Senior Nevaeh Cherilus attempts a lay up against a Somerville defender. Photo by Nathan Dean.
Rebounding after the losses of the first two games of the season, Malden High’s Girls Basketball team finally has a winning record. After their win against Somerville on Thursday, the team has a record of six wins and five losses.
Due to COVID-19 and other factors, the team has played a lot of the season without a full roster. They only recently have been able to play with a full team which has definitely made the squad more competitive, according to Coach Scott Marino.
Among the team, there seems to be a common consensus that the offense is lacking. “The offense inconsistency has been the biggest Achilles Heel this year,” explained Marino. Senior Captain Yasmine Alayan admitted that “offensively I need to push myself more.”
This issue became really apparent in the team’s second game against Lynn English where they lost by nine and made a total of five out of 25 free throws. “When you lose by 9 points and miss 20 free throws, it’s not the defense that’s hurting you, it’s the offense that’s hurting you,” noted Marino.
On the positive side, Alayan believes, “defensively we figured it off pretty quickly.” Coach Marino agreed, “They are competing very hard and playing a very, very good defense, and rebounding the ball really well.” “I think… I am doing well [defensively and] rebounding,” Alayan also added.
Overall the team has come a long way. “At first we used to get frustrated and try to do it all on our own,” explained Senior Captain Nevaeh Cherilus, “but now we’re working together and not being frustrated and just playing the game.”
“The team is getting stronger as the season progresses,” added Coach Marino.
The team’s goals remain unchanged, with winning the Greater Boston League (GBL) title being the ultimate goal and making it to the State Tournament as a close second. As for the GBL title, it is still much in the air, but as for the State Tournament, the team only needs to win four out of their next ten games to advance to the state tournament.
Junior Maritza Ramos-Perez passes the ball to senior Lissette Curran. Photo by Nathan Dean. Senior Nevaeh Cherilus attempts a lay up against a Somerville defender. Photo by Nathan Dean. 
Freshman Kimberly Grace De Souza dribbles down the court. Photo by Nathan Dean. 
Senior Nevaeh Cherilus makes a layup through two Somerville defenders. Photo by Nathan Dean. 
Freshman Kimberly Grace De Souza makes a layup. Photo by Nathan Dean.
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