The team huddling up during a time out. Photo taken by Emraude Bonnet.
On December 14th, the Malden High School varsity girls basketball team went head to head against their opponents from Georgetown. The game was up and down, with both teams revealing their strengths and weaknesses. The game was tied multiple times, and the score was close throughout the whole game.
In the beginning, Malden was off to a rocky start, with Georgetown scoring two points against them. It was seen how the other team had a nice defense, that continued to shut down Malden’s attempts at scoring.
Junior Xue Zhou was getting the attention of the Malden crowd with her skillful play. Georgetown proved to be very skilled when it came to passing as they continued to pass the ball around and through the Malden players without interceptions. By now, the score was Georgetown 1-6. Malden didn’t give up because of this score.
Then Malden really picked it up with two shots that were made from a pass across the court, leaving a Malden player with just them and the hoop and the Georgetown defense rushing to get to them before the shot was made. They made both of these shots, and were then winning 7-6. Malden was picking up, and the defense was doing better.
Head coach Scott Marino could be heard yelling directions all across the gymnasium. Malden’s defense didn’t get to the Georgetown offense quick enough though, but Malden was able to get two free throw shots off violations. Sophomore Salma Bezzat scored another free throw, and by then, it was the end of the quarter. The first quarter ended with Malden 8, Georgetown 11.
There were many points scored early in the second quarter. There were steals and free throws from Georgetown, a shot by senior Grace Cappuccio, and impeccable passing from Georgetown’s offense.
Soon, it was 12-20, with Georgetown in the lead. Though, the Golden Tornadoes don’t like to lose, so the offense was starting to pick up.
There was another pass across the court, leaving junior Ashlyn Fitzpatrick all alone with just her and the hoop, and she scored, making the score 14-20. Then, after three attempts at a shot from a combination of players from Malden’s offense, one of the shots went in, and the score was 16-20.
There was a great steal by junior Mackenzie Furlong which caused a great stir in the crowd, she continued on with two attempted shots, but didn’t get any points. Though, soon enough there was another pass from across the court and Furlong found herself scoring with no one in her way. After these shots and a couple of free throws in Georgetown’s favor, by the end of the first half, the score was Malden 18, Georgetown 22.
During the second half of the game, Malden really picked it up because they knew they were capable of winning. They recognized Georgetown’s offensive strengths and how that affected their game, and with the help of their coaches, they found ways to shut them down.
They realized Georgetown’s defensive weaknesses and used that to their advantage. The game was close and was back and forth, but Malden really wanted this first win, so they don’t give up on their team.
The game ended Malden 35-34. The one point score difference is proof of how intense the game was. Due to their teamwork, communication skills, and great ball play, MHS was able to succeed in getting a win. With this, the girls basketball team is off to a great start to their season.
