POMFRET — Heading into last week’s matchup against defending Class B champion Groton the Pomfret School girls’ basketball team knew they needed to play a full 32 minutes. Groton won 40-35.
Both teams were missing key contributors on the day to illness and injury (Molly Vincent and Brooke Zhansky were out), and this meant the game became a bit of a battle of attrition due to foul trouble and tired legs as the game progressed.
Pomfret got out to a strong start in the first and second quarters. The defense was scrappy and they made Groton uncomfortable both inside and out. The Griffins had a 21-16 lead at the half, but Groton came back strong in the third quarter to take a 28-27 lead into the decisive 4th quarter. It was a back and forth 4th, but Groton was able to make more shots and knock down free throws. Pomfret had good looks throughout the quarter, but the shots wouldn’t fall and the free-throw line was a struggle for us all game.
Tay Guirantes and McKinley White were Pomfret’s biggest offensive threats. Tay scored in a variety of ways while McKinley did strong work inside. Alba Samu and Teagan O’Hara knocked down important threes, while Grace Bullied picked up some big offensive rebounds and put-backs in both halves. While Sel Gonzalez’s shot didn’t want to fall for her she paced our team with 7 assists and did a great job of slowing down Groton’s score-first guard throughout. Michaela Nsubuga gave us strong minutes late in the first half and continues to do her job well. Pomfret missed shots and free throws today, but also could have locked in on defense a bit more in the fourth quarter.  Pomfret Scorers: Tay Guirantes: 15 points, McKinley White: 6 points, Grace Bullied: 4 points, Sel Gonzalez: 4 points, Alba Samu: 3 Points, Teagan O’Hara: 3 points.
By Patrick Burke

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