answered with a 3- point shot. The Garnets eked out an 8-7 lead going into the second quarter. Both coaches were on their feet for the majority of the game, and the tension on the sidelines was palpable and loud, especially in disputes with the refs.

The Garnets made offensive adjustments in the second quarter to counter the Huskies’ defense blocking the lane. Instead of trying to drive down the middle, they made an effort to move the ball around quickly to shift the zone, attack gaps, and find an open player. Making the Huskies’ zone defense shift allowed the Garnets to create open shots. This approach led Rye to a 20-16 lead at the half. However, Rye had to work hard for their lead, as Harrison consistently answered their buckets with 3-pointers.

In the second half, the Garnets, who pride themselves on defense, changed how they defended screens. Instead of switching or hedging, they double-teamed the girl who was using the screen. This strategy was effective in forcing turnovers and disabling Harrison’s outside shooters. Ellie Dailey was instrumental in guarding the perimeter players and rebounding, and Katie Popp lit up offensively, especially on breakaways.

The second half remained a dogfight, with Rye holding onto a four or five point lead until the last minute or so, when they turned up the heat and won by ten, 51-41. Popp contributed 19 points and Eck had 16.

Eck credited the defense: “We were able to shut down their point guard, who scored many of their points, and their 3-point shooters, who hurt us a lot in the first half.”

Coach Dennis Hurlie praised Eck and Popp for “terrific” games, but shared his frustration at his team’s many empty possessions and lack of patience on offense early on. “At one point in the game we had four successive possessions but were unable to convert.” He was pleased that the team “righted the ship” in the second half.