The Shenendehowa girls basketball team found success from behind the three-point arc.
The Plainswomen made nine three-pointers — four of which came from Emily Weber — on their way to a 50-42 victory at Shaker in Tuesday’s Suburban Council North Division opener.
We knew this was going to be a great game, said Weber, who led all scorers with 20 points. `Shaker has an amazing team this year. We really wanted to come out strong.`
While Shen was hitting from beyond the three-point arc, Shaker was having trouble hitting shots from anywhere on the floor. The Blue Bison made only 27 percent of their shots from the field, many of which were from close range.
`We’re not going to beat anybody in this league if we shoot a really low percentage,` said Shaker coach Emily Caschera.
Both teams played aggressive defense throughout the game, but it was Shen’s defense that prevailed. The Plainswomen forced Shaker into rushing its shots, which led to lots of rebound opportunities.
`We pretty much took the perimeter away from Shaker,` said Shen coach Ken Strube. `I think all of their points were in the paint or from the foul line.`
Shen assumed command of the game midway through the first quarter. A three-pointer by Maggie Smith was quickly followed by an Allie Setter layup off a Shaker turnover. Weber then hit a three off another Blue Bison turnover to give the Plainswomen a 10-4 lead.
Shen’s lead wavered between four and nine points until the latter stages of the second quarter. With three Shen starters on the bench due to foul trouble, Shaker went on an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to 21-20.
That’s when Mary Kate Cuasck took over for Shen. The rookie guard sank two consecutive three-pointers to put the Plainswomen ahead by seven points. From that point on, Shen never led by less than three points.
`We got a tremendous boost from Mary Kate Cusack,` said Strube.
Weber made three of her four three-pointers in the second half, including one at the start of the fourth quarter that gave the Plainswomen a 43-31 advantage. Shaker pulled within six points midway through the fourth quarter before Shen went on a 7-3 run to seal the victory.
`Now that I’m older, I really have to show more leadership and more responsibility,` said Weber. `In the past two years, I’ve been the youngest [player] on the team, so I really have to step up my defense and my offense.`
Madison Rowland scored 13 points, and Lauren Woods contributed 12 points for Shaker.
Shen returns to action Friday when it hosts Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, while Shaker visits Niskayuna.
`It’s a tough loss and we don’t like losing, but it is the first game of the year and we have the rest of the season to look forward to,` said Caschera.
For video from Tuesday’s game, visit our new YouTube channel at
TheSpotlightSports
“
