Beacon girls’ basketball wins Capital Classic Hollywood Diner bracket
Although the season did not start the way the Beacon girls’ basketball team wanted it to, players ended on a high note by being crowned champions of the Capital Classic Hollywood Diner bracket with a 15-8 win over Caravel Academy Feb. 15.
“Over the course of the season, we've done a much better job playing basketball on the defensive end,” said Beacon coach Paul Weisengoff. “First game of the year, we gave up 39 points, and we've gotten progressively better; part of it was just utilizing the face guard on usually the best player for the other team.”
Face guarding is exactly what it sounds like – standing in front of the other player in an effort to deny, deny, deny. Kenzie Kupa, Kelly Neustadter, Anna Neustadter and Adryanna Savage drew the difficult assignments against the Buccaneers.
“This game was very intense; you always have to fight through, you never know what the end could be,” Anna Neustadter said. “We were up five at the end with one minute left, but that does not mean the game is over.”
The older Neustadter said positive reinforcement on the bench was the key to meeting the moment. A shining example of that positivity is Beacon sixth-grader Aaliyah Fruchtman, who took home the sportsmanship award in the bracket.
“I think sportsmanship is important because it's a good attitude, and if someone's being rude or saying bad things, it's better not to say it back and to not carry it on,” Fruchtman said.
Fruchtman has some pretty big shoes to fill next year, as Beacon eighth-grader Maggie May will move on to the high school ranks with a tournament MVP trophy to her name.
“We've gotten better – we've seen that – so I think we did come out here and were like, ‘We can do this if we put our minds to it and if we try our best,’ and I think we did,” May said. “There were some rough times where some girls got upset with the calls, but in the end, I think we powered through, and we got there together.”
May noted that Beacon was able to deal with a large turnover from last year due to graduation and a third middle school coming in, but she thinks the future remains bright for the school on Route 24.
“I think all these girls were up to the challenge, and I think it was an amazing year to be in eighth grade because you see all these girls going out throughout the year, and you feel confident that they'll do just as well next year,” May said.
“It's not about starting; it's about finishing, and they got better,” Weisengoff said. “We love to win, but I don't stress winning; I stress improvement because, ultimately, it's still middle school.”
