The first week of the 2024-25 basketball season was highly successful for the Rye High School girls team. The Garnets have played three games and won all three by double digits.
Their performances have been characterized by a superb mix of team offense and a stifling defense that swarms the ball from the moment it is inbounded and closes possessions with strong defensive rebounding. Head Coach Margo Hackett sees much potential in this year’s squad, which finished last season with a first-round playoff loss to Tappan Zee.
“Any given night, anyone on this team can step up,” Hackett said. “It’s a great start, but we’re far from playing our best.”
The toughest test of the Garnets’ young season was their most recent, as they battled a talented Henrick Hudson team for four quarters before finishing off a 65-54 win on Dec. 13.
Junior Phoebe Greto scored 24 points to lead the team, and senior Molly Kennedy had 23. Kennedy seemed to come up with a clutch basket or a needle-threading assist every time the score got too close for comfort.
Junior Paige Tepedino scored 12 points and iced the game in the closing minutes by going four of five from the free-throw line.
In Rye’s only road game of the season so far, Dec. 10 at Nyack, the only thing that could slow the Garnets down was rush-hour traffic. Though they arrived across the bridge a bit behind schedule, Hackett’s squad seemed unperturbed.
Nyack eventually showed some fight in the second half of Rye’s 48-30 win, but the first half wasn’t as close. The Garnets finished the first quarter up 14-3 and led 29-8 at halftime.
The offense had everything working throughout the game. The team was assertive in the paint, but also unafraid to kick the ball out to their perimeter scorers on the rare occasion where there was nothing available down low. Defensively, the team was nothing short of dominant, allowing only one made basket in the first 10-plus minutes of the game and denying the RedHawks any easy opportunities on offense.
Greto again led the way in scoring, with 13 points, which she managed to get while also grabbing a staggering 20 rebounds. Time after time, she prolonged her team’s offensive possessions or brought an abrupt end to RedHawk possessions.
Not to be outdone in the two-way game, Tepedino contributed 11 points and eight steals, clogging passing lanes all game long. Kathleen Denvir chipped in six assists and 11 rebounds, making sure the senior class was represented as well.
In the season opener at home, Rye controlled the game virtually from start to finish and cruised to a 49-33 victory Dec. 6 over John Jay-Cross River.
Greto led the way with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Her double-double was complemented by contributions from seniors Kennedy (12 points, five rebounds) and Denvir (six points, six rebounds).
“You can’t teach the toughness that this team has,” Hackett said. “This is a fun group.”