24 hours ago2 min read

LADY HAWKS WIN, TAKE DOWN LANCERS

Lady Hawks received their '24 championship rings before tip-off

Two of the best girls’ basketball programs in Western New York got together on Thursday night and battled to a familiar result.

The Cardinal O'Hara Lady Hawks recorded their 17th straight win against rival St. Mary's of Lancaster by a 77-66 final, and while the score was decided by 11 points the Lancers kept it very close throughout the contest. In fact, O’Hara led by just three and two points after the first and second quarters, respectively, and the Lancers made 14 three-point shots in the game – nine at halftime.

“(The Lancers) were shooting the lights out the ball in the first half,” coach Nick O’Neil said. “Mila Bissett is a hell of a player and Macey Kovach and Jada Mushat are balling too. Our team was trying to contain them, try to make the other kids score and make them score the majority of their points. We didn't do what we wanted to do, but we did good enough for the win.”

Junior Samya Walker agreed.

“We needed a lot of energy on defense, making sure we were shutting down shooters, denying passing lanes, and when we know there’s a shooter in the corner you always need to have your hand out and be ready to hit it,” Walker said. “That’s the adjustment we made in the second half.”

It worked. By limiting the Lancers to just five three-pointers in the third and fourth quarters, the Lady Hawks were able to pull away with the victory.

Senior Kyla Hayes, who finished with a game-high 42 points, noted that a big win like this against a rival school will provide her and her teammates a shot of morale going into upcoming games against schools from Syracuse, Liverpool and Rochester.

“It gives us a lot of confidence,” Hayes said. “Some other teams have been ranked ahead of us, so we have a little chip on our shoulder. So we have this boost of confidence to go out there and play hard, knowing that we can win against really good teams.”

Hayes, a St. John’s commit who is also ninth all time in scoring in Western New York, is also being showcased by O’Neil as potentially the best player in the area. So much so that not only does Cardinal O’Hara have games scheduled against schools from other parts of New York State, but they also have played against teams from out of state as well.

“I’ve scheduled these teams this year because I want to prove that Kyla’s the best player in Western New York, and the best players in Western New York should play against and do well against the best people,” O’Neil said. “We're not here just playing against schools from the East, West, North and South. We’re playing all the big schools in the state, and my goal is to prove that she's the best player around here.

“She's putting 40 points up on the best schools here, the best schools out of Chicago – wherever we play, she's the best player on the floor.”