Lady Mules Upended by Garden City in Freeport Tournament

It was a tough start to the holiday week for the Lady Mules as they lost 47-20 to a better shooting Garden City squad in the first round of the Freeport Invitational.

The Lady Mules could not find the basket in the first three quarters of play, clanging shots off the rim and shooting air-balls.

"We are a young team playing an older, veteran Garden City squad. We are still in the learning process," said Head Coach Micheal Pelan. "I was glad to see we didn't give up and were able to battle back somewhat in the fourth quarter."

The Lady Mules were down 35-3 at halftime and 43-5 in the third, but managed to go on a scoring run in the fourth quarter. The run was led by freshman guard Alexis Lopez who hit multiple three point shots.

Score: Garden City 47, Malverne 20

Hero: Freshman guard Alexis Lopez was a force in the fourth quarter. She hit multiple three point shots to help the Mules bolster its low score. If she had been shooting like that early on it might have been a different game.

Turning Point: From the start, the Lady Trojans were too much for the Mules to handle. They had a much better field goal shooting percentage and were much more organized in their zone defense. Malverne made a small run late in the fourth quarter, but by that point it was too little too late.

Quotable: "We had four days off from practice due to the holidays and the weather," said Coach Pelan. "But there are no excuses. Garden City is a seasoned team and they played like it."

Bottom Line: The Lady Mules were outplayed in every facet of the game. It also didn't help that their early shot attempts came nowhere near falling in. They fell behind by a huge margin and by the time they made their run in the fourth it was too late to make it up.

Box Score: 

Who's Next: The tournament continues as the Mules take on Floral Park at 2p.m. on Dec. 29 at Freeport