Farmingdale Rallies to Defeat Mepham Girls Basketball

The Farmingdale Lady Dalers entered Tuesday's matchup with the Mepham Lady Pirates at Mepham High School sporting an 8-1 overall record and a 3-1 mark in Conference AA-I play, having won their last three conference games. The Lady Pirates – a talented but young team - were 12 minutes of play from dealing the Lady Dalers loss number two, but clutch shooting by Farmingdale late in the game was the difference in a 46-36 victory.
Both offenses opened the game slowly and Mepham's defensive fortitude was evident in the early minutes of the contest. The Lady Pirates forced errant passes, steals, and traveling violations, while the Lady Dalers' zone limited the Mepham to perimeter jump shots. Lady Pirates' leading scorer Alex Leung found Mary Galgano for an 18-foot baseline jumper to give Mepham a 5-3 lead and a deep two point field goal from the left wing by Kristen O'Brien answered a Farmingdale basket to put the Lady Pirates ahead, 7-5. Control of the defensive backboard was an early key for the home team, preventing offensive rebound opportunities and second-chance points. After a pair of Lady Dalers shots tied the game at 9, Galgano responded with a drive and pull-up to give the Lady Pirates an 11-9 edge after one quarter.
"We rebounded better today than in recent games and Mary made a couple of nice shots," Mepham Lady Pirates Coach Jim Mulvey said.
Farmingdale took a 12-11 lead early in the second, but Lauren Johnson drilled a jumper in the paint to put Mepham ahead by a point. With Leung resting, the Lady Dalers attempted to pressure the Lady Pirates in the backcourt, but excellent outlet passes broke the pressure and a Johnson layup evened the score at 15 with just less than four minutes to go in the half.
During the quarter, Mepham was able to counter the Farmingdale pressure with accurate passing, particularly out of double teams and traps, and advanced the basketball into the front court to create open looks. O'Brien's short floater gave Mepham a 17-15 advantage and led Farmingdale to call for time late in the half. In the closing seconds, a great deflection by Galgano stopped a Farmingdale fast break and led to an O'Brien basket which gave the Lady Pirates a 19-15 lead at the half.
Despite the edge, Coach Mulvey was concerned about the ability of the Lady Dalers, who were largely stymied by his active and hard-working players.
"We played fair [in the first half]," the Mepham coach said. "We were lucky [Farmingdale] didn't make more shots."
The Lady Dalers opened up with a quality possession that led to a long two point field goal and a well-executed inbounds pass led to an uncontested layup and a tied score, but a block by Jenna Cavuto thwarted a scoring opportunity for the Lady Dalers that would have given them the lead. The Lady Pirates responded, as Leung was fouled on a three point attempt and capitalized on the opportunity by knocking down all three foul shot attempts, giving her team a 22-19 lead with three minutes expired in the quarter.
"We always shoot pretty well [from the foul line]," Coach Mulvey said. "The girls are dedicated to practicing."
With Mepham up 22-20 early in the third quarter, O'Brien made arguably the most impressive individual effort of the game. She drove into the paint, spun past a defender, and laid the ball through the rim for a 24-20 Lady Pirates advantage.  
"Kristen played well and gave us baskets when we needed them," Coach Mulvey said. "She kept it close."
Despite the inspired play of O'Brien – a sophomore who is also a standout member of the Mepham High School track team - the Lady Pirates were unable to maintain the lead. Farmingdale followed with an 11-0 run, which saw the Lady Dalers execute a perfect 25-foot bounce pass that was converted into a back side layup and Farmingdale's first lead since early in the second quarter, 26-24. Another mid-range jumper gave the Lady Dalers a four point lead and a three-pointer from the top of the key by Farmingdale's' Kyra Ochwat gave her team the largest lead of the game for either squad to this point, a seven-point edge. The run was ended by Mepham's Sharon Aluma, who posted up and hit a turnaround five footer to cut the Lady Dalers' lead to five heading into the fourth.
Another three by Ochwat opened the fourth and extended Farmingdale's lead to eight, and the Lady Dalers' leading scorer on the afternoon continued her strong second half with a long jumper from the right corner to make the score 36-26 in favor of the visitors.
"[Ochwat] played well," Coach Mulvey said. "She hit shots and we missed some assignments."
Although Farmingdale responded after struggling from the field early, the Lady Pirates rallied behind their three leading scorers and team captains. O'Brien and Johnson scored early in the fourth and a Leung three from the top of the arc narrowed the Lady Dalers' lead to six with 4:47 to play in regulation, prompting a Farmingdale timeout in an attempt to quash Mepham's momentum.
Coach Mulvey implored his team to get a stop on defense and they responded by forcing an errant shot and controlled the rebound. Galgano continued her accurate shooting with a two from deep in the left corner that brought the Lady Pirates within four points, 39-35. Down by five, the Lady Pirates had an opportunity to make it a one possession game but a missed jumper and turnover after an offensive rebound ended the scoring threat. After that, the Lady Dalers regained their outside touch and a deep two gave them a three possession advantage at 42-35. Ochwat continued to dominate the second half with a jumper just inside the three point line, increasing the lead to 44-35. After strategic fouls were committed by the Lady Pirates (4-5, 1-4) in order to extend the game, the Lady Dalers (9-1, 4-1) escaped Mepham High school with a 10-point win.
The Lady Pirates played another competitive game, despite having their roster depleted by season-ending knee injuries sustained by two players and the loss of another player from last year's strong team who transferred to another school. Against Farmingdale, one of the largest Long Island high schools, the Lady Pirates were at a disadvantage.
"We're one of the smallest schools playing with the big dogs," Coach Mulvey said of Mepham, a school with only 1,300 students.
Despite the disappointing start to conference play, the coach said he feels the team has made strides, particularly when considering the youth on the roster.
"We have four freshmen on varsity and three are getting time. They are doing fine [against difficult competition]. They needed to grow up faster due to injuries that depleted the bench. The experience will pay off down the line."

Farmingdale 9 6 16 15 – 46
Mepham 11 8 7 10 – 36

Farmingdale – Krya Ochwat, 20; Kelly McPartland, 12; Kaitlyn Brosnan, 7; Alexis Panariello, 4; Nadine Hadnagy, 2; Jamie Leone, 1.

Mepham – Kristen O'Brien, 11; Alex Leung, 9; Lauren Johnson, 8; Mary Galgano, 6; Sharon Aluma, 2.