Westhampton girls basketball falls to Nyack in Southeast Regional final
Westhampton head coach Katie Peters talks to her team during the state Class AA girls basketball regional final on Friday, March 13, 2026, at Yorktown High School. Credit: /Kelly Marsh
YORKTOWN HEIGHTS — This day brought an unhappy anniversary for Katie Peters.
It was March 13, 2020, and the Westhampton girls basketball coach found out that her Suffolk title team wasn’t going to be playing in a Long Island championship game — canceled due to the pandemic.
March 13, 2026, won’t be remembered fondly, either. It was the day when an otherwise wonderful season ended for the Hurricanes, one step short of the state Class AA final four.
“March 13 is not a good day in Westhampton history,” Peters said.
Westhampton fell 55-41 to Nyack in the Southeast Regional final Friday at Yorktown High.
That ended a 16-game winning streak and a 22-3 season that included a third straight Suffolk crown and a Long Island championship.
“Obviously, the girls had an unbelievable season,” Peters said. “To be crowned Long Island champions is a feat in itself.”
But the 24-1 RedHawks from Rockland, who had won the first Section I championship in program history, were the ones moving on to the state semifinals March 21 at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy.
“I’m just so happy for the girls,” Nyack coach Kervins Ferdilus said. “It’s been a phenomenal season. They’ve been great. They stuck together and they believed in each other, and they’re making history.”
With 2:49 left in the first quarter, it was Nyack 11, Westhampton 2.
Actually, it was Maya Corniel 11, Westhampton 2.
The junior guard, en route to a 21-point day, had hit three threes from the right corner and a layup.
The lead moved to 13-2, but when the Hurricanes’ Chloe Blowes made a layup off her offensive rebound, it was down to 13-9 after one.
But the RedHawks dominated the next eight minutes, outscoring Westhampton 17-4 to go up by 17 at halftime — 30-13. Corniel had 17 at that point.
“Long bus ride; we had a game Wednesday; an awards dinner last night; got home late,” said senior point guard Sandra Clarke, who topped the Hurricanes with 13 points. “I think we were tired, and that showed.”
Kate Sweet scored five of her 12 points in a 7-0 Westhampton run to start the third. The margin was down to 10.
By the end of three, though, Nyack’s advantage stood at 42-26.
“It kind of felt like from the jump today nothing really went the way we needed to go,” Peters said. “That’s a credit to their defense. They’re a really good team.”
