CHESHIRE — There was high school basketball last winter. Teams played in front of a handful of fans in, basically, a quiet gymnasium. Opening night in 2021 felt much, much different.
"It was really surreal" to be back out in front of people, said Hoosac Valley's Averie McGrath. "Last year didn't really count as a season. It wasn't as good. Fans here, making the crowd wild, it was very good and much needed."
Speaking of much needed, Hoosac got a game-high 23 points from McGrath, along with four rebounds, two assists and two steals, as Hoosac Valley rallied from a five-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat Wahconah 57-52 Friday night in the season opener for both teams.
It was a slow start for both sides, as Wahconah led 3-0 with more than three minutes gone in the first quarter.
There ended up being six lead changes in the first half. The visiting Warriors had their biggest lead at five points with 6:28 left in the game at 49-44. But Hoosac clamped down on Wahconah, outscoring the Warriors 13-3 the rest of the way to get the opening-night win.
Hoosac Valley's Averie McGrath works the ball up the floor against Wahconah defender Emma Belcher Friday night in Cheshire. The Hurricanes opened their season with a thrilling home win over the rival Warriors 57-52. McGrath scored a game-high 23 points, connecting on four, 3-pointers to lead Hoosac. Olivia Gamberoni notched 21 points for Wahconah. For a full story and photo gallery from the late finish, head to BerkshireEagle.com/sports.
Defended by Hoosac Valley's Lilly Boudreau and Taylor Garabedian, Wahconah's Eva Eberwein passes out of the paint to a teammate.
"It was a great game to be a part of," Wahconah coach Liz Kay said. "It's nice to have fans back in the gym. Both teams were incredibly competitive, and with my young group, that's a great starting point."
Gabby Billetz had nine points for Hoosac, but pulled down 11 rebounds. Ashlyn Lesure chipped in with seven points, eight boards and a game-high three assists.
For Wahconah, a Gamberoni led the scoring with 21 points — that's Olivia Gamberoni. While high school basketball has gotten used to a Gamberoni leading Wahconah in scoring, but it was Maria leading the way. Maria Gamberoni graduated from Wahconah in June as the school's all-time leading scorer. Olivia had nine rebounds, two assists and three steals to go with her 21 points. Grace Wigington chipped in with nine points for the Warriors.
"I was excited to see our discipline and our ability to find open looks," Hoosac coach Holly McGovern said. "We know we've got a long way to go, we know this. At the same time, I like seeing some of the pieces.
Hoosac actually led at the end of each quarter, and after three, the Hurricanes were up 44-40.
Wahconah came out quickly in the final quarter and scored the first nine points. Emma Belcher started the scoring with a bank-shot 3-pointer from the left wing. Gamberoni scored the next four points with a hoop and a pair of free throws, and when Eva Eberwein rebounded a free throw miss by Taylor Garabedian and Wigington scored at the other end, it was 49-44 and only 6:28 remained on the clock.
That was the good news for Wahconah. The bad news is that the Warriors managed only one basket and three points in that 6:28. The basket came when Gamberoni penetrated into the lane and dished to Ella Quinto for two.
That had stopped an 8-0 Hoosac run and made the score 52-51. Quinto couldn't complete the 3-point play, Gamberoni rebounded and missed a 3-pointer and McGrath got the board.
At the offensive end, Alyssa Garabedian was fouled in the act, made the first of two and missed the second.
Billetz got that rebound and a second offensive rebound, before scoring on the putback. She was fouled by Wahconah's Olivia Mason and made the free throw. All of a sudden it was 56-51, with 3:50 to go, and the Warriors scored only one more point the rest of the way.
Wahconah actually was 1 for 10 from the line in that final 3:50. Had the Warriors shot .500 from the line in that stretch, they might still be playing.
"When you have kids who have never played in a big game taking those free throws, let's get 10-12 games under our belts and see if they make them," Kay said. "When they're back in game shape, let's see if they make them.
The reality is, none of these kids have played in a game like this, ever. Maybe Emma, but that's it."
For her part, Kay said that she was a little surprised the Hurricanes tried to get up and down the court with Wahconah.
While Hoosac turned the ball over 17 times, Wahconah scored five points off of turnovers.
"I think spacing is always a key against defenses, especially in press breaks against full-court presses," said McGovern, who took over the Hurricanes job last winter. "Timely cuts are important. Let's be honest, we turned the ball over more than we'd like and we have to keep working on that."
Both Hoosac and Wahconah didn't move the scoreboard much in the final three minutes. After Billetz made her three-point play, the only other Hurricane point came on the second of two free throws by McGrath. Wahconah's last point was a free throw by Eberwein.
So the question came up, did the players start to run out of gas late in the game?
"Yes, very much so," said McGrath. "Everyone was gassed. We needed to dig deeper and we came out [with the win]. We did."
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