Elmont settles for runner-up status

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The zero-sum view we have on athletics is incredibly skewed. The winner takes it all. To the victor belongs the spoils. Yes, the annals can only list one winner, but being on the losing end in the state finals should not diminish the incredible journey the Elmont girls’ basketball team has taken the community on.
Jamesville-DeWitt (Syracuse) knocked off Elmont, 64-51, in the Class A state championship game played at Hudson Valley Community College, last Saturday night. Kem Nwabudu scored 20 points, and Zhaneia Thybulle and junior Gigi Faison each scored 12.
The Lady Spartans had advanced with a 70-61 semifinal victory over Williamsville South (Buffalo) the previous night. Thybulle scored a team-high 22 points to lead the way and playoff extraordinaire Jada Fernandez added 18. Fernandez averaged 18 points per game in the five playoff contests leading up to the title game after averaging 10.6 per game during regular season.
Head coach Tom Magno said couldn’t be prouder of the girls that went further than any team is program history. “I knew four years ago that this bunch had a lot of talent and potential,” Magno said. “Each year they went a step further and grew a little bit more. They worked hard, were unselfish, shared the ball and bought into our defensive philosophy. I could not have asked for more.”
Seniors Nwabadu, Thybulle, Fernandez, Zarria Franklin and Faison have spent the past four years on the varsity. During that time, the Spartans recorded an overall record of 82-7, carried out four consecutive undefeated seasons in conference play, and took two consecutive trips upstate for the state tournament. Senior Chiamaka Ubani also played her final game at Elmont.
Jamesville-DeWitt’s senior class, which included Meg Hair, Jamie Boeheim and Kasey Vaughan, won its third consecutive title, but it was sophomore Gabby Stickle (16 points) and freshman Momoka LaClair (14) who were the difference makers. Stickle shot 4-for-5 from three-point range in the third quarter and accounted for the team’s first 12 points of the quarter.
The Lady Spartans, who trailed throughout, got within striking distance at 49-45 with a little over four minutes to play, but could get no closer. Elmont ended the season with an overall record of 23-3.