By , Special to JTNews
Northwest Yeshiva 38, Heritage Christian 22
When the teams came onto the court, everything smelled of a mismatch. The Eagles were older, much bigger and most of them had a year of varsity experience. Hot shooting by Daphne Davis and Channa Adatto gave the 613s the 11—6 lead after one period.
“I thought it was a fluke. Heritage was in shock and I was afraid of being optimistic,” said Coach Jed Davis.
But playing some of the best man-to-man defense of the year, Yeshiva took the Eagles out of their game. Rebekah Azose hit consecutive 3s and added a two, giving the JV a 10-point lead going into the locker room. In the 3rd period, the 613s built the lead to 20, holding Heritage scoreless for the entire period. But the Eagles cut the lead to 12 in the 4th with an effective press. Key baskets by Daphne Davis, Rosalyn Barber and Rebekah Azose kept the lead safe.
“This team struggled all the way to mid-January,” said Davis. “After the first game of the season, which we won, the team was riddled by injuries, sickness and untimely life events. They also, by far, have had the toughest schedule of any of the basketball teams. It all started to turn around at Seattle Lutheran. We lost by 20 the first time around but by only 3 on Tuesday. They are healthy, confident and have come together as a team. The key move was putting Daphne top point guard. She continues to grow at this position. She pushes the ball up fast, sees the court and her crossover allows her to dribble out of a jam. And the outside shooting of Rebekah and Chana has been outstanding.”
The game also was the first time a JV team (4—9) has taken on a varsity team and it is the first time a JV has beaten a Varsity opponent.