The Cherry Valley-Springfield girls knew they were in for a challenge in Saturday’s Class D State Semifinal against defending state champion Hammond and the Red Devils lived up to their billing.
The best basketball season in Lady Patriots history came to an end at Hudson Valley Community College in a 62-37 loss that showcased both Hammond’s talent and Cherry Valley-Springfield’s refusal to quit.
“I’m so proud of them,” CV-S coach Kelly Taggart said of her team. “They fought right to the very end. I couldn’t be more proud of these girls, I really couldn’t. They are so resilient. It didn’t turn out how we wanted it to but I’m so proud of them.”
CV-S had no answers for Hammond’s dynamic duo of Ava Howie and Landree Kenyon, who finished the game with 32 and 22 points, respectively.
Morgan Huff led the Patriots with 11 points thanks to three three-pointers, while Daphnee West scored eight points and Brin Whiteman added six.
Hammond took control of the game from the opening tip, racing out to a 9-2 lead in the first few minutes. Where the Red Devils showcased the confidence of a team having been in the final four before, CV-S showed some definite nerves in the early going.
A Kenyon three-pointer at the 4:36 mark made it 14-4 Hammond, and things only got worse from there for CV-S.
The Red Devils were dominating the boards at both ends, extending their own possessions while forcing the Patriots into repeated one-and-dones.
The biggest issue for CV-S, though, was turnovers. Any time it looked like they might be in position to get off a good shot, the Patriots would cough the ball up on an errant pass.
Taggart said the issues were a combination of mental errors by her team and great defense by the opposition.
“I think it was both,” she said. “Hammond’s a very, very good team. I think we got caught up in the moment a little bit and we had some errant passes. It is what it is, but like I said, Hammond’s a very good team.”
Hammond ended the first quarter with a 25-5 advantage with Howie accounting for 13 of those points.
It was more of the same in the second quarter. Hammond’s size and length on defense bothered the CV-S offense all game long.
At the other end, Howie seemingly couldn’t miss from the field, hitting a three-pointer at the 3:50 mark to increase the lead to 35-7.
CV-S started getting a few stops late in the half but simply wasn’t able to generate enough offense. The Patriots went into the locker room trailing 40-12.
Both teams were pushing the pace to start the second half as the first few possessions ended in turnovers at both ends of the floor.
While Hammond’s offense came back to earth, the Patriots’ shots just weren’t going in. As the third quarter wore on, the game had settled down but CV-S simply had too much ground to make up.
The Patriots were able to hit a few shots down the stretch in the fourth quarter, but by that point the game was well in hand as the Red Devils celebrated a second straight trip to the state title game.
CV-S ends the year with a record of 20-4, its first sectional title, its first final four appearance and countless memories made along the way.
Taggart became emotional when asked about the impact the senior class of Huff, West, Kailey Barnes, Mia Dubben and Erin Wiliams has left on the program.
“They mean everything,” she said. “I told them in the locker room that I love ‘em. They were my very first team that I had in modified. I’m going to miss them so much and they mean everything to this program. They’ve been playing together since they were in third grade. I love them.”
Hammond 62, Cherry Valley-Springfield 37 (Saturday)
HCS … 25 15 16 6 — 62
CV-S … 5 7 8 17 — 37
HCS: Shae Rosenbarker 0 0-0 0, Josephine Hodgdon 0 0-0 0, Mikayla Jones 1 0-0 2, Ava Howie 13 3-4 32, Mia Tulley 1 0-0 2, Landree Kenyon 6 9-14 22, Addison Graveline 0 0-0 0, Makia Greene 0 0-0 0, Addison Webster 0 0-0 0, Isabelle Woodcock 1 0-0 2, Raelee Downs 1 0-0 2, Jocelyn Bush 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23 12-18 62
CV-S: Mackenzie McGovern 1 2-2 5, Kailey Barnes 1 0-0 2, Daphnee West 3 2-4 8, Morgan Huff 4 0-0 11, Sara Cortese 0 0-0 0, Erin Williams 0 0-0 0, Mia Dubben 2 1-2 5, Brin Whiteman 1 4-4 6. Totals: 12 9-12 37
Three-point baskets: HCS 4 (Howie 3, Kenyon); CV-S 4 (McGovern, Huff 3)