Sang Lee
PROVIDENCE HIGH -- Fans of Providence High girls' basketball team left
the school gym on Monday happy, although some may have departed with
slightly sore necks.
In the first round of the fifth annual Pioneer Shootout, Providence
and St. Genevieve combined for 63 turnovers in a game which at times
resembled a rugby match for its nonstop running and reversing of
possession.
But when the dust cleared, the Pioneers were left standing with a
76-56 victory.
"We were trying to run, run, run," St. Genevieve Coach Patrick
Palmeter said. "I like to run in this gym because it's a short floor. But
we've had sloppy play to begin our year."
Palmeter's game plan played right into the hands of the Pioneers. A
team known for their fastbreak style of play, Providence pounced on the
Valiants early and jumped out to an 11-0 lead.
The closest St. Genevieve (2-2) could get to the Pioneer lead was
seven points.
But it's not exactly like the Pioneers were kicking dirt into the
faces of the Valiants. Both teams struggled on offense and were generous
with turnovers.
"This was a terrible game," first-year Providence Coach Cary Many
said. "We were too much in a hurry to go nowhere. We were trying to press
things and were making poor decisions." But to his team's credit,
Providence (2-1) did have some positives.
Six-foot Michelle Pantaleo was a force in the paint, out sizing and
outplaying all Valiant post players by scoring 19 points and grabbing a
game-high 14 rebounds.
The tallest player on the court for St. Genevieve was 5-9 Ariana
Cosio.
Pioneer guard Selina Tech showed her long-range abilities as she hit
four three-pointers in 17 attempts. She finished with 20 points.
The Pioneer team put up a record 32 three-point attempts.
"I'm happy with a win, but we should've played better than that," Many
said.
The star of the game was Valiant Kate Decastro. She scored a game-high
25 points.
"I think [our team] played pretty well. We kept pace with
[Providence]. But we just couldn't stop them on defense," Palmeter said.
BOX SCORE
St. Genevieve 13 15 17 11 -- 56
Providence 22 20 22 12 -- 76
ST. GENEVIEVE -- Decastro 25, Tateo 12, Arahr 10, Alibutod 5, Rosca 2,
Aticuza 2.
* Three-pointers: Decastro 3, Arahr.
PROVIDENCE -- Tech 20, Pantaleo 19 and 14 rebounds, Tabrizi 10,
Estreller 9, Guzman 6, Bouldoukian 5, Arboleda 3, Campbell 2, Singsong 2.
* Three-pointers: Tech 4, Arboleda, Bouldoukian, Estreller.
