Bittersweet End To Girls' Basketball Season

The final game for the North Branford High School girls' basketball team was almost secondary last night to the Senior Night celebration.

In front of an enthusiastic crowd, coach Chris Webster honored the seven seniors in a pregame ceremony, where each was announced by a teammate. The senior girls received flowers and gifts and walked to midcourt where they were greeted by family members. Many shed bittersweet tears as they hugged their teammates and coach.   

The tears were sweet because they have many happy memories of the team experience but bitter because the team finished 3-16 this season with last night’s 57-40 loss to Haddam-Killingworth.   

The Thunderbirds got off to a good start, leading 5-0 on the first two baskets. They maintained the lead throughout most of the first half, taking a 21-18 advantage into the locker room at the break.   

But the second half was all Cougars. HK, which was lax on defense and shot poorly in the first half, employed a full-court zone press in the second half, forcing a number of turnovers that led to easy baskets. The Cougars outscored the T-Birds 22-7 in the third quarter, turning a close game into a rout.   

Emily Anderson and Lauren Muise led the Cougars with 14 points each, while the T-Birds were led by Elyssa Barreto with 13 and .

"We couldn’t handle their press," T-Birds coach Webster said. "We didn’t do what we were supposed to do passing the ball and dribbled right into the trap and had too many fouls. They hit better shots in the second half and outplayed us; they have a nice team."

When asked how he motivated his team for the second half, HK coach Jim Bombaci said, “We talked about it very calmly and discussed what we needed to do. We did change our press from man to zone and came out ready to play. When you start stealing balls and getting layups it helps your offense. In the end, I was very proud with the way they came out.”

HK will play in the postseason Shoreline Conference tournament this Saturday, with a game against Cromwell.   

But for the T-Birds, the season is over.

“It’s been a crazy year,” coach Webster said. “It’s tough to lose seven kids. If we had all our seniors we would have won at least 65 percent of our games. We struggled. We have only one junior and all those kids are sophomores who had to step up. Hopefully that experience is going to pay off down the road.”   

On Senior Night, Webster noted that the season is more than just wins and losses.

“These are nice kids, you see the tears. They love the game and it’s tough. I wish we had a better year but hopefully they get more out of it than wins and losses. The times we went out for pizza, the things we did and the friendships we made. Hopefully, that’s important to them. They might remember that we didn’t have a great season but they’ll have some pleasant memories.”