Wantagh girls basketball team scores 25 points in fourth quarter to beat Cold Spring Harbor

Kayla Mannix scored eight of her 18 points in the fourth quarter as Wantagh came back to defeat Cold Spring Harbor on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. Credit: Jonathan Singh
After losing to Cold Spring Harbor in last season’s Nassau Class A championship game, the Wantagh girls basketball team got a measure of revenge.
Host Wantagh produced a 25-point fourth quarter and defeated Cold Spring Harbor, 61-55, on Thursday night in a non-league matchup.
“We just wanted payback,” sophomore Kayla Mannix said. “It felt like we we’re in the playoff game, and we knew we had to play like it was.”
Wantagh (13-1) trailed 40-36 heading into the fourth quarter, but freshman Makayla McNeil (nine points) came off the bench to hit her first of three three-pointers to cut into the deficit.
“I just wanted to make my impact known more defensively,” McNeil said. “The threes were definitely important, though. It was the support from the team that really helped.”
Freshman Isabelle Ferraro (14) added her own three-pointer and Mannix scored eight of her 18 points in the fourth quarter for Wantagh.
“We talked about how the second half is the most important part of the game,” McNeil said. “Losing to them last year also pushed us harder. We knew how they played, and we just needed time to adjust in order to stop them.”
Coach Stan Bujacich liked what he saw. “I’m just extremely proud of their resiliency today,” he said. “They’ve been battling colds and the flu, and they all came together — from freshmen to seniors — to fight today.”
Wantagh earned its first lead at 31-30 with 3:15 left in the third quarter when Riley Forthofer rebounded her own missed shot for a layup. But Cold Spring Harbor (10-2) quickly regained a four-point lead to close the frame, thanks to four consecutive points from Maggie Spehr.
“We know what type of team we are and we know what we can do,” Mannix said. “We don’t get discouraged easily because we have each other to pick ourselves up.”
Spehr scored three consecutive layups as Cold Spring Harbor opened the first quarter with a 6-0 run. The Seahawks also scored the first seven points of the second quarter, including a three-pointer by Ryan Reynolds (12 points).
Wantagh is 8-0 in non-league games this season and hopes to avenge an earlier loss to Nassau A-I foe Lynbrook.
“This proves to us that we can get back to where we finished last year,” Mannix said. “We know what we have to do.”