72°
WESTON, Conn. Weston Highs girls basketball team rallied from a 19-point second half deficit to make it interesting Friday against Bunnell High School before falling short, 46-36, and dropping to 0-4 on the season.
Anna Mahoney scored 18 points to lead Weston, while Taylor Swanson had seven. Bunnell smothered leading scorer Ellie Martin, who had five points and just one goal. She grabbed 15 rebounds.
We have to play better in the first half, Weston coach Dan Rosen said. I was happy to see some good things in the second half. Our kids play hard, and they never give up. But we need to become a better ball-handling and passing team if we want to win games against good competition.
Swanson, who scored all her points in the fourth quarter, kick-started Westons late rally with a three-pointer to trim Bunnells lead to 34-21 with 7 minutes remaining. The Trojans, who forced 10 turnovers in the final quarter, got within 40-34 when Martin hit two free throws with 1:48 left. Bunnell missed the front end of a one-and-one with 1:41 left, but Weston turned the ball over on its next possession. Bunnells Jessica Badgowicz (16 points) hit six free throws in the final 1:22 to ice the victory.
Weston committed 23 turnovers and was also plagued by poor shooting. In the first half, the Trojans shot 4-for-20 from the field and committed 14 turnovers as Bunnell jumped out to a 14-2 lead after the first quarter. Bunnell led 26-9 at halftime. Bunnell was ahead 32-13 with nearly three minutes to play in the third quarter.
I thought when we were down six with the ball that we had a shot, Rosen said. Its tough for our kids, because were not real deep. We didnt want to have to play an aggressive defense. We had to press, and that takes a lot out of our players.
Its hard for Weston when teams deny Martin, a senior and one of the best players in the league. Every time she turned around Friday, a Bunnell player was in her face. They were doubling her and being very physical with her, Rosen said. They did a nice job of denying her the ball.
Weston hosts Wilton on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Westport and receive free news updates.
