The Archbishop Molloy players had visions of Glens Falls dancing in their heads. And, for all intents and purposes, the Stanners were one of the favorites on paper in the CHSAA Class A state tournament as the top seed from the best league.
But on paper hasn’t meant much to Molloy this season and the book finally closed on the Stanners’ season Friday night. In another disappointing performance, Molloy fell to St. Mary’s, 54-46, in the CHSAA Class A state quarterfinals at Kellenberg HS in Uniondale, L.I.
“I honestly thought we had it,” senior point guard Marielle Duryea said of the tournament. “It kind of faded away, unfortunately.”
Molloy (12-16) led, 26-25, at halftime and didn’t even play its best basketball. But it didn’t get any better in the second half. The Stanners mustered just one field goal in the third quarter, a very difficult acrobatic layup by Duryea with 3:05 left.
“Marielle always plays hard – whether she’s playing well or not,” Molloy coach Tom Catalanotto said. “I wish that rubbed off.”
While Molloy wasn’t making baskets, St. Mary’s junior Maddie Jankowski was raining 3-pointers. The Queens native and transfer from St. Francis Prep had three triples in the third and six for the game. She finished with 20 points.
“She shot the lights out,” Duryea said.
And yet, Molloy was still very much in the game. An Elizabeth (Gurt) Lynch basket with 7:21 left in the game cut the St. Mary’s lead to just 35-32. But then the Gaels (19-8), who meet Sacred Heart (Buffalo) in the semifinals Saturday, went on a 9-1 run capped by yet another Jankowski 3 that put them up 44-33 with 4:15 left. The rest was academic.
“Defensively, we were very lazy,” said Duryea, who had six points. … “We weren’t attacking [on offense]. We had the seams, but no one was taking it to the basket.”
Binghamton-bound senior forward Kyra Aloizos had 14 points and Elise Lontos had 11 points for Molloy, which won the CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens Division I title two seasons ago, beating Christ the King twice in the process. The Stanners, mostly sophomores at the time, were a game away from Glens Falls then – as a ‘AA’ team. Better was expected from this group then.
“There were a handful of kids who really wanted it – I feel really bad for them,” said Catalanotto, who was hired two years ago after interim coach Dom Cecala wasn’t retained following the championship season. … “In practice this week, there was no sense of urgency. It just carried over to the game.”
Catalanotto has said his sights toward the future now. The Stanners junior varsity went to the CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens final this season.
“Our JV team is real good,” he said. “It’s gonna be great. I’m looking forward to it.”
But for the current senior class, one that tasted a championship before, it all came to a crashing end.
“I thought we were gonna go to Glens Falls this year,” Duryea said. “I really did.”