The Hawks took flight once again last Tuesday night against
local team Sound Shore Stars led by coach Suzan Elson. Last Saturday at the
Special Olympics tournament at Albert Leonard Middle School both Hawk teams met
defeat at the hands of the Stars.
“It was a bitter sweet game,” said game captain Alex Pflaum
on loss last Saturday. “We played our hearts out but some bad calls with some
aggressive offense from the Stars tipped the scale,” Pflaum continued. The
Hawks had lost 28-24.
It was a different story last Tuesday night. The Hawks had
sharpened their talons and were ready to play. Major improvements were seen in
defense and ball handling. The Hawks were relentless in their game under the
net led by James Beveridge and Andrew Brooks. Also, their long game was on
point with Alex Pflaum and John Reichelt sinking back to back three pointers.
Nothing but net.
The game played at the Hommocks Middle School took place
during the Stars normally scheduled practice time. The Stars have an upcoming
tournament this Saturday at Marist College.
The night also saw many players debut appearance on the hard
top including Douglas Campbell, Vincent Mulvey and Richard Egan who put up two
points in the second quarter. The Stars offense seemed to come up against a
brick wall every time they came to put up some buckets.
Defense was the theme of the night with the Hawks. An aspect
they had been struggling with in recent games. Andrew Brooks went vertical and
slapped a ball away from the net to the cheers of the crowd. Matthew McCarthy
was playing his heart out, racing from one player to another harassing them all
the way to the net.
Although the intensity was high on the court the comradery
and good sportsmanship was palpable as well. “I love playing with these guys
because it’s a lot of fun,” said Stars player Nick Brown. “I love South East!” said Joey
Lombardozzi. Both Brown and Lombardozzi
participate in several South East Consortium programs throughout the year.
It was a fantastic game where everyone received some playing
time. The Hawks are now turning their attention to their next big game on April
25th against Bronxville High School. Are the Hawks nervous? What do
you think?