Feb. 1 a strong 4th quarter from Pomfret allowed them to pull away from Portsmouth Abbey at home. The final score was Pomfret School 54, Portsmouth 35.
Sel Gonzalez and Tay Guirantes led Pomfret in scoring while Grace Bullied and Molly Vincent led Pomfret in rebounds. All 10 Pomfret players played in the game and made solid contributions to the win.
Portsmouth Abbey: 11 20 33 35
Pomfret School:  10  25 39  54
Pomfret Scorers: Sel Gonzalez: 14 points; Tay Guirantes: 13 points; McKinley White: 11 points; Brooke Zahansky: 6 points; Grace Bullied: 6 points; Molly Vincent: 2 points; Laila Travers: 2 points.
Earlier in the week Worcester Academy beat Pomfret 67-54. Worcester Academy is currently the top-ranked “AA” schools in NEPSAC basketball and Pomfret knew they needed to compete at a high level throughout and do the little things (rebound, take care of the ball, execute, etc.) well against a talented and well-coached opponent. Worcester blitzed us early and got out to a fast 10-0 lead. Our defense wasn’t where it needed to be, but we corrected and when we realized we could make things difficult for them our confidence grew on both ends. After only scoring 4 points in the first quarter, we settled down offensively and forced Worcester to defend. They continued their hot shooting early and this allowed them to pull ahead at the half by a score of 40-18.
Although we were disappointed with the start, our compete level increased in the second quarter and we challenged the team to raise it even more during the third quarter. We did just that, and held Worcester to 15 points while scoring 18 of our own. We continued to increase our work rate and intensity in the fourth quarter as we once again put up 18 points while holding Worcester to 12. With 3:30 left in the game, we were down by 9 and had a shot to take it down to 6 just rim out. We battled to the end but came up short, 54-67.
Sel Gonzalez and Tay Guirantes both scored 16 points, and both had double-digit rebounds on the day (Sel with 13 and Tay with 14). McKinley White was a presence inside and her ability to box out allowed her teammates to rebound well throughout. Molly Vincent didn’t score on the day, but she had 9 boards and played with poise on the offensive end. Grace Bullied scored 7 points in a variety of ways and was strong on the offensive glass throughout the game while also providing us with a physical presence in the paint when we needed it. Brooke Zahansky and Alba Samu were very effective defensively and pulled down a number of offensive and defensive rebounds. Teagan O’Hara continues to bring energy to the group and her good communication anchored our transition D in the 3rd and 4th quarters. Michaele Nsubuga gave us a spark in the first half and helped us get two important stops that lead to transition baskets. The team’s overall energy was at a high level in the second half and we thank Laila Travers, Bella Goldman, and Colin Kroll for their constant encouragement of their teammates.
Pomfret Scorers: Sel Gonzalez: 16; Tay Guirantes: 16; McKinley White: 10; Grace Bullied: 7; Alba Samu: 3; Brooke Zahansky: 2.
By Patrick Burke

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