Strong finish for East Meadow

Posted

With wins in four of its last five regular-season games, East Meadow not only accomplished a .500 finish in Nassau Conference AA-II but secured a first-round home game in the Class AA playoff tournament.

The Lady Jets avenged a loss to Plainview with a 47-37 victory last Saturday morning in a game twice postponed due to weather-related school closings. Junior guard Emily Shurina had 18 points and 10 rebounds, freshman center Danielle Hippner added 12 points and six blocks, and sophomore point guard Alyssa Yablansky chipped in 10 points as East Meadow completed the AA-II campaign at 6-6 and improved to 11-8 overall on Senior Day.

“This was a huge game in terms of playoff seeding,” Lady Jets head coach Pete Olenik said. “Both teams were a bit sluggish at the start, but then the competitive vibes kicked in. It was a very physical game.”

Plainview, which raced to a 16-point halftime advantage on the way to capturing the first meeting, 56-52, on Jan. 16 despite Shurina scoring 24 points and reaching the 1,000 milestone for her career, was led in the rematch by Krystal Korason’s game-high 21.

East Meadow trailed 12-9 after the opening quarter but scored 13 points in the second and led by a basket at halftime. It busted things open by scoring 17 in third quarter, including the first eight, highlighted by a couple of clutch threes from Yablansky.

“I’m usually low-key, but I challenged the girls at halftime and they responded,” Olenik said. “They’ve been playing with confidence. We’re basically a basket away from a five-game win streak.”

East Meadow’s only defeat down the stretch came Feb. 4 against Port Washington when an abundance of turnovers in the fourth quarter allowed the Lady Vikings to escape with a 65-64 win. The visitors, who scored 28 points in the final eight minutes, won it on Sophie Gindi’s free throw with 10 seconds remaining. “We played three great quarters, but we didn’t protect the ball in the fourth,” Olenik said. “Turnovers were the story. That’s a game we’d like to have back.”

The result was more the exception than the rule since the Lady Jets have played particularly strong at home — winning nine of 11. Prior to the setback against Port they avenged a loss to Hicksville with a huge come-from-behind 44-41 home win on Jan. 20. Senior Gabriella Ewulu’s basket with 33 seconds ahead put East Meadow ahead for good. Hicksville led by 11 entering the fourth. “We stepped up our defense without a doubt,” Olenik said.

The other late-season victory came Feb. 7 when Shurina (21 points) led 10 Lady Jets on the scoresheet in a 58-27 victory at Valley Stream Central. Junior Hannah Arbuse had 12 points and Yablansky added seven. 

“Getting a home playoff game is a nice accomplishment,” said Olenik, whose No. 8-seeded squad faces No. 9 Calhoun this Friday at 5 p.m. “We beat Calhoun by one in December, so it should be a great matchup.”