WHITE PLAINS – A year ago, the Rye girls basketball team lost a first-round playoff game against Tappan Zee to end the season with a losing record. On Tuesday, the Garnets avenged the loss on an even bigger stage, beating the Flying Dutchmen 57-51 at Westchester County Center to earn a spot in Saturday’s Sectional championship.
In a game with several back-and-forth runs, Tappan Zee took its largest lead, 39-33, with 1:30 left in the third quarter. Rye coach Margo Hackett called timeout, sensing her team may have felt the game slipping away after they led by as many as six themselves early on.
“It’s six points,” Hackett said in the huddle. “There’s still a quarter to go. They’ve hit big shots, but so have you. Block out the noise. Calm down. Charlotte, you’re on No. 20.”
That final instruction may have been the most important, telling Rye eighth-grader Charlotte Storz to defend senior Kristen Phelan, who wears No. 20 for Tappan Zee. Phelan hit five 3-point attempts in the game’s opening 10 minutes, finishing with 23 points.
But after Hackett’s timeout, Tappan Zee (15-8) made just three baskets the rest of the way. By the time Phelan made her sixth 3-pointer, there were five seconds left on the clock, and Rye’s bench was already prepared to run onto the court in celebration.
“We held (Phelan) to six in the second half, and we went no-help on her with our eighth-grader, Charlotte Storz,” Hackett said. “That really changed the game.”
The Garnets (20-3) went on an 18-6 run following Hackett’s timeout, capped by a 3-pointer by freshman Stella Maresca that put Rye ahead 51-45, its largest lead since 11-5 in the first quarter.
Rye junior Paige Tepedino matched Phelan’s game-high 23 points, with 12 coming in the clutch in the fourth quarter. Junior Phoebe Greto was a force on the boards and scoring in the post, adding 18 points.
Rye will play top-seeded Panas (22-1) at 5 p.m. Saturday in the County Center. One more win will secure Rye a trip to the New York State tournament.
“We were 9-12 last year, and this year we’re 20-3,” Hackett said. “It means the world. We really stuck together as a team and never gave up.”
