Denying Baldwin won't be easy

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To say Baldwin’s girls’ basketball team is on a mission this winter would be an understatement.
The Bruins, who saw their string of nine consecutive Nassau County championships come to an end at the hands of Syosset last March, have clearly established themselves as the team to beat against a new set of rivals.
“We’re playing pretty well but we’re not quite there yet,” Baldwin head coach Tom Catapano said after its 77-35 victory over MacArthur Jan. 30. “We know what level we need to be at to accomplish everything we want to accomplish. I think two things we need to improve are playing harder for 32 minutes and finishing better around the basket.”
For the first time, the Bruins aren’t part of Nassau’s largest classification. Instead of the battling usual suspects like Syosset, Massapequa, Farmingdale and Freeport, this season’s biggest hurdles are Garden City, defending Class AA champion East Meadow, Division and MacArthur.
“Garden City has great size and just beat Massapequa by 30,” Catapano said. “I think we’ll be the 1 seed and Garden City will be 2. It’s different checking AA scores instead of keeping track of the opponents we’ve always played. We’re back in AAA next season.”

Baldwin’s roster in each of the past two campaigns was loaded with youth, but that’s no longer the case. Four seniors start along with junior Alyssa Polonia, but a deep bench features mostly underclassmen.
Spearheading the charge for a 10th county title in 11 years is senior Payton Dulin, who is headed to George Washington University. The highly skilled guard is well on her way to a fourth All-County season and leads the team in scoring at 12.5 points per game despite not playing much after halftime with Baldwin (11-2) nursing large leads. She had 24 and was the best player on the court, in Catapano’s opinion, in a loss to Long Island Lutheran Jan 7.
“She’s become a complete player and leads by example,” Catapano said. “She’s an elite scorer who’s defending and rebounding as well as she ever has.”
Senior center Toni Smith is posting a double-double every game and like Dulin, providing outstanding leadership. She’s a physical presence in the paint along with senior Madison Guillory, who does a lot of the dirty work you can’t find in a boxscore, Catapano said.
Senior Monique Echols is a strong two-way guard who along with Polonia leads the team in three-pointers with over 20.
The group of reserves features sophomore Chinaya Okogeri, who plays starter-like minutes and brings a combination of defensive intensity and scoring ability. Junior Leah Williams is a solid post player who spells Smith and/or Guillory without a dropoff. Sophomore Ajeya Nicholas is Baldwin’s tallest kid (6-foot) and also one of its most athletic, while freshman Malia Robinson is its future starting point guard already making an impact.
“I think the loss to Syosset in the finals is still in the back of everyone’s minds,” Catapano said. “We want to write a different ending.”