FRESH MEADOWS, NY - If it's the holiday season then you know it's time once again for the Francis Lewis HoopsQueens Winter Ball. It has become the must-see girl’s basketball event in December in New York City and Saturday's opening day of action once again showed to be another day of elite level action.

There were a couple cancellations of games with teams who couldn't make it in because of the inclement weather, but the 5 games that were played on Saturday proved to be full of high level talent and great end to end action.

Another days’ worth of action is on the docket again for Sunday, but before we get to Day 2 it's time to recap the action from Day 1 at the Winter Ball.

Coming into this season there was a lot of unknowns about Staten Island Academy, the defending New York State Class "A" Federation Champions. They lost their star from last year in Corinn Baggs to graduation, and they also lost their head coach from last season in Rose Bruno as well who decided to step down and devote more time to her family.

In for Bruno stepped former Notre Dame Academy JV coach Nicole Sarcone, and while replacing Baggs wouldn't be easy, the "Strong Seven" as they call themselves, have stepped up to the challenge and as a team come together like never before.

While last year's SIA team may have had high expectations attached to them, this year's squad was more of a question mark, but after a 2-0 showing at the She Got Game Classic last weekend in Washington D.C. the talk of the Tigers being solid again this season returned, but after a 76-71 victory over Massachusetts top public school team in Springfield Central the talk is now a scream as SIA are clearly once again one of NYC's best.

When Sarcone took the job at SIA in July she knew that there was a lot of talent still left in the cupboard, and while they may only have 7 players on the roster she knew that those 7 would be able to lead this team to great heights again this season.

"I think people see that we only have 7 on the roster and think we aren't that good but we have a really strong 7," Sarcone stated.

A new coach, a small roster, and the loss of last season's star were the reasons why Staten Island Academy had so many questions, and the reason why so many coaches turned Sarcone down for games, but she and her squad have made the most of every opportunity they have gotten coming into Saturday, and they weren't going to let this opportunity to make another statement pass them by.

Playing a strong Springfield Central team Staten Island Academy were able to get out to a quick start and build up a 6-point lead through one quarter before the Golden Eagles made their first run to try and take the lead.

It was Jaliena Sanchez '19 who was able to weave her way through traffic in the lane to get Central going, and then with a good amount of pressure being applied, the Golden Eagles forced back to back steals in the backcourt that led to easy layups allowing the visitors from Massachusetts to go on a 9-2 run to take a 23-22 lead with 5:45 to go in the half.

SIA got back on track with a bucket inside while getting fouled by Clare Mitchell '17 to see them retake the lead, but it was a back and forth affair for the rest of the opening half as Sha'Raya Haines '17 was able to get loose and hit a couple of big treys from the wings, but with Sophia DeMauro '19 and Elizabeth Althoff '18 each doing a solid job inside to help Mitchell offensively, it was the Tigers who were able to take a 38-37 lead into the half.

Taking a lead into the half wasn't necessary according to Mitchell but it certainly was nice, though she said at the half she felt as if they all needed to step up the defensive intensity and make sure they were in proper positions going into the 3rd.

"We just wanted to make sure we were playing the same help rotations on defense, and to get inside and get rebounds which we knew would lead our defensive play into our offensive play," Mitchell said.

She knew that strong defense would lead to even better offense and early in the 3rd quarter that plan was working to perfection as Emily LaPointe '19 was able to connect on a pair of threes from the left side, both of which came about from getting defensive rebounds and pushing the ball to where they were able to get better looks from the outside as a team.

The SIA lead bulged to 55-46 with 3:14 left in the quarter before Central stepped up their play with Haines connecting on a runner while getting fouled, and then hitting on a couple of three balls of her own as she had 11 points in the quarter to help keep the Golden Eagles close heading to the 4th.

Down by 3 heading into the 4th quarter, another Haines 3 tied the game at 61 with just over 7 minutes to go in the game. The Tigers would retake the lead on an Althoff putback down low as she was asserting herself more around the rim the later the game got, but it seemed like they could never pull away as when SIA was able to take the lead, there was either Haines or Sanchez to tie things up.

Big FT's from Cameron Corbett '17 and Megan McEwen '17 allowed SIA to take a 72-69 lead, and while Central had a chance to cut into that deficit with just over a minute to play, LaPointe blocked Haines' shot from behind as she drove to the rim, and Mitchell was able to get the rebound and was fouled leading to 2 made FT's to up the lead to 5 with 35 seconds to go.

Ishanna Brown '17 was able to score on a baseline floater to cut the SIA lead to just 3 again, and while Althoff's inbounds pass was stolen, it didn't lead to any damage as Brown missed a jumper that could've made it a 1 point game.

Instead of fouling immediately, Springfield Central allowed the Tigers to push the ball up the court hoping to induce a mistake, but even though it was tense times, Mitchell said she had confidence in the person handling the ball in the key spot in LaPointe.

"We all trust Emily," Mitchell confidently said. "We trust everyone to step up when the time comes, and Emily really came through."

LaPointe instead of holding the ball with 15 seconds left took the ball to the rim and against 2 defenders coming at her was able to finish over both and give Staten Island Academy a 76-71 lead. Central committed a turnover as soon as they crossed midcourt and the Tigers were able to hold on from there as the final buzzer sounded soon after to give SIA the hard fought 5-point victory.

Mitchell had an outstanding game for SIA as she led the Tigers with 26 points while Althoff added 12 points, and LaPointe, DeMauro, and Corbett each chipped in with 10 points apiece in the balanced team win.

Haines was the high scorer for Springfield Central as she also had 26 points, with Sanchez adding 16 points as well in the defeat.

It wasn't easy but it was another major win in Staten Island Academy's road to gaining the respect that they once again seem to have to earn. They earned it last season by winning the Class "A" Federation Championship, and with the Strong Seven this season they look well on their way again this time around, and at least now with another big-time win, Sarcone hopes that people will take notice of this year's SIA squad.

"Whatever people want to think they can think, but I hope we made a statement tonight."

Thursday was about as bad a game as the Lady Kingsmen could've had as they went to Christ the King and lost by 30, and on Saturday they had to come back 48 hours later and take on the defending CHSAA Class "AA" State Champions in St. Anthony's.

"That was an ugly loss and I said to my team that we are better than that, but today provided us a great chance to turn things around quickly," Nazareth head coach Ron Kelley said about the game with St. Anthony's.

He viewed the game as immensely important to his team building confidence and getting back to the top of the CHSAA, but if they wanted to do that they would have to do it without star guard Alexis Sykes '17 who remains in the hospital after being admitted there on Thursday night with pneumonia.

It was a play for Alexis game as guard Victoria Brown '17 said and that rallying cry, along with the need for a statement making win, was seemingly enough as they took a lead late in the 2nd quarter and didn't trail the rest of the way en route to the 10-point victory.

On the back of guard Kayla Robinson '18 knocking down a couple early jumpers, St. Anthony's was able to jump out to a quick 11-6 lead as the Lady Friars were also doing a good job on the glass at the outset.

The tide though began to change as Shonnyvelle Regalado '17 was a major force in the backcourt creating turnovers and having them turn into easy baskets as Nazareth was able to go on a 12-2 run and take an 18-13 lead with 2:24 to go in the half.

Jasmine White '17 picked up her 3rd foul late in the 2nd as well and was forced to the bench, but Lauren Hackett '18was able to step up in the closing seconds and knock down a big jumper to see St. Anthony's down just 19-18 going into the locker room.

It was a sloppy start, but nonetheless it was a good start for the Lady Kingsman, and that good start continued into the 3rd quarter as St. Anthony's succumbed to the strong Nazareth defense as they didn't connect on a FG in the period, and with Regalado doing a great job penetrating and finishing in driving lanes, it looked as if the Lady Kingsmen were in full control.

The lead expanded to 12 early in the 4th for Nazareth as White fouled out with 7:06 to go in the game, not making the impact many felt she could've in this one, and without her in there the Lady Kingsmen were able to score around the rim and control the glass.

Tamia Lawhorne '19 had a solid 4th quarter in drawing fouls and getting herself to the FT line, but St. Anthony's also missed far too many free throws which ultimately cost them a chance to climb back as Nazareth maintained their composure late and were able to get the big win they desperately wanted, taking down the Lady Friars in this one 46-36.

It was a game high 17 points in the win for Regalado, while Brown added 4 points but had a stat stuffing outing with 8 rebounds, 6 steals, and 4 assists in a very impressive all around effort.

Robinson ended up with 14 points for St. Anthony's who struggled to get consistent scoring from anyone else in this one as the loss of Maia Moffitt '17 to injury clearly hindered their efforts against a tough Nazareth squad.

They may have struggled against the likes of Christ the King and The Mary Louis Academy coming into Saturday's game, but a win over St. Anthony's could go a long way for this Nazareth team, and Kelley, who was grinning from ear to ear after the game, feels this could be the start now of something special for his group.

"This gives us so much confidence that we needed. We can do this and I think now they can believe in themselves and also believe in the team. I think this could be the beginning of something really good for us for the rest of the season."

This was always going to be an extremely tough test for the Lady Stanners, who were coming into this one off a home loss on Thursday to Bishop Loughlin, but the size inside proved to be too much as the Saints fed the post time and time again early and often to run away with a 72-36 victory.

The Saints got off to a fast start as Tatiana Jones '19 was able to get in good positions against an undersized Molloy squad to catch and score around the rim. She was getting feeds in the halfcourt from Ashley Jones '17 who more often than not was looking to get everyone on her team involved.

Chyna Nixon '17 was able to do a good job in transition of pushing and finishing up the court, while Dajiah Parmley '18was another interior force who became near impossible to stop when she got in position as late in the opening quarter Neumann-Goretti went up 20-4.

The lead continued to grow in the 2nd as Jones was the main offensive weapon they went to as even when she missed, the amount of offensive rebounds she was able to putback became too much for the Lady Stanners to handle.

Jenna Mastellone '17 was a true bright spot for Molloy as she seemed unfazed by the big names on Neumann-Goretti, attacking the rim in the halfcourt and maintaining good ball control, but it was still a 40-16 Saints lead going into halftime.

Things didn't get much better for Molloy as the 3rd quarter began as Kiara Koger '19 began to connect from the outside as she was able to take advantage of holes in the Lady Stanners zone as it seemed anything that Molloy tried to do, Neumann-Goretti had an answer for.

With the lead for Neumann-Goretti over 30 by midway into the 3rd you saw a lot of players off the bench for the Saints make contributions, while for Molloy it was Emma Kiley '19 who showed to be someone to watch going forward.

It wasn't the type of game that the Lady Stanners had hoped to play as they couldn't keep Neumann-Goretti off the glass, and with Jones and Nixon nearly unstoppable in the open court the Saints were able to cruise in the 4th quarter to easily take the 72-36 win.

Neumann-Goretti had 4 players in double figures as Nixon led the way with 17 points, but the younger and bigger Jones added 16 points, Parmley had 12 points, and the older West Virginia bound Jones chipped in with 11.

Mastellone proved to be the one main dangerous scoring weapon for the Lady Stanners as she ended up with a team high 14 points, while Margarita Kilpatrick '17 also tallied 10 points in the loss.

It wasn't the way the home team wanted things to go as they got down early and never were able to fully rally as they made small runs here and there but it wasn't enough to take down a strong Elmont team from Nassau County, losing this one by 12.

Sabrina Vitale '18 was able to get the Lady Patriots off to a good start with a pair of early threes, but Kem Nwabudu '18was a strong force inside on the glass, and with Zhaneia Thybulle '18 getting going as the half ended, the Lady Spartans were able to build up a 14-point lead.

At times, it did look like Francis Lewis were going to make a run in their home gym, but Nwabudu showed good versatility by finishing driving to the basket, and when Thybulle hit a 3 with 2:42 to go in the game to make it a 15-point game, it seemed all but over.

The Lady Patriots did close it once more to an 8-point game in the closing minute, but they missed chances from long range to get any closer as Elmont closed things out from the FT line down the stretch to come away with the 57-45 victory.

Nwabudu had 15 points and 11 rebounds in the win for Elmont, while Thybulle had 10 of her 14 points in the 2nd half to help lead the Lady Spartans as well.

Vitale was the high scorer for Francis Lewis as she had 15 points, with Sabrina Clement '17 adding 11 points of her own in the defeat.

From nearly the start this was all about Immaculate Conception and the play of guard Breyenne Bellerand '17 as she dazzled to the tune of 17 points to help pace her team to the dominant 34-point win.

Danielle Deoul '17 was a force around the rim for IC as well as the transfer from Washingtonville H.S. in New York as she had 12 points and 14 rebounds as even though Curtis did have size, they couldn't keep pace with the athletic and tough Deoul in the paint.

Rayshel Brown '17 had 12 points for the Lady Warriors to lead them in the loss, while Veronica Njie '18 added 9 points but overall Curtis just didn't have the forces inside, or the team speed on the outside to compete with what looked to be a very complete Immaculate Conception team.

Check out Day Two recaps