Sofia Della Ratta, Emma Priolo, Hailey Ayres spur North Shore girls past Island Trees
Emma Priolo of North Shore drives for an uncontested layup during a Nassau Conference A-II girls basketball game at North Shore on Friday. Credit: David Meisenholder
When Emma Priolo walked into North Shore’s gymnasium for her senior night Friday, all she could think about was how long she had been waiting for this moment.
Her last regular-season home game as a Viking couldn’t have ended any better after North Shore defeated Island Trees, 58-41, in a Nassau A-II matchup.
“It was really important to us that we pulled out this final win together,” Priolo said. “It’s bittersweet, but we wanted to treat it like any other game.”
Island Trees (12-6) opened with a 6-1 run in the first two minutes, but that would be the only time the Vikings trailed the whole game. North Shore led 13-10 after the first quarter.
That lead was extended when Priolo sank back-to-back three-pointers and senior Meredith Papiro hit a layup.
Island Trees’ Kelsey Reifer scored 10 points in the third quarter to keep it a 10-point game, but the Vikings outscored the Bulldogs 15-8 in the fourth quarter.
Junior Sofia Della Ratta led North Shore with 14 points, 11 rebounds and three steals. Priolo finished with 11 points and three steals and senior Hailey Ayres added 10 points.
“They came out and played a great, tough game,” coach Keith Freund said. “I’ve known most of these girls forever, and they all just work so incredibly hard every day.”
The Vikings are 16-3 overall and 11-0 in Nassau A-II.
“It feels like we’re really starting to peak now,” Freund said. “Class A is open, and there are numerous teams capable of winning it all, but if we play well, we are one of them.”
“We’ve become such a close-knit group,” Priolo said of her five years on the squad. “I can’t even put into words how much I’m going to miss this team.”
