Horsemen in Tough Loss to Woodlands

By Sarah Studley, special to the Tarrytown-Sleepy Hollow Patch.

The varsity boys' basketball team took a tough loss on Wednesday, with a final score of 54-75 against the Woodlands Falcons. 

Sleepy Hollow High School's starting lineup included juniors Jorge Berenger and Jonathan Martin and seniors Kevin Igwe, Joe Scarpati and Justin Best.  

The game started with the two teams neck and neck and remained close through most of the first half. At the 3:34 mark in the second quarter, the Falcons, with 24 points, led by only one. 

Soon, however, the Hosemen fell behind and the first half ended at 27-40, with Woodlands in the lead.  

The team began the second half with renewed vigor, but seemed to lose some focus as they continued to fall behind.  

"We just fell asleep and [The Falcons] picked up their intensity," said Jorge Berenger of the Hosemen's tough second half, "We fell in a deep hole."  

The gap between the two teams' scores only seemed to widen as the game continued, and as the Horsemen's defense weakened. When Woodlands High School called a time out with just 1:57 remaining in the game, Sleepy Hollow supporters began to file out of the gymnasium in light of the unsalvageable defeat.

Assistant Coach Desmond Turner said he saw the game as a learning experience. "We played hard and made some crucial mistakes," he said. "We needed to face a team like this to test us." 

Berenger, who scored 13 points in the game, added that going forward the team needed to work on "Better ball handling, more defense and being more aggressive." 

Martin led the Horsemen's offense with 16 points, while Davonne Henry of Woodlands tallied up 19 during the match. 

This loss brings the Horsemen's record to 8-3 for the season. The team will face Woodlands again on Thursday, February 4th at 4:15 p.m., when they visit the Falcons at home.