POMFRET — Dec. 16, at the Deerfield Holiday Tournament, Deerfield beat Pomfret School, 72-56.
Coach Patrick Burke said: “We were excited to test ourselves against a talented Class A opponent, but didn’t know a ton of specific information heading into the game.”
In the first quarter five Pomfret players, Mia Fuller, Tyler Dendy, Brooke Zahansky, Grace Bullied, and Alba Samu, scored, while Ari Centeno and Lulu Ditenhafer were instrumental on the defensive end. Deerfield’s hot shooting continued in the second quarter. Pomfret got strong minutes from Victoria Dervisheva in the second quarter, but the Griffins’ offensive output slowed down.
Pomfret’s second half went well as some strong defensive plays from Tyler, Brooke, Grace, and Lulu resulted in easy baskets for Mia, Brooke, and Alba. Grace Bullied was injured and that allowed Deerfield’s # 14 to control the paint. Lulu, Tyler, Ari, Victoria, and Brooke battled on the boards and when Pomfret rebounded well they were able to take advantage of Pomfret’s offensive possessions. Linda Done made her debut and she gave strong defensive minutes while providing good movement on the offensive end. Tyler, Mia, and Alba lead our fourth quarter scoring.
All in all the Griffins’ second half performance was solid (winning the second half 33-29), but Deerfield’s 12 made three pointers were just a bit too much for to overcome.
Earlier in the tournament Pomfret beat Brewster, 51-50.
Burke said: “We wanted to start strong and we were able to do so through some good defensive work and dynamic offensive play from Tyler Dendy and Mia Fuller.
"Brooke Zahansky, Alba Samu, Lulu Ditenhafer, and Ari Centeno gave us great minutes on defense and our rebounding allowed us to have a 20-18 lead at the end of the first.”
In the second quarter, he said, Victoria Dervisheva and Linda Done were sparks on both ends during this quarter, and Pomfret lead 31-30 at halftime.
The third quarter ended tied, 40-40.
He said the fourth quarter was very competitive with some good defending and shot making.
Tyler knocked down two big threes while Brooke had a great “and 1” to give Pomfret a five-point lead with under 3:00 minutes remaining.
Brewster responded well and cut the lead to 1 with under a minute remaining. A strong defensive play from Brewster resulted in an offensive opportunity for them and after a scramble under the rim, Brewster was able to take a one- point lead.
With less than 15 seconds on the clock, Mia pushed the ball forward and finished high off the glass while being fouled! Up 1 with five seconds left, Mia was at the line and though her free throw rimmed out, Lulu grabbed the offensive rebound sealing our victory.
Versus St. Paul’s Pomfret
 won by a score of 58-38.
Burke said Pomfret started strong and got off to a 10-0 lead. Mia knocked down three 3s during the first quarter while Tyler and Brooke also finished strong opportunities at the rim. St. Paul’s fought back, but Pomfret got needed defensive stops after good individual efforts from Ari, Lulu, and Alba. Ari and Lulu were specifically strong defensively while Alba, Brooke, and Tyler were strong on the boards. Pomfret had a 17-12 lead at the end of the first.
Pomfret stayed strong and it was Pomfret in the lead 32-25 at the half.
At half, coach Mumford talked about the importance of “playing to our level, and we used the third quarter to do just that,” Burke said.
By the end of the third quarter, Pomfret lead 45-31.
Burke said: “We maintained our lead throughout the fourth quarter, and pushed it out to 20 as Tyler, Mia, Brooke, and Alba attacked the rim and made shots. We played good defense, rebounded well, and finished the game with a 58-38 win.”
By Patrick Burke

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