Lady Bruins hitting their stride

In search of its third straight Nassau Class AA girls’ basketball championship, Baldwin’s getting the offense cranked at the perfect time and couldn’t be in better hands with senior point guard Alex Hampton at the controls.

The Molloy College-bound Hampton tied a season high with 21 points and dished out seven assists to lead the Lady Bruins to a convincing 65-34 victory over visiting Valley Stream Central on Jan. 19. Senior Amber Harrison added 15 points and junior Chelsea May added 14 points and 12 rebounds as Baldwin improved to 8-0 in Conference AA-II and 10-1 overall. Senior Nikole Williams paced the Lady Eagles (4-4 in conference games, 4-6 overall) with 10 points and six rebounds.

“I think we’re beginning to peak at the right time,” Baldwin coach Tom Catapano said. “We lost a lot of offense from last season and it took some time to get everything to fit into place. 

“It helps when you have the best point guard in the county,” he added. “It’s Alex’s fifth year on varsity and she’s just a tremendous player and leader. She makes things happen with and without the ball.”

The Lady Eagles, who sit on the playoff bubble with six games remaining and had a modest two-game winning streak snapped, hung with Baldwin throughout the first meeting Dec. 16, falling 55-50, but coach Mary Parisi said their struggles to move the ball and rebound were the big reasons for the 31-point margin in the rematch.

“We were impatient and didn’t run set plays like we usually do,” Parisi said. “It’s upsetting and I wish we didn’t lose like this, but Baldwin’s a great team and we didn’t have our offense going. Our shots fell the first time we played and we need to bounce back from this as quickly as we can.”