Thursday, October 1, 2026
Plainedge returned its entire eight-player roster from a season that ended with a loss at North Shore in the Nassau Class A girls’ basketball quarterfinals.
On Saturday morning, the Red Devils returned the favor behind a stifling defense and balanced scoring. They held the visiting Vikings to no more than seven points in any quarter and pulled away in the fourth for a 47-25 quarterfinal playoff victory before a jam-packed crowd for both sides.
Juniors Michela Netto (game-high 13 points), Allison Younghans (10), Giovanna Pannitti (8) and Peyton Wise (8) and led the attack for No. 8 Plainedge (15-6), which advanced to face top-seeded and defending county and Long Island Class A champion Wantagh in the semifinals Friday at Farmingdale State College at 6 p.m.
“We knew this would be an intense game and we had to step it up,” said Pannitti, who hit the front end of back-to-back threes with Netto to give the Red Devils a 41-21 cushion midway through the fourth. “We had a good week of practice and focused on our defense,” she added.
Senior Erin Lily La Rosa led No. 9 North Shore (14-6) with 8 points — all coming on free throws. Junior Katina Pappas and sophomore Annabella Misiti chipped in 6 points apiece in what was the Vikings’ lowest-scoring output of the season.
“Plainedge’s defense made things difficult, so hats off to them,” North Shore head coach Keith Freund said. “We tried to make adjustments, but we couldn’t get the offense going.”
Netto opened the game with a 3-pointer and Plainedge never looked back after racing to an 11-1 lead. It led 13-7 after the opening quarter and extended it to 24-14 by halftime.
“We wanted to swarm them with pressure and I thought we did a nice job,” Plainedge head coach Sarah Tansey said. “I didn’t sense any jitters from our girls. Last year’s experience helped.”
The hosts led by as many as 13 in the first half and had five different scorers — Netto, Wise, Younghans and freshmen Maddie Belz and Delaney Auer — within the first 4:29 as they forced Freund to burn an early timeout. The Vikings responded by scoring six of the next eight points, but Younghans opened the second quarter with a long trey to regain momentum.
Each team managed just six points in the third quarter, then the Red Devils blew the game open with a 13-3 run to start the fourth.
“I’m so proud of our team,” Freund said. “Just an amazing group of kids who were a joy to coach. I really had no idea what to expect this season. They worked every day and made practices fun.”
Plainedge’s attention now turns to Wantagh, which defeated the Red Devils twice during the regular season by scores of 55-45 Jan. 12 and 43-40 Feb. 9.
“We’re familiar with each other and I think it’ll be another close one,” Tansey said. “Last game we played was tied with a minute left.”
