Kennedy wins on late basket

With its double-digit halftime lead a distant memory with less than 13 seconds remaining in regulation of a tie game last Friday night, Kennedy used a nifty give-and-go to earn one of its biggest wins in recent history.

Senior Nicolina Torchia banked in a running layup off a pass from junior Rachel Katz with 8.2 seconds left to give the Lady Cougars a thrilling 40-38 victory over visiting Garden City in a Nassau Conference A-I girls’ basketball game. Torchia led all scorers with 11 points, while Katz added nine.

“The girls had a great week of practice and really wanted this one,” Kennedy first-year head coach Mallory Palmieri said. “Nobody’s sure when the last time was we beat Garden City, but it’s been a long time. We didn’t play well at their place earlier in the season right after the holiday break and the girls are very happy to avenge that loss.”

The Lady Cougars (4-11 overall, 3-5 in A-I), who were held to a season-low 25 points and fell by 15 at Garden City on Jan. 3, managed 26 in the first half of the rematch. They outscored the Lady Trojans by a 16-4 margin in the second quarter, thanks in large part to accurate shooting from long range by juniors Rose Mehani and Carly Wills, and the efforts of junior Jessie Estrin (seven points, 11 rebounds) on the boards. 

“We’ve been a first-half team all season,” Palmieri said. “We’ve especially had trouble in the third quarter, so we broke up our practices into quarters and worked on conditioning in the third. I don’t know why we’ve struggled after halftime, but tonight they fought through and played well in the third.”

Kennedy led by as many as a dozen points in the second half but eventually needed some late-game heroics to avoid overtime and keep its slim playoff hopes alive. It was outscored by a 10-7 margin in the third, which Palmieri said was an improvement compared to most games. 

Garden City won the fourth quarter, 12-7, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a 26-16 halftime deficit. On the winning play, Palmieri had Katz serve as a diversion and fake a drive to the basket while dishing the ball to Torchia. “It was nice that it went the way we drew it up,” Palmieri said.

The Lady Trojans (4-10, 3-5) had a chance to win it but a three-point attempt by Jasmine Worrell from the corner sailed over the rim and Katz secured the rebound and called timeout. The hosts then ran out the final 2.5 seconds.

Mehani finished with seven points, while Wills chipped in six. Hope Kelly’s nine points led Garden City.

The win was the second in three games for the Lady Cougars. They knocked off Great Neck North, 62-60, on Jan. 14. Katz’s two free throws with 0.6 seconds left proved the difference. Mehani scored a career-high 19 points, including the last two on a game-tying layup with 13 seconds to go. Wills added 10 points.

“Our confidence is growing,” Palmieri said.