Late Riverhead surge beats Baldwin

Held in check by Baldwin for much of last Friday’s Long Island Class AA/Southeast Regional final at Farmingdale State, Riverhead saved its biggest push for last, scoring 10 of the game’s final 12 points to grab the title with a 56-50 victory.

After scoring the first basket of the game, the Lady Waves (23-1) did not take another lead until two minutes remained in the third quarter and the teams flip-flopped another six times until the final buzzer.

“We were able to match them and outlast them,” Riverhead coach David Spinella said. “If we played again tomorrow, the result could be different. Every time we made it a close game they would pull away. But we were able to get that [last] run at the end from the foul line.”

The Lady Waves converted 7 of 10 free-throw attempts over the final 1:22 after an offensive rebound and putback by Melodee Riley tied the game at 48-48. She led the way both in the scoring column (18 points) and on the glass (17 rebounds) for Riverhead. “[Riley] is a great athlete,” Baldwin coach Tom Catapano said. “We couldn’t keep her off the glass. She was the X-factor for them.”

“We were able to get inside and penetrate their defense,” Spinella said of posting a season-high point total against the Lady Bruins, who finished 19-2. “They have a fantastic defense.”

Lady Bruins senior Alex Hampton score five of her game-high 20 points as part of a 7-0 run that put Baldwin ahead by a basket, 48-46, with 1:52 to play. Her layup in transition and the free throw that followed came on the heels of a block of a three-point attempt on the defensive side of the floor by junior Chelsea May. Senior Amber Harrison (15 points) started the run with a nifty crossover move on Riverhead’s Marta Czapiak at the free-throw line and finished the play with a layup. “This team, to sum it up,” Catapano said, “is all blood and guts.”

Despite foul trouble that kept her off the floor in the second quarter, senior Ayanna Hudson provided a huge spark after halftime. In the first three minutes of the third quarter, Hudson had two points, four rebounds and a steal to help Baldwin open up a five-point lead. She finished with 11 boards. Junior Jenae DeGraff added nine boards, while May contributed eight rebounds and three blocks. Sophomore Mariah Butler helped limit Shanice Allen, a 1,000-point scorer for the Lady Waves, to just 10 points. “These kids work so hard in season and [during] the offseason,” Catapano said. “They play with so much heart and pride.”

For the four seniors graduating — Hampton, Harrison, Hudson and guard Ashley Sobel — the mark they leave behind on the program is undeniable: three consecutive Nassau County championships and a Long Island title in 2010-11. “They’ve changed Baldwin athletics forever,” Catapano said.