Our 20th Regular Season Win

Our 20th Regular Season Win !!

February 12, 2004 at Lynn English HS

Classical Girls Basketball Team has Undefeated Season
By Jonathan Weiner, The Daily Item of Lynn, Friday, February 13, 2004

Lynn --     Only Lynn English stood in the way of the Lynn Classical girls hoop team achieving a perfect 20-0 regular season mark. The Bulldogs did stay with the Rams for the first ten minutes of the game, yet the Rams utilized their speed as well as taking advantage of missed Bulldogs shots to bounce past English, 72-35, Thursday night at Lynn English.
        The Rams, who had clinched their first-ever Northeastern Conference title on Tuesday, notched their first 20-win season ever, while English ends its year at 5-13 (5-15).
        "It's a very special feeling," stated Classical coach Gene Constantino about the unbeaten season. "That tells exactly what the seniors on this team are made of. What they did was truly special, and it's a credit to all the hard work that they did for four years."
         English had the lead but once (5-3 on a three-pointer by Marki Conway), but though Classical edged ahead, the Bulldogs stayed right on the Rams' heels. Classical held a 19-8 margin midway through the first half, yet a three by guard Georgia Saltzman brought English to within 19-11 with just six minutes remaining. A three-point play by Monique Lee (bucket and foul) increased the lead once more to 11, but Conway swished another three-pointer from the top of the key to lower the deficit back to eight (22-14).
        Unfortunately for English, Classical outscored the Bulldogs, 18-2 (including a nifty coast-to-coast move leading to a layup by Takeya Faison after stealing the ball in the Rams end), throughout the rest of the half, including a 14-0 run to give Classical a 40-16 lead at the half. Lee, who finished with a game-high 21, netted 15 of her total in the first 16 minutes.
        "It was a game for the first 10-12 minutes, but they just kept hitting their shots," said English coach Kathy Toups of the Rams. "They went up by 15 and then 20 as a result."
        Classical went on a 16-3 tear to begin the second half (a 34-5 run encompassing a dozen minutes), before English went on a 9-0 run of its own. The Bulldogs were able to take advantage of several Classical mistakes (sloppy passing, turnovers, and fouls), and the Bulldogs did close the gap to 58-30 late in the contest. Aida Gomez (four) and Brandy Sucharewicz (three) paced English during that streak.
        Yet Classical's bench opened another solid 14-0 run, with Tameka Brown contributing eight (a pair of three-pointers among three field goals), before the Bulldogs closed with the game's last five points.
        Paula McGinn and Mary Baldini each scored nine points for the Rams, while Jessica French led English with nine. Guard Shenera Ellis contributed eight.
       "I was proud to see the younger kids play well and do well in meaningful minutes," added Constantino, as he saw 11 of his players score at least two points on the evening.