Perry to play in fourth straight district final

The Perry Pirates girls basketball team is sailing to a place they’ve been before.

For the fourth consecutive season, the Pirates have advanced to a district final.

In this season’s edition, No. 1 seed home team Perry defeated No. 7 Canton South, 47-27, in a Division II, Northeast District 1 semifinal on Feb. 24.

“I feel good. To win a district semifinal game by 20 points is not easy,” Perry coach Roy Infalvi Jr. said. “I told our girls overall, we played really well. I was happy with our progress. It’s just going to keep getting tougher. We have to keep working and stay ready.”

Perry improved to 20-5 and will play the Salem Quakers in the district final on Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. The Pirates have won 20 games in back-to-back seasons.

Perry’s first-half effort of 32 points topped a secondhalf skid of only 15 points.

In the opening minutes of the game, with the help of back-to-back 3-pointers by Elle Infalvi, Perry went ahead quickly 6-0. As it turned out, the Pirates never trailed.

Infalvi led all scorers with 11 points in the first half and finished with 16 points. It was a night to remember for Infalvi, as her third made 3-pointer of the game set the school record for made 3s in a single season (74). Infalvi exceeded a record she set

two seasons ago.

“It was pretty nice to get out to a hot start,” she said. “Especially the last three games I’ve been faceguarded and wasn’t shooting very well. That was definitely a motivator and I knew I was keeping my team in the game.”

The Pirates scored 16 points in both the first and second quarter, positioning themselves to lead 32-15 at the half.

In the third quarter, Perry hit a wall on the offensive end. A combination of missed shots and turnovers limited the Pirates to four points. However, the Perry defense held the Wildcats to seven points — resulting in a 34-22 safe lead

after three quarters.

“A few shots that normally fall didn’t fall. We did make some bad decisions as far as passes and the turnovers are uncharacteristic of us,” Roy Infalvi said. “Why we (had the turnovers), I don’t know. We’ll clean it up.”

Perry’s all-time leading scorer, Madyson Hacking, did not wait until the next game to clean up the mistakes.

Hacking left no doubt in the fourth quarter, helping the Pirates with eight of the team’s 10 points during a key opening quarter key. Hacking led all scorers with 17 points.

“I always bank my offense off of my defense,” Hacking said. “Getting steals, getting

that momentum, getting those great transitions … Those little buckets give a little motivation and a little energy. The next thing you know, everyone is scoring and it’s unstoppable.”

The Pirates have the opportunity to remain unstoppable and secure their fourth district championship in five seasons. Perry fell in the 2018 district final to Gilmour.

“We have had good players come through our system. Girls that work hard all the way through our middle school and high school. Yeah, we expect to be there but that’s because of the players we have and the work they put in. I’m really happy about that.”