CLASS L GIRLS CHAMPIONSHIP: No. 1 Holy Cross vs. No. 2 Daniel Hand

March 17, 2017 Kevin Roberts Basketball Comments Off on CLASS L GIRLS CHAMPIONSHIP: No. 1 Holy Cross vs. No. 2 Daniel Hand

The Holy Cross girls basketball team has put the NVL Tournament championship loss to St. Paul behind it.
The Crusaders can claim the ultimate trophy — the Class L state championship — with a win on Sunday in the 3 p.m. game at Mohegan Sun Arena.
Top-seeded Holy Cross will face a strong foe in second-seeded Daniel Hand of Madison. The Tigers are from the Southern Connecticut Conference and own a record of 24-4.
Holy Cross seeks its first state championship since 2007, when it defeated Career Magnet 67-58 in the Class M final. That game was played in Detrick Gymnasium on the campus of Central Connecticut State University. 
Sunday’s stage will be much bigger. It will be the first time Holy Cross has played for the title at Mohegan Sun Arena.
Daniel Hand makes its second-ever championship appearance, the first coming in 1999 when the Tigers took down Killingly 72-68 in the Class L final.
Here’s some more information on this game:

No. 1 Holy Cross vs. No. 2 Daniel Hand (Madison)
When: Sunday, 3 p.m.
Where: Mohegan Sun Arena
Records: Holy Cross 25-2; Daniel Hand 24-4
How they got here: Holy Cross — 83-31 over No. 32 Crosby (NVL); 59-34 over No. 16 Sheehan (SCC); 69-49 over No. 8 Guilford (SCC); 56-55 over No. 4 Capital Prep (CSC). Daniel Hand — 78-30 over No. 31 Jonathan Law (SCC); 52-34 over No. 15 Windsor (CCC); 60-33 over No. 10 Woodstock Academy (ECC); 73-40 over No. 3 Pomperaug (SWC).
Common opponents: There are several of these. 

  • Mercy (Middletown) — Holy Cross lost 58-37 in the third game of the season. Hand won all three games, including the SCC final.
  • Guilford — Holy Cross won a Class L quarterfinal matchup. Hand won all three games, including a SCC quarterfinal.
  • Lauralton Hall (Milford) – Holy Cross and Hand won comfortably, with the Tigers taking two wins over their SCC foe.
Who makes Hand go: The Tigers are led by All-SCC First Team selections Gabby Martin and Gabby Egidio. Martin had 25 points, including the 1,000th in her career, in the semifinal win over Pomperaug. Emma Sullivan scored 12 points while Sara Wohlgemuth added 11.
Who makes Holy Cross go: Senior Idalis Miranda, junior Aiyana Ward, junior Meah Austin and junior Century McCartney. The Crusaders have also been steadied by the play of others like senior Isabel Plant. Ward scored 20 points in the huge semifinal win over four-time defending champion Capital Prep. McCartney had 16 in that game, and Austin added 11.
The players (Number and name, followed by grade and height: Holy Cross — #3 Julia Mecca (11, 5-foot-3); #5 Andrea Pettinico (12, 5-4); #10 Meghan Villano (12, 5-4); #11 Hannah Brown (10, 5-4); #12 Isabel Plant (12, 5-5); #13 Idalis Miranda (12, 5-2); #14 Meah Austin (11, 5-10); #15 Allison Orsini (12, 5-5); #20 Allie Brown (10, 5-4); #23 Century McCartney (11, 5-9); #24 Natalie Hodak (9, 5-3); #25 Gabby Goldman (12, 5-5); #30 Devan Eason (11, 5-6); #31 Nevya Vermette (12, 5-8); #32 Aiyana Ward (11, 5-10). Daniel Hand — #3 Gabby Martin (12, 5-5); #4 Hannah Martin (11, 5-7); #5 Emma Sullivan (11, 5-4); #10 Halle Freund (5-10); #12 Colleen Caruth (12, 5-10); #13 Anna Beccia (10, 5-6); #14 Summer Adams (9, 5-10); #15 Sara Wohlgemuth (9, 5-3); #20 Erickson Richard (10, 5-6), #22 Gabby Egidio (11, 5-5); #24 Kaitlyn Martin (12, 5-8).
Head coaches: Holy Cross — Frank Lombardo. Daniel Hand — Tim Tredwell.
Championship history: Holy Cross — 1-3 — 2007: 67-58 win over Career Magnet in Class M; 2006: 57-48 loss to Stonington in Class M; 2002: 73-43 loss to Guilford in Class L; 1988: 64-39 loss to Southington in Class LL. Daniel Hand — 1-0 — 1999: 72-68 win over Killingly in Class L.

Related Articles