Emotional Night for Highlanders Basketball

Portland High School basketball seniors and senior managers: top (l-r)  Katelin Binezewski, Mia Lapinski, Samantha Lasky, Ava Hurley and Julia Capello; bottom (l-r) Allison Scott, Kendra Schoeps, Hannah Brunk, Leah May, and Tara Fitzgibbons

There was cause for celebration before, during, and after the Portland High School girls basketball team hosted Hale Ray High School last Wednesday, Feb. 8. 
           
Prior to the game, the team honored the eight senior players and two team managers for Senior Night before the Highlanders silenced the visiting Noises from Moodus, 51-33, in front of an energetic crowd at PHS.
           
Once the game tipped, Portland was in complete control, jumping out to a 17-3 lead after the first quarter and upping the advantage to 31-5 at the half.
           
Senior captains Sam Lasky and Hannah Brunk put on a show for the packed house, dictating the tempo and contributing to a majority of the offense. 
           
Lasky and Brunk combined for 25 points, 14 rebounds, and 9 assists in roughly three quarters of work. 
           
The longtime teammates have a noticeable rapport on the court that stems from playing together throughout the years, including in summer and travel leagues. 
           
“We know each other so well and we know where each other is on the court,” said Laske. “If she has two people on her, she sees me, and if I have two people on me, I see her.”
           
The link between the two senior captains has bled over into the supporting players and Brunk said that all the seniors have formed a special bond, adding, “We are not all in the same friend group, but when it comes to basketball we all come together and that’s what makes it special.”
           
The team’s chemistry was on full display midway through the second quarter when all five players touched the ball on a single possession, which ended with Brunk firing a laser pass to senior Leah May for a layup, making the score 26-3.  
           
Leading by 26 points at halftime---which featured a basketball scrimmage between 5th grade teams from the local elementary schools---PHS head coach Lauren Beeler dug deep into her bench as the Highlanders continued cruised to the convincing victory over the final 16 minutes.    
           
Once the final buzzer sounded, all eight Portland seniors scored, including an emotional basket for the team’s third captain, Ava Hurley.
           
Hurley tore her Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in summer league, essentially ending her senior high school season before it even started. She hadn’t played all season, yet the other seniors were determined to get her recognized and approached Beeler the day before Senior Night, asking if Hurley could get one last moment on the court. 
           
“When the girls asked I thought they were crazy,” said a smiling Beeler, who referred to the moment as “super special.”
           
The plan was to get Hurley in the game for a few moments in the first half, which Beeler did. But Hurley’s night was just beginning as the resilient senior checked back into the game late in the third. Beeler drew up a play for Hurley and she hit a shot with 1:49 left in the quarter, prompting the loudest cheers of the night. 
           
Lasky said the moment was amazing, adding that Hurley’s dedication was unmatched, “She came to every single practice, every game, and for her to play and score was great.”
           
For Brunk, the moment hit close to home.
           
“It was emotional because I tore my ACL my sophomore year, so I missed that whole season. The only thing that got me through was everyone telling me ‘you’re a sophomore’ and I knew I would get more years,” recalled Brunk. “So when [Ava] got hurt I thought that was it for her and seeing her out there was amazing. She is an amazing leader and I know how much she wanted to be out there on the court”
           
Fittingly, the eight seniors accounted for all the 51 of the Highlanders points on Senior Night. Lasky (16), Brunk (9), Tara Fitzgibbons (7), Kendra Schoeps (6), May (4), Allison Scott (4), Mia Lapinski (3), and Hurley (2). 
           
The win qualified the team for the Class S tournament, which seemed like a pipe dream after suffering an eight-game losing streak early in the season. 
           
“We were falling apart and I turned to [the players] and I said it was up to them. They had that players-only meeting and things have just gotten progressively better,” recalled Beeler. 
           
Momentum shifted following a 46-point loss to East Hampton on Jan. 21, dropping the team to 1-8. Following the loss, the Highlanders won five of the next eight games to wrap up a date in the postseason.
           
Lasky said the turnaround happened after the team started with better communication and chemistry, adding, “We’ve had long talks about what we could do better as a team and we’ve worked together. We tried to work on specific things as individuals and as a team. The big thing was starting it at practice. If you do it at practice you are going to do it in a game.”
           
During the players-only meeting, the three captains spoke openly about what needed to change.  
           
Brunk credited the team’s confidence, saying the team needed to be more supportive, “We said that if someone misses a shot at practice, you still cheer for them. Encourage everyone at practice, because if you’re not encouraging they might not have that confidence and right after that a lot of girls started to step out of their comfort zone and gained a lot more confidence.”
           
During the fourth quarter, the seniors each checked out of the game to the applause from the supportive fans. Several younger players earned valuable playing time over the final eight minutes as the seniors cheered them on from the bench. 
           
Freshman Morganne Pineda, who has been a big part of the rotation this year, along with sophomores Isabelle McClelland and Jamison Lasky (Sam Lasky’s sister) all played well in the second half. 
           
Beeler said it was nice to see both her seniors get honored and allow the future stars of the program to gain some valuable minutes. 
           
“They trust each other now,” Beeler added. “Our seniors have really stepped up.”

Hannah Brunk hugs Ava Hurley after Hurley scored in the third quarter. It was Hurley’s first game since tearing her ACL in summer league.