HOLYOKE — Heading into Monday’s contest against Hampshire Regional, the Holyoke girls basketball team was on a three-game skid and looking for anything that could get it trending in the right direction.
The Purple Knights found the boost they needed, relying on their strong outside shooting in the second half to cruise to a 62-45 win over the Raiders at John ‘Jinx’ O’Connor Gymnasium.
“I think coming off the three-game losing streak really pushed us to do way better, because we know as a team we can accomplish many things,” Holyoke’s Ashley Vazquez said. “I think we did that tonight and it’s a step forward in the right direction.”
Everybody contributed for the Purple Knights in their victory; six players scored eight points or more, and five different players knocked down at least one 3-pointer, one of the key reasons that Holyoke’s offense was clicking.
Both Holyoke head coach Andrea Enright and sophomore Amilyan Treadwell attributed the team’s win to a productive practice on Sunday. Enright said that the coaching staff asked the team to focus on small improvements each player could make, and she saw those adjustments show up in Monday’s win.
“[Sunday’s] practice, we had one-on-one check ins, [where we talked about] here’s what you’re doing well, and here’s the one thing for us to be successful that we need from you. They really focused on each individual thing that we gave them to work on. I think that was huge,” Enright said.
The Raiders stayed within striking distance in the first half, trailing 29-18 at halftime. Head coach Dan Labrie said he was proud of his team’s fight throughout the entirety of the contest.
“We knew it was gonna be a battle. They have a lot of great outside shooters and they have a lot of speed. I think we worked on a lot of things that we improved on tonight. That’s what we’re about this year, we’re working on getting better every game,” Labrie said. “We did a lot of good things, and going into the half I was very excited on how they played in the first half.”
The Purple Knights got into a bit of foul trouble in the first half with their defense, but were still able to force several turnovers to kickstart their offense. Emma Czarniecki was a monumental part of Hampshire’s offense, especially in the first half; she finished the game with 15 points, 11 of which came in the first half. But despite her strong performance, Holyoke’s 3-point shooting was unmatched. The Purple Knights finished the contest with 11 triples, knocking down six of those in the third quarter alone, which was when they really pulled away.
The Purple Knights’ chemistry was on full display Monday, as the club showed its passing ability and found the open player. Yamaya Perez in particular was consistently dishing the ball out to her teammates and setting them up for success. Anna Alicia and Vazquez led the team in scoring with 11 points apiece, with Treadwell right behind them with 10 points of her own.
“Everybody stepped up and, yeah, the close games are fun, but the games where everybody contributes is just as fun you know, because you want everyone to add to what we’re doing,” Enright said. “Everyone has a different role, and I think everybody stepped up tonight.”
Treadwell in particular was instrumental to the team’s defensive effort for Holyoke, grabbing board after board for the Purple Knights. On a team that doesn’t have as much height as some of their opponents, her contributions didn’t go unnoticed by her coach.
“She brings some toughness. We don’t have a lot of size, we don’t have a ton of toughness,” Enright said. “If you come in the paint when she’s being physical, you want to stay out of there. That helps us a lot.”
Holyoke improved to 6-3 on the season, getting back into the win column for the first time since beating West Springfield two weeks ago. Hampshire fell to 3-7 overall.