After back-to-back losing seasons, Marist girls basketball had a new mantra for this season: flush it.
So far, so good for the RedHawks, who won their own Class 4A regional on Feb. 20, beating TF South 65-36.
“It is that next-play mentality,” coach Renee Chimino said. “It’s 32 minutes long, there’s going to be mistakes and the other team is going to score points. Let’s flush it and move on to the next play.”
Sophomore Lily Porter had her freshman season cut short with a finger injury and said that mentality has resonated with her all season.
“It’s a game of mistakes, so you have to keep moving,” she said. “And that stuck with me throughout the year.
“Last year, I would mess up and it would hurt me, and I’d think about it the whole game. But this year, I’ve moved on and it has really helped improve not only my game, but my team as well.”
The RedHawks (24-8) began the game on a 14-0 run and limited the Red Wolves to just seven points in the first half.
Porter scored nine of her 21 points in the first quarter and finished with six rebounds. She has played a crucial role in the rise of the RedHawks.
“We’ve always known what Lily was capable of,” Chimino said. “It’s just a matter of when she’s going to take that step and I think she’s taken it this whole year.”
A point of emphasis of this team has been making the extra pass and getting everyone involved. Seven players scored for the Redhawks against the Red Wolves.
“We’re very good at sharing the ball,” senior Madison Vrdolyak said. “We want to share it as much as possible.”
Vrdolyak had 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists and four steals against TF South.
Olivia Cosme, a 5-foot-2 junior guard, added 12 points — all on 3-pointers — with four rebounds and four steals.
“I love playing with Livy. She is a shooter,” Porter said. “Whenever I get a rebound, I can always kick it to her.”
“She’s so resilient,” Chimino said. “She has that next-play mentality and she sees her teammates so well.”
Also getting involved in that sophomore group were Olivia Barsch with 11 points and four steals as well as Caroline Flynn with seven points and three steals.
Cosme was very excited about getting the RedHawks back to winning championships.
“It’s always been something I thought about since I was little,” she said. “I’ve watched the girls older than me achieve this and I’ve always wanted to do it, and we made it happen.”
“It was important for them to get this under their belt because they’re capable of so much,” Chimino said. “Sky is the limit for this group. It was nice to finally get that one.”