Malden High School’s Girls Varsity Basketball team went up against Salem on February 15th for their last game of the 2017-2018 season. Due to the fact that their last game was a home game, the Seniors on the team had their Senior Night the same day.
On the wall of the gym with the Golden Tornadoes mural, four to six posters were lined up for each senior. On the opposite side of the gym were posters saying “Senior Night” as well as cheering on the seniors. The decorations in the gym were all put together by the Girls Freshman and JV Basketball teams. Along the bleachers were Blue and Gold balloons tied on the railings while the doorways were decorated with Blue and Gold streamers.
Like many previous games, the game got very intense during the second half. During the first quarter, Salem scored first but Malden took the lead, 8-6. In the second quarter, the score ended up getting really close, Salem in the lead, 20-19. During the beginning of the third quarter, Salem and Malden tied multiple times, leaving Salem in the lead, 34-28. In the fourth quarter, Malden stepped up their defense preventing Salem from scoring as much, ending the game with Malden in the lead.
Out of the ten players on the team, five of those players are seniors. It is safe to say that the varsity team will change drastically, as there can only be five returning members in the next season. Seniors this year included Number 10 Mackenzie Furlong, Number 23 Tiffany Tortora, Number 11 Xue Zhou, Number 21 Jennifer Rosario, and Number 14 Zariah Stringer-Silva.
Head Coach Scott Marino said that “The five seniors started the game, and the three main seniors finished the game for us” said Head Coach Scott Marino. By the three main seniors Marino was referring to Furlong, Tortora and Zhou. He also explained that Tortora and Zhou “nailed a few free throws [toward the end, which impacted the score]”
Marino stated that as this was the “[21st game in the season, he did not] have to motivate the girls”. He further explained that the girls knew their goals and what this last game meant to them. Not only was it the Seniors’ last game ever on the team, but it would be their last chance to make the state tournament.
Marino mentioned everyone on the team was a key player in this game. He had the Seniors start the game off and the players that did not get as much playing time throughout the game finished off the last minute or two.
Top scorers included Tortora with seven points, Furlong with 19 points, and Zhou with 8 points. Junior Salma Bezzat made a few free throws and Junior Audree Carleton had a couple rebounds.
Marino said that “Rosario and Stringer-Silva [did not] get the recognition and playing time [they deserved.” He also explained how both girls are great team players, and motivates the entire team during their practices.
Bezzat stated that “[she will] miss all the [Senior] players” and that the team is losing some key players to their season.
Tortora said that because she was a captain this season, “the season was much different [than previous years]”. She explained that as captain, she was “being held accountable for [every player and not just herself]”.
Furlong said that as a captain, there was “more responsibility and pressure [on them] to carry the energy [throughout] the team.” She also explained that “[the members of the team] are close [and that she does not] think new members will change much because [they] share the same energy and motivation [that the Seniors players have].”
Due to the fact that their last game was a win, the team accomplished their goal of making it to the state tournament. The requirement for the tournament was at least ten wins throughout the season, which is double the amount of games they won last year. That meant that the girls had to train and practice hard this season in order to meet those requirements.
Although the girls won exactly ten games, they did not make it to States. Bezzat stated that they were unable to go “because [they had to win at least] half of [the] games on [their] schedule”. Knowing that they were so close to States this season, the girls will push and work even harder next season to achieve their goal.
