Thursday, April 17, 2025
A comeback for the ages in Friday’s New York State Class A girls’ basketball semifinal against Albany Academy not only kept Wantagh’s historic season alive but brought it within four quarters of the ultimate prize.
But on Saturday night at Hudson Valley Community College in upstate Troy, the Warriors were unable to get their offense in gear and were defeated by Ardsley, 39-28, in the title game.
“It was one fantastic ride,” Wantagh head coach Stan Bujacich said. “The girls fought and fought all season through a tough schedule and had some incredible playoff wins. It didn’t end the way we wanted, but these girls are all winners and none of us will ever forget this season.”
Semifinal star sophomore Kayla Mannix led the Warriors (23-3) in the final with 10 points. Senior Riley Forthofer added 9 and senior Gianna Paccione hit a midcourt shot at the buzzer to cap the memorable season on a fun note.
“Gianna does that all the time in practice and that shot at the end helped wipe away some tears,” Bujacich said. “Everyone was excited to see that go in.”
Wantagh’s appearance in the state championship game came one week after it captured the first Long Island championship in program history. “As a coach I’ve always dreamed of getting to states,” Bujacich said. “It was an unbelievable run.”
Bujacich began his tenure with the program 32 years ago and said the semifinal victory was “the most amazing game I’ve been involved with.”
The Warriors, who on March 10 edged top-seeded Lynbrook 44-43 for its first Nassau County crown in nearly two decades, knocked off Mount Sinai by 24 points in the LIC but were in deep trouble against Albany Academy in the state semifinal facing a 38-20 second-half deficit.
“We never give up in any game, so we kept calm,” Mannix said.
Wantagh’s fourth quarter explosion last Friday afternoon was anything but calm. Trailing by 15 after three, it scored 22 consecutive points to open the fourth and suddenly led by 5 on the way to a stunning 58-51 victory. Mannix netted 20 of her career-high 32 points in the final eight minutes.
“I’ve never seen a player put on a display like that in the fourth quarter,” Bujacich said of Mannix, whose three-pointer with 3:45 remaining gave the Warriors a 46-44 lead. “She just took over and our defense forced turnover after turnover.”
Mannix hit a layup, four 3’s and went 6-for-6 from the foul line in the fourth quarter. She also pulled down 12 rebounds in a game that saw Wantagh outscore the Bears 29-7 in the fourth. Freshman Makayla McNeil added 9 points and junior Sabrina Asadurian chipped in 6.
“We started this journey Nov. 17 and played until March 22,” Bujacich said.
