Housatonic girls drop Berkshire League tourney opener

WOODBURY — After a rocky start to the season, the Housatonic Valley Regional High School Mountaineers girls basketball team found their stride and earned themselves a spot in the postseason. The Mountaineers entered the Berkshire League quarterfinal seeded sixth and were matched against the third seed Nonnewaug Chiefs.

On Friday, Feb. 17, with the season on the line, the Mountaineers entered Woodbury wearing black. After losing to Nonnewaug earlier in the week, the Mountaineers were fired up from the jump. They contested every loose ball, crashed the boards, and forced jump-balls whenever possible. Sophomore guard Mia Dodge was a pickpocket on the court as she repeatedly swiped the rock from the Chiefs in transition.

Despite their defensive effort, HVRHS met a fierce opponent in Nonnewaug. The Chiefs maintained their composure and knocked down big buckets from the outside. Their size and discipline helped Nonnewaug climb to a 13-6 lead by the end of the first quarter.

The Chiefs caught fire in the second and opened the period on a 13-0 scoring run. Nonnewaug’s shooters were lights-out from beyond the arc as they nailed six three-pointers in the first half and entered halftime with a 32-12 lead.

HVRHS  kept the pressure on with a ferocious defensive performance in the second half. The Mountaineers also looked to create opportunities for sophomore guard Tessa Dekker, who had a huge game against the Chiefs when they met earlier in the week. This time, however, Nonnewaug stuck to Dekker like glue and locked her down with double coverage throughout the contest.

The game became increasingly scrappy with the Mountaineers logging seven fouls in the third quarter. A couple hard hits from Nonnewaug went uncalled, including a blow to the face of Kylie Leonard that drew blood and caused a medical stoppage.

The Mountaineers left it all on the court but were unable to catch the Chiefs. Nonnewaug won with a 53-26 final score and advanced to the Berkshire League semifinals. The Chiefs will face top seed Northwestern in the next round, who finished the regular season with a record of 19-1.

HVRHS was led in scoring by junior forward Haley Leonard with 10 points. Nonnewaug’s leading scorer was senior guard Mallory Tomkalski, who finished with 18 points.

After the game, Mountaineer Coach Jake Plitt reflected on his team’s season. “It was a really good season, but sometimes you run into a better team.” Plitt noted that every player in his lineup will be back next year. “The girls worked really hard, and they’ll keep working hard in the off-season.”

After a big game against Nonnewaug earlier in the week,  Mountaineer guard Tessa Dekker was met with double coverage throughout Housatonic’s quarterfinal game in Woodbury on Feb. 17. Photo by Riley Klein

After a big game against Nonnewaug earlier in the week,  Mountaineer guard Tessa Dekker was met with double coverage throughout Housatonic’s quarterfinal game in Woodbury on Feb. 17. Photo by Riley Klein

After a big game against Nonnewaug earlier in the week,  Mountaineer guard Tessa Dekker was met with double coverage throughout Housatonic’s quarterfinal game in Woodbury on Feb. 17. Photo by Riley Klein

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