Smithtown Christian girls' dream season ends
Pierson's Sofia Mancino (5) looks to get around Smithtown Christian's Dorothy Pierre (25) in the first quarter during the Suffolk High Schools girls basketball Class C finals between Smithtown Christian and Pierson on Friday Feb 15, 2019 at Centereach High School. Credit: Bob Sorensen
This season was different for the Smithtown Christian girls basketball team.
A year after not having a varsity team because of enrollment and two years after losing every game, it entered Sunday's state class D Southeast Regional final with a winning record.
But this underdog story was no match for its powerhouse opponent, undefeated South Kortright. Smithtown Christian lost, 65-35, at Floyd L. Maines Arena in Binghamton.
“We knew this would be a challenging game,” Smithtown Christian coach John Vaeth said. “But we didn’t give up. We’ve been a varsity team for one year and we beat some quality teams. The girls worked really hard and played until the last minute.”
Eighth-grader Abigail Loiacono led Smithtown Christian with 20 points.
“When push comes to shove, Abigail doesn’t back down,” Vaeth said. “She controls the offense, scores and sets up other players for the assist. Some of the bigs today were 6-feet and she still drove right toward them.”
Senior forward Dorothy Pierre added seven points and center Jane McCabe totaled 14 rebounds.
South Kortright improved to 24-0.
Although the game didn’t favor the Knights, Vaeth is certain this won’t be the last time Smithtown Christian makes it to the finals.
“We had a great season,” Vaeth said. “In this game we never backed down. I’m hoping this is the start to a new and better program.”
