For BVP, Pride is alive and well
Freshman Maddax Zednik refuses to let obstacles stand in her way of contributing on the court
PROVIDENCE — Saturday happened to be Senior Day for the St. Patrick’s School hoopsters at the UCAP Collaborative gymnasium, and the Padres obviously wanted to make the most of it.
Still, a junior proved the heroine during the Division III tilt, pouring in a game-high 16 points to pace the Padres to a relatively simple 27-14 triumph over Blackstone Valley Prep.
Actually, St. Pat’s four seniors, including Amanda Solano, Shakira Dagraca, Paola Perez-Hidalgo and sister Amy, combined for only two buckets, but the hosts utilized another seven by sophomore Nacada Perry to improve to 2-13 in league action.
Late in the final stanza, it appeared the Pride was in store for a blowout defeat, yet freshman Maddax Zednik seemed determined to try to rally her teammates. She notched six points in the final 4:43, including four in the last 1:16, while recording five steals and a rebound to make the final score at least reasonable.
“Maddax lets nothing get in her way of achieving success, even though life has dealt her a tough hand,” stated head coach Jackie Greaves, whose club fell to 1-12 in D-III. “She doesn’t allow anything to affect her. She’s always the first at practice and always the last to leave. You have to love that kind of desire and edication.”
Freshman teammate Mercy Oyedele mustered three points, while junior Nia Vanstroy and senior Dalayisha Moore had two and classmate Janasiti Moore posted one on a freebie.
The Padres burned BVP for most of the first half, rushing out to a 17-4 cushion, and the Pride didn’t help itself in the final session with five turnovers in the initial 72 seconds.
Greaves’ bunch, however, settled itself; Vanstroy nailed a 12-footer with just 3:45 elapsed to slice the deficit to 19-6, yet the hostesses went on an 8-2 surge in the span of 6:55 to take the 25-8
cushion and in essence seal it.
Zednik, though, continued to battle, canning a short jumper, then a 16-footer before landing a one-hander in the key for the final basket with 23.9 ticks left.
“I don’t think we’ve mastered the kind of intensity we’re going to need yet,” Greaves said while preparing her kids for the bus ride home. “We have to come out determined to play a full 32 minutes with all-out intensi- ty, but we’re not quite there yet.
“I have to say St. Patrick’s played outstanding defense; they really got their hands in the lanes and in our faces and disrupted our passing.”
BLACKSTONE VALLEY PREP (14) – Janasiti DaSilva 0 1-2 1, Dalayisha Moore 1 0-0 2, Kay-lee Mendez 0 0-2 0, Mercy Oyedele 1 1-3 3, Kenya Monteiro 0 0-0 0, Maddax Zednik 3 0-0 6, Nia Vanstroy 1 0-0 2, Ibby Adelani 0 0-0 0, Paige Williamson 0 0-0 0, Malena Fisher 0 0-0 0, Tolu Adelani 0 0-0 0, Nailea Colon 0 0-0 0, Jenett Sosa 0 0-0 0, Blessing Oyedele 0 0-0 0, Ashley Estrada 0 0-0 0; totals 6 2-9 17.
ST. PATRICK’S (27) – Moeisha Joseph 7 2-4 16, Amanda Solano 0 0-0 0, Shakira DaGraca 0 0-5 0, Paola Perez-Hidalgo 1 0-0 2, Amy Hidalgo 1 0-0 2, Nacada Perry 3 0-0 7, Izzy Arnaut 0 0-0 0; totals 12 2-9 27.