Westhampton girls basketball team tops Smithtown West to repeat as Suffolk Class AA champion
Westhampton teammates celebrate after their 54-40 win over Smithtown West in the Suffolk County girls basketball Class AA final at Farmingdale State College on Sunday, March 9, 2025. Credit: James Escher
The Westhampton girls basketball team never flinched whenever Smithtown West rallied.
The No. 1 Hurricanes used a 17-point first quarter to take a lead they would never relinquish and beat No. 2 Smithtown West, 54-40, in the Suffolk Class AA final at Farmingdale State College on Sunday.
Senior forward Shannon Sweet led the Hurricanes with 16 points as they earned their second consecutive county title.
“It feels so great to be here again, especially with my sister and my best friends,” Sweet said. “We knew what we had to do.”
A three-point play by junior Alyssa Lorefice, who led the Bulls with 11 points, cut the Hurricanes’ double-digit lead to seven with 2:32 remaining, but junior guard Sandra Clarke made five free throws as the Hurricanes (22-1) pulled away.
“We’ve been in games like this before and have been at this stage. This isn’t new to us,” Clarke said. “We knew to just stay calm and composed.”
Sophomore guard Kate Sweet, Shannon’s sister, led the early charge that gave Westhampton a 17-8 lead after the first quarter.
“That was the main motivator and why we won,” said Kate, who finished with 13 points. “Once we come out strong, it sets the tone for the rest of the game. We can’t take our foot off the gas.”
Smithtown West (19-4) outscored Westhampton 8-4 in the second quarter to cut its deficit to 21-16. Jasmine Taylor scored six of her eight points in the third quarter as the Hurricanes built a 37-25 lead.
“We just knew we had to keep hustling and getting those loose balls whenever we could,” Shannon Sweet said.
Catherine Piccininni had 10 points for Smithtown West.
The Hurricanes’ victory comes during a tumultuous time for the local community. Westhampton Beach High School and Middle School were evacuated because of bomb threat calls Friday before wildfires spread rapidly in the area Saturday through Sunday.
“With everything the girls have had to deal with the past few days, they’ve remained so strong,” coach Katie Peters said. “It’s a victory within itself that they were able to come here today.”
“We came into this game wanting to bring happiness to our community after everything that happened,” Clarke added. “We used that to motivate us and help us win.”
The Hurricanes will face Nassau champion Baldwin (20-1) in the Long Island Class AA championship game at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Farmingdale State. Westhampton lost to East Meadow, 51-46, in last year’s title game.
“We know what it’s like to lose,” Kate Sweet said. “We want to prepare properly this time and come back stronger.”
