Monday,
January 6, 2014
By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer
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Emily McGovern scored 10 points for River Dell, which improved to 5-1 on the season with a 45-21 win over Cresskill at the Ray Long Classic. |
RUTHERFORD – Without superior size, speed, or star power, the River Dell girls’ basketball team is a true throwback; one that relies on working the ball around and moving without it on offense, while holding teams to one shot per possession on the other end of the floor.
For the Lady Hawks to be successful, getting off to a good start and having all five players on the court contributing in some way are paramount. Facing a young Cresskill team on Sunday in the opening game of the Ray Long Classic, the Hawks followed that blueprint to the letter.
All five starters scored during a 15-0 run to start the game and River Dell cruised the rest of the way to a 45-21 triumph at Felician College in Rutherford.
River Dell held a 6-0 lead midway through the first quarter and then quickly bumped it advantage up to a sizeable margin. Jeana Cappolla and Kayleen Melvin hit three-pointers sandwiched around a conventional three-point play from Emily McGovern to make it 15-0.
“Winning the game the way we did gives us a big confidence boost,” said McGovern. “We played pretty well and got off to a really good start. Every time that we’re playing together, we’re trying to become a better team. It was nice that we got into a flow right from the beginning and that carried us throughout the game.”
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Emily Wells had 7 points for Cresskill, which is now 3-3. |
The Hawks were not only efficiently offensively, but also displayed a disciplined defense that refused to let anyone from Cresskill drive to the basket. They held the Cougars without a field for the first 11:26 of the game. Emily Wells finally broke that stretch with a basket inside. By the point though, the game was well in hand with River Dell taking a 29-10 lead at the half.
“We had a great first half and really played tough defensively,” said Melvin. “All week we’ve practiced our press break a lot and have to anticipate a lot more because we don’t have the fastest team. (Cresskill’s) press was a lot like ours so that gave us a little advantage because we had an idea of what they wanted to do.”
The lead never dipped below 17 in the second half as River Dell improved to 5-1 on the season. Melvin and Christine Woods each had 10 points while McGovern chipped in with nine and Wozniak had six. Wells was the high scorer for Cresskill (3-3) with seven points.
The Hawks are off to a good start with five wins in their first six games, but their road to a league title really begins this week as they travel to play Westwood on Tuesday before a showdown at home against Pascack Hills on Thursday. Although the Hawks are playing well right now, they are far from complacent when it comes to their long-term goals.
“I think it’s a little soon to tell of what type of team we’ll end up being,” added Melvin. “We’re working really hard every single day and working together to be a balanced team. If we keep working hard, I think we have a chance at a league title and going further in the counties and states than we did last year.”
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