East’s Varsity girl’s basketball fell to non-conference competitor Nazareth Academy, losing 69-40 on a home game on Monday.
The team continues to play without one of their star players from last season, senior Riley Doggett due to injury. She said that their most recent loss against Minooka was “devastating”.
“Obviously it was a devastating loss, but we will get it back and we’re using it to prepare for the next couple of weeks,” Doggett said.
She also notes how this young team still needs some time to get more comfortable with each other.
“We definitely need to get some confidence up to win some games but I’d say we’re staying positive and we are continuing to get better together,” Doggett said.
The game started with a jump ball by Ava Valek, the six-foot sophomore. While the Wolves were not able to convert, Nazareth was able to quickly earn points through scrappy play along with a layup and a three point shot early in the first.
The Wolves’ only response came in the form of junior Cami Phillips, who put up two three-point shots late into the first, leaving the end of the first with the Wolves down 7-26.
The second quarter went just about the same as the first, with the girl’s from Nazareth taking control of the game, continuing to dominate over the Wolves. Something that head coach Abe Carretto foresaw ahead of the game.
“Tonight’s games are gonna be tough because Nazareth got second in the state last year.” Carretto said. “They look like they have majority of their team back so there’s gonna be a tough game for us if the girls aren’t ready for it,”
A triumphant first half by Nazareth left the score 42-18 at the half. A sizeable lead that continued to carry throughout the game.
Starting off the second half, the Wolves continued to give the ball to Phillips who at times, is the only upperclassmen on the court.
“I just had to keep shooting and just get prepared for shooting more than driving,” Phillips said.
Along with the team, Phillips got the score up to 30-54 by the end of the third but, the sizeable lead Nazereth had since the start of the game persisted through the end of the 4th quarter. Leaving the Wolves with their 6th loss of the season with a final score of 69-40.
Despite the loss, the team walked away with smiles on their faces, optimistic for the rest of the season.
“We’re definitely going to practice harder just so we don’t get bagged down by 30 like that, but I still think like my team did good overall and I’m proud, we’re getting there,” Phillips said.
The Wolves will take to the road to face Yorkville on Tuesday night for their next conference game.
Samantha Trujillo is a staff editor for Oswego East’s online news magazine the Howl.