Cape advances to second round of girls’ basketball tournament
Playing in the final home game of their Cape girls’ basketball careers, seniors Faith Re, Havyn Greene and Hayden Hudson made sure the event will be prime reflection material, as the No. 11 Vikings advanced to the second round of the state tournament with a 71-55 win over No. 22 Conrad.
“I think that we played really well; we played together, we moved the ball well and we kept mistakes at a minimum,” Re said.
Re helped to facilitate an offense that took advantage of the man defense Conrad wanted to play against them. With fast ball movement, well-timed cuts and selflessness, Cape jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter. Hudson scored 11 of the Vikings’ first 15 points as the home team claimed the first quarter 23-10. She finished with 14 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. It was her sixth double-double of the season and Cape’s 18th double-double of the season. Hudson ended the game leading in assists with five and steals with three.
Conrad settled things down in the second quarter, trimming the lead to 31-24 before Cape coach Pat Woods called a timeout.
“We were going really fast, made a lot of mistakes, and I think it was just important for us to control the ball and what we can control,” Re said.
Re finished the contest with 13 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Cape opened the third quarter with a 37-24 edge, and it wasn’t long before the Amalia Fruchtman show took center stage. The junior scored 14 of the Vikings' 15 third-quarter points and, for the most part, had to cover Conrad’s best player and her travel ball teammate, senior Eva Walker.
“When you get out on that court and you're playing against someone you know, you just go as hard as you can,” Fruchtman said. “When they fall down, you pick them up and you go right back at them.”
Fruchtman ended up scoring 20 points in the second half to lead all scorers with 32 points. She filled up the other columns to the tune of a team-leading four blocked shots and was second on the team in rebounds with nine, assists with four and steals with two.
“In the past few games, as a team, we've been sharing the ball really well and we've all been shooting really well,” Fruchtman said.
Cape’s lead swelled to 52-36 after the third quarter.
Greene was another Viking who helped populate the stat sheet. The senior tied Hudson for the team lead with 10 rebounds, scored four points, blocked two shots, had two helpers and stole the rock once.
“When we get the ball in and out, we create open shots for everyone,” Greene said. “I think our hustle was really great tonight, and we had some very good looks.”
A fast-paced, back-and-forth fourth quarter kept the Vikings’ lead at 16, as the girls booked a second-round appointment at 6 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 26, at Sanford School in the second round of the DIAA tournament.
“We look forward to the next game,” Greene said. “It is going to be even harder against better competition, so we just have to give it our all – 10 times better – to pull out the W in the next game.”
“Any chance we get to play is a blessing, and I try to play as hard as I can when I'm on the court, regardless of it's my first or last game,” Re said.
