Girls basketball: Newman holds off Mendota for first win

STERLING – A coaching change over the weekend didn’t fluster the Newman Comets.

After first-year coach Kevin Malley resigned Saturday, the Comets held a quick practice Monday after school with interim coach Sean Fowkes, then came out an hour later and picked up their first win of the season, defeating Mendota 33-31 in a Three Rivers East game in Sterling.

[ Photos from Newman vs. Mendota girls basketball ]

“It was definitely, I think, our first or second game where we were really in it the whole time, and I think being up the whole game, it gave us more confidence,” junior forward Jess Johns said. “I think this is definitely a turning point, and a lot of the girls are more comfortable and confident.”

Newman (1-9, 1-4 TRAC East) were aggressive on both ends of the court, and had a few different players step up at key times. The Comets opened the game with a 16-8 run over the first 11:13, and led 11-5 after the first quarter and 18-12 at halftime.

“We knew we had to come out and play fast in order to keep it close like that, and I think this team and St. Bede [last week in a 40-36 loss] showed us how fast we have to play to keep the score close,” junior guard Madison Duhon said. “We knew it was going to be close the entire game, and we knew we had to come out and play fast, especially with our defense. Mike [Papoccia] came in before our game and showed us a new defense and offense, and we ran it pretty well, too.”

The Comets pushed the lead to as many as 10, 24-14, after Duhon hit a pair of free throws with 1:46 left in the third quarter. Freshman Lucy Oetting hit a jumper and a floater earlier in the period to spark the mini-run.

But Cassie Gonzalez scored on consecutive possessions for Mendota (3-7), then Katie Jenner hit a 3-pointer and Reanna Brant scored on a putback to cut the deficit to 24-23 with 5:58 to play.

Duhon scored to push the lead back to 26-23, but another putback and a basket inside by Brant gave the Trojans a 27-26 edge, their first lead since 2-0.

Johns answered immediately with a basket inside, but couldn’t finish off a three-point play opportunity. A free throw by Jenner after she was fouled shooting a 3 with 3:06 remaining tied the game 28-28.

A pair of freshman then came up big for the Comets. Oetting drove into the lane and hit a runner with 2:52 to play, and Reagan Hammes followed with a jumper on a kick-out pass from Johns for a 32-28 lead with 2:25 to play.

“The more shots you hit, the more apt you are to take them,” Johns said of the key contributions of several players. “I think the St. Bede game, when we were close to winning and had a few people out sick, it got a lot more girls into the game, and since then we’ve been a lot more aggressive and confident.”

Johns split a pair of free throws with 1:42 left to make it a five-point game, but Grace Wasmer nailed a 3-pointer form the left corner to get Mendota within 33-31 with 1:24 remaining.

Newman turned the ball over with 28 seconds left, and Mendota had a few chances to tie the game or win it. Gonzalez shot a 3 from the right corner that rimmed out, but Newman knocked the rebound out of bounds with 17.4 seconds left. Johns then swatted an interior pass out of bounds with 5.6 seconds left.

After a Comets timeout, Jenner got a look at a deep 3 that missed to the left. Gonzalez grabbed the offensive rebound and put it back up, but the ball hung on the left side of the rim before falling off as the final buzzer sounded.

“We were all saying a Hail Mary on that last layup, and the clock felt like it was frozen the whole time at the end,” Johns said.

Brant finished with 11 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks for Mendota, and Jenner added nine points, four rebounds and four steals. Wasmer had seven points, seven rebounds and two steals, and Gonzalez chipped in four points, five rebounds and three blocks.

“When I first started coaching, I reached out to some old coaches and mentors of mine, and the biggest thing I learned was if you get a look in the paint in girls basketball, it was a successful possession; you can always worry about making them down the road,” Mendota coach John Hansen said. “We got a ton of them tonight, and obviously losing by two you look back and wish we’d have made a couple more of them.

“But the coach in me is saying, ‘Hey, we got a bunch of looks down there,’ so it’s something to build on; the competitor in me is saying, ‘Man, I wish a few more them had gone in.’ But looks in the paint, that means we’re doing something right, so it’s something to build off of.”

Johns had a double-double with 11 points, 21 rebounds and five blocks, and Duhon added eight points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals for Newman. Oetting finished with six points and four steals, Hammes had four points, and Helen Papoccia chipped in two points, three rebounds and two assists. Lauryn Francque scored two points, and Pyper TerBush chipped in four rebounds.

“We’re not timid anymore,” Duhon said of the team effort. “Every girl took a shot tonight when they were open, and a lot of them finally got in the varsity book. I think that with the confidence that we’re building with these close games – and now a win – I think it’ll really help us in the long run for the rest of the season. We’re going to put a lot of work in at these practices, especially because our coach left, but we’re going to come back after [winter] break and you’ll probably see a new team.”

Fowkes, a longtime assistant for the last few Comets coaches, picked up a win in his head coaching debut. Malley resigned Saturday about six weeks after starting his first season.

“The administration and I could not find common ground on the conditions, constraints, and future direction of the girls basketball program,” Malley said in a text.

Athletic director Justin Stevenson and former football and girls basketball coach Mike Papoccia will serve as assistants for Fowkes, who has been named the interim head coach.

“I talked to Kevin and just thanked him for his time and the work he put in for our girls program,” Stevenson said.