John Jay Goes into Break with Win Over Roosevelt

On Wednesday December 20, John Jay hosted Roosevelt and were looking to improve on their 1-4 record. The holiday season upon us, a loss would mean a momentum change would have to wait until all the presents were opened. So the Wolves were definitely hoping for the right kind of wrap.

“A win before Christmas,” said Coach Matt Gallagher after his team’s 52-8 victory. “It’s a good way to go into the break.”

A good read began the good cheer too. Sela Halaifonua deceptively dribbled up court and spotted Brooke Habinowski all alone. Under the basket, the senior took a step and had the easy layup.

Next, Halaifonua was on the receiving end. Deferring on the dribble up court, Jane Brennan lofted ahead to the junior, and she scored the layup.

Roosevelt did briefly keep it a game, though. Joel Collazo-Cousin hit a jumper, and Christina Kibassa-Maliba’s put back made it a 7-4 game with 1:49 left in the first.

But that’s the closest the visitors would get, and Brennan began the separation. Space on the baseline, the junior kicked her spurs and dropped a floater at 1:35.

Then Halaifonua went back to the beginning. All cool above the key again, she honed in on Jordan Kauftheil this time, and on the layup, the junior increased the lead to 11-4.

A minute left in the first, Charlotte Omin did double duty for her team. After a Kauftheil miss, she kept the ball alive on the boards, and coming open in the corner, Omin buried a three for a ten point lead.

Brennan and Halaifonua weren’t done with the quarter, though. Brennan got the steal on the pressure, and Halaifonua hop-skipped a teardrop to beat the buzzer.

Jazzmyn Mills did sink two from the line to make it 16-6, but the Wolves would soon break the game. Up first, Halaifonua was set to chill mode again to get her team back on track. She took a pass back from Riley Pastore and calmly hit a triple.

19-6 now, Omin did Deja vu too. Crashing Natalie Ellrodt’s miss, she grabbed the board, put the ball on the floor and sidestepped the layup for a 21-6 lead.

Of course, Ellrodt could finish too, and Halaifonua obviously had no problem lending a hand. Halaifonua spotted her teammate ahead, and Ellrodt stepped into another layup.

A 23-6 halftime score in the books, the second team got a little screen time. Off the bench first and on the perimeter passing game, Abby Armour quickly got rid of the ball for Omin, and her three made it a 40-7 game.

Not done, the guard was on point to the close of the quarter. Armour brought the ball up and hit an open Pastore in the corner. The shot off the mark, the junior still was doing it the John Jay way, and the future went double time when Avery Bisignano got a handle too.

The sophomore guard kept her head up, dribbled out of trouble and didn’t panic the pace, according to Ellrodt. “She was able to see the court, run the plays and just stay calm,” beamed Ellrodt.

She also didn’t shy away on the boards. Bisignano stood tall among the giants, pulled down a defensive rebound, and weaving her way up court, she gave Habinowski and Mary Murphy the chance to work a little magic. The ball eventually getting to Habinowski, Murphy went on the move and took a touch pass for a short jumper in the paint.

42-8 at the beginning of the fourth, the rookie also got on the scoresheet when a long rebound was tapped back. Just inside the foul line, Bisignano gathered and dropped the jumper.

Not a bad time to step up, most of last year’s team got to see that the passed torch has the chance to shine pretty bright, and had their old coach fondly remembering Christmas past. “It’s nice that they come back and hopefully they miss it,” Gallagher concluded.