The Remsen St. Mary’s girls basketball team picked up their first win of the year with a 57-48 victory over Gehlen Catholic at home on Tuesday night.
The Hawks sport a roster where five of their nine players are freshmen. That can lead to nerves for the young group, but head coach Scott Willman says he was very pleased with how the girls managed the game.
The first quarter was back and forth with neither team getting a lead larger than four points. Gehlen Catholic head coach Brandon Schaecher says the girls were hanging around offensively but made too many lapses on the defensive end.
Gehlen got into early foul trouble in the post but got some much-needed relief from Addi Castle. The freshman scored 11 points off the bench, and they came at a big time late in the game. Coach Schaecher says she was doing what he wanted everyone else to do.
After the Jays cut it to a one-score game in the third quarter, the Hawks turned to their veteran scorer. Hallie Bunkers hit a couple of threes to grow the Hawks lead as part of a 31-point night. Coach Willman says those threes were nice, but it was Bunkers’ ability to get to the free throw line that made the difference.
The Hawks are now 1-1 on the year and get 10 days of separation between games. This will allow some of their players to compete in other extracurriculars that are important to them. Coach Willman says this will also allow an opportunity to get the junior high involved with varsity practice to get them further invested in the program.
As for Gehlen Catholic, the Jays are now 2-2 on the season and have never gotten out to good starts despite winning two games. Coach Schaecher says the girls will need to work on being better out of the jump to have a better season.
Gehlen Catholic is next in action on Thursday at home against Cherokee. Remsen St. Mary’s will host South O’Brien on Friday, December 13 for their next competition.
