Tioga County Sports ReportNEWARK VALLEY — Kam Short registered a double-double to lead Newark Valley to a hard-fought, 50-42, win over Maine-Endwell here Tuesday night in non-league girls basketball action.
The Cardinals finished off the regular season with a 16-4 record.
“The girls did a really good job tonight, sticking together and overcoming a little adversity to get a really good, quality win," said Newark Valley coach Greg Schweiger.
"Maine-Endwell was very motivated tonight, and they are an athletic and aggressive team," he noted. "They gave us all we could handle and they are better than their record indicates so beating them was not easy."
The Cardinals were also a bit short-handed, playing without Adriana Finta, but their depth paid off.
"Things got trickier because our point guard was out with an illness," said Schweiger. "We also got into some foul trouble which shortened our rotation.
"Haven Aylesworth stepped into a starting role tonight and played a very solid game," noted Schweiger. "Richie (Adrianna Rich) helped us out by having another nice shooting night, and Anika Smith came in and did what she has done all season, and that is provided us with some great disruptive defense.
"Even playing with limited minutes, Kam Short registered another double-double and her sister Liv gave us a real spark in the scoring column in the second half," he said. "Aubrey Kwiatkowski did a fantastic job sliding over to the point guard position and piloting our team.
"This game had a playoff feel to it, which made it great preparation for the postseason," added Shcweiger.
Aubrey Kwiatkowski and Arianna Rich each knocked down a 3-pointer, and scored five points apiece, and Haven Aylersowrth also scored five points to help Newark Valley to a 15-12 lead after the opening eight minutes.
Both offenses slowed in the second quarter. Rich canned another 3-pointer, and the Cardinals had a 7-6 edge in scoring to take a 22-18 lead into the halftime locker room.
Livia Short scored five points in the third quarter, and Rich drained her third 3-pointer of game as Newark Valley used a 12-9 advantage to carry a 34-27 lead into the final eight minutes.
Kam Short scored seven points, including making 3 of 4 free throws down the stretch, and Rich added five points as Newark Valley nailed down the win with a 16-15 scoring edge in the closing stanza.
Rich led Newark Valley with 16 points, including four 3-pointers, and three rebounds, while Kam Short had 11 points, 10 rebounds, and five blocked shots, and Aylesworth had nine points, seven rebounds, seven assists, three steals, and one blocked shot.
Livia Short added seven points, seven rebounds, three assists, and one blocked shot, while Kwiatkowski chipped in with five points, boards, three assists, and two steals, and Anika Smith recorded three steals.
Harper Eagen led M-E with 16 points, and Kaylee Hurba added 11 points.
Newark Valley now awaits word on their opening-round opponent in the upcoming Section IV playoffs.
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IN PHOTO: Newark Valley's Adriana Rich. ... TCSR STOCK PHOTO.
