By Meghan Foley
Hometown Weekly Sports Reporter
Varsity girls’ basketball ended last week with a 5–0 record after defeating Walpole in overtime on December 23rd and Westwood in regulation on the 30th.
Last year, the Rockets lost to Walpole 27–34 but were the first to defeat them this year, 59–56. On the overtime win, head coach Lindsay Miller said: “We were led by Eva Andrews (18pts, 14 boards, 7 blocks) and Hannah Levine (10pts, 7 rebounds), along with some clutch defense and free throws.”
The Rockets did not play the Westwood Wolverines last year, who were 14–6 that season and 2–1 before this matchup; last year the Rockets were 11–9 and were already 4–0 before this game.
After a 26–17 first half, the Rockets opened the third quarter with a layup by Captain Dani Deroian, who later made a steal on defense in the Westwood end and sent the ball to junior Lacey Williams for a layup. On one play, Captain Eva Andrews was able to rebound her own shot in a crowd of Westwood defenders to make it 38–20, and on another, sophomore Paige Moyer made a steal in the defensive end. Fans were excited when soon after, junior Aislin Flaherty also made a steal on defense and brought the ball down for a successful layup on which she was fouled, giving her a foul shot.
Nearing the end of the third quarter, Rockets on the bench began a countdown to warn their teammates that the shot clock was running out. The ball ended up with Captain Noa Richman at the top of the three-point line, where she released the shot just in time, the buzzer going off while the ball was in the air. When it went in, the bench was ecstatic and the Needham section of the crowd got on its feet. When the quarter ended a minute or two later, Rockets were still congratulating Richman on her basket.
Following the game against her alma mater, Coach Miller said: “Needham built a 30-point lead at Westwood in the third quarter and got everyone on the bench big minutes in the win today.”
In the fourth quarter, Paige Moyer made a good rebound under the net which she was able to pass out of the fray. On another play, Lacey Williams drew the defense when she powered into the key before passing it to sophomore Sophia Camozzi for a three-point attempt, which Moyer and junior Izzy Marino fought against a Wolverine to try to rebound.
The Rockets walked away with a 52–36 win, and after the game Coach Miller provided these statistics: Hannah Levine earned 19 points and 5 steals, Dani Deroian scored 10 points and made 4 steals, and Eva Andrews made 7 points, 14 rebounds, and 5 blocks.
The Rockets’ next game will be tomorrow at Wellesley High School at 6:30. The Wellesley Raiders are currently 2–4 and lost to Needham 25–62 last year. Then on Tuesday the 13th at 4:30, the Rockets will be at Milton High School’s Copeland Field House to face the Wildcats (4–2) after beating them 47–33 and 67–40 last year. The next day, they will be traveling to Bishop Feehan to seek revenge against the Shamrocks (4–1) in the McIntyre Gym at 6:30, having lost to them 53–64 and 51–81 last year. Needham’s full schedule can be found at: www.arbiterlive.com.
