Playoff spot eludes Oceanside

After closing the gap last season on the overpowering competition in Nassau Conference AA-I girls’ basketball, Oceanside was in position to kick down the playoff door this winter after its initial tour through the schedule brought four wins in six games.

However, the Lady Sailors couldn’t sustain their success in the second half of the campaign and missed reaching their goal of qualifying for the Class AA playoffs. They went into their Feb. 10 regular-season finale needing a win at Uniondale to get in, but the wheels came off in the third quarter of a 59-45 loss that allowed Syosset to grab the conference’s fourth and final playoff spot.

“We’re extremely disappointed,” said Oceanside head coach Jason Manning, whose team went 5-7 in conference games. “The girls really wanted it and worked so hard,” he added. “I’m really proud of them.

“With a little more than a week to go, a lot of things had to happen for us not to get in the playoffs. Nothing went our way. It’s pretty unbelievable.”

Sakara Hester-Torres scored 15 of her 17 points in the second half to lead Uniondale, which trailed by seven at halftime but took command with a 22-4 run in the third quarter. The Lady Knights also got 17 points from Diamonae McLean. Juniors Mara Stewart (11) and Claire McNamara (10) scored in double figures for Oceanside, which finished 9-8 overall.

“To play in this conference is such a grind,” he added. “Nothing comes easy. We knew it’d be a very tough spot to go into Uniondale and win. We played like we wanted it and had a nice first half. Torres’ took over in the second half. Her whole body language changed.”

Oceanside took care of business in its next-to-last game, beating Hempstead 48-32 on Feb. 7 behind Stewart’s 19 points and senior Veronica Miller’s 10, and could have secured the program’s first playoff spot since 2008-09 later than evening had Syosset lost at conference champion Massapequa.

“We felt pretty confident walking out of the locker room after we won, knowing Massapequa hadn’t lost a conference game all season and was playing on senior night,” Manning explained. “But Syosset went and pulled the upset of the season.

“We didn’t get the help we needed, but at the same time we have to be accountable for going 1-5 in the second half,” he added. “The one game that’s keeping me up at nights is losing at home to Farmingdale. We had a tough shooting game, and they played really well.”

Despite the tough ending, and the departure of key contributors Miller, Paige Seitz, and Jeannie Callanan, Manning said he’s already looking forward to next season when the Lady Sailors will bring back 10 players including Stewart, who averaged a team-best 12 points per game against conference foes, and McNamara, already with three seasons under her belt as the starting point guard.

“We’re going to have plenty of fuel for the fire next season,” Manning said.