By Justin Feil, The Packet Group
With every excuse to lose their season opener on Friday, the Hillsborough High School girls basketball team won.
”I think it was really exciting for us all to win, especially early on,” said Stephanie LaManna of the Raiders’ 37-30 win over Franklin. “We all work together really well.”
The senior guard led the Raiders with 14 points. She is one of the few players on the team who focuses just on basketball and does not play another sport at HHS. She’s been waiting for this season, even if she didn’t know exactly what to expect. Now, after pulling out a tight game, there’s a new sense of pride.
”We all knew we were young and we were doubting ourselves,” LaManna said. “We lost seven people last year. Now we realize we can step up to the plate and do well ourselves.”
Everyone had to step up for the Raiders in their win over Franklin as Hillsborough faced situations it hopes to not have to deal with again this year.
”What was nice was total team effort,” said Raiders head coach Charlie Davis, whose team was scheduled to play at Phillipsburg on Tuesday before playing at Watchung Hills tonight. “One of our starters, Alyssa Giarrusso, didn’t even play. She’s been out sick. Jacki Schwankart had an injury. She fell and got a bloody nose and didn’t play the end. Kristina Vangeli fouled out early in the fourth quarter. The people off the bench did an outstanding job.”
It wasn’t easy as an inexperienced team got even younger and less experienced through the turn of events.
”I was a little worried,” LaManna said. “We had a player sick and people fouled out early. You have to keep going. You don’t always have everyone there. You have to bring everything to the table and hope it works out well.”
The Raiders made their free throws down the stretch to help preserve the lead they built through an 11-5 third quarter. Hillsborough trailed, 19-17, at halftime in the road game but never stopped battling as they got more comfortable. LaManna had only started a couple of previous games in her career.
”I was nervous,” LaManna said. “I always think it’s hard for away games to start out with. There’s the bus ride and you get a little tired. You have to pump yourself to get going.”
The Raiders came off the bus fine. They were up early, 13-5, after the first quarter by Franklin owned the second quarter, 14-4. The Raiders seemed to kick it into gear in the third quarter and sustained it in the fourth quarter despite plenty of adversity that would test even a veteran group.
”Going into that opening game, I had no idea what to expect under that sort of pressure out of these kids,” Davis said. “They responded well and we won the ball game.
”Our last seven points came from the foul line. We got some clutch shooting from the sophomores. Stephanie LaManna led us, and the girls off the bench did an outstanding job. We did what we had to do to win. I thought it was a great team effort.”
LaManna made two big free throws in the final quarter to hold off Franklin, and found her shooting touch early. The shooting and scoring are what the Raiders are hoping to get on a consistent basis from her.
”I don’t know if it’s have to have it, but she does have the ability,” Davis said. “She does have a good outside shot. She’s one that I’m looking to score for us and she did that. She was hitting mid-range jumpers.”
Said LaManna: “I do a lot of shooting. I really enjoy shooting. I think I bring a lot of leadership to the team as well. I also think it’s important to give people confidence in their ideas and let them know it’s OK to make mistakes.”
LaManna was a swing player as a sophomore, but last year got full-time varsity experience. And while she might have some confidence from that year, most of the Raiders are new to the varsity level, and new to the extra pressure.
”Alexis Pezza, she had to start in place of Alyssa Giarrusso,” Davis said. “She had some putbacks and did a nice job of rebounding for us. Marissa Traina gave us some quality minutes. Danielle Geminani and Mckayl Novak, both guards, came off the bench that did a nice job for us when it was needed.”
They got an early taste of the pressure in a varsity game. LaManna witnessed that when a wide-eyed teammate went to the foul line late in the contest.
”I just told her to relax,” LaManna said. “It’s easier when you’re relaxed. Coach puts us under pressure situations at practice, and I think that helped too.”
Friday’s win was ideal for such a young group, and can only help going forward.
”It’s really exciting to win an opener,” LaManna said. “It gives everyone a bunch of confidence, a good starting ledge. I think everyone is good at a particular part so together we make a strong team.
”I think overall we each individually we can one thing extremely well,” she added. “Overall, I think we make a strong team when we each work on that section.”
The Raiders will remain on the road this week, a tough test for a growing team. But that means more bonding time on the bus. And in a road game like Friday’s at Franklin, they had to lean on each other when the game stayed close.
”I think the crowd’s energy always keeps me going,” LaManna said. “I kind of feed off other people’s energy. Their team kept cheering. The score was really close. It was great pulling out a win at the end. Our team is like a family. We have to work hard to encourage each other.”
It was exciting start to a senior year that LaManna hopes will be as fun from start to finish, although it’s hard to imagine any tougher situation than Friday’s for a young team trying to learn on the fly.
”We lost a ball handler, our tallest player and another post player,” LaManna said. “It was difficult, but in the end we all pulled it out.”
