Parker Surace leads way as Seaford's press defeats Long Beach
Jamie Horodecki of Seaford attempts to block the shot of Haley Brandt of Long Beach during a Nassau girls basketball game on Saturday in Seaford. Credit: Dawn McCormick
Seaford had been on a roller coaster of emotions.
The Vikings scored the game’s opening 12 points, only to find themselves trailing by three points at halftime. With a one-point advantage entering the fourth quarter, the Seaford girls basketball team wanted to end the game as it started.
They ramped up the defensive pressure, and that’s when the Vikings regained complete control.
Host Seaford defeated Long Beach, 50-33, in non-league girls basketball Saturday afternoon. The Vikings outscored Long Beach 19-3 in the fourth quarter.
"We were all disappointed in ourselves because it was [12-0] at the beginning," senior guard Parker Surace said. "But once we saw we could beat them on the press, we just continued with that."
Seaford (6-5) opened the fourth quarter on a 12-0 run to take a 43-30 lead before Long Beach scored its lone field goal of the period with 2:55 remaining in the quarter.
"They were good competition," said Surace, who led Seaford with 15 points. "But when we saw we could be up that much, we just knew we had to get our heads back into the game and come back as strong as we started."
Amanda Williamson came off the bench and scored all 11 of her points in the fourth quarter for Seaford.
"I think the press led to a lot of steals and good layups and points," Williamson said. "When we work together good things happen. We were down but we worked together, picked our heads up, and at the end, it worked out."
Danielle McHugh added nine points and Jamie Horodecki had four points and 14 rebounds in the win. Franky DeCicco had 14 points for Long Beach (1-8).
Coach Stephanie Bartkus said she has the good fortune of knowing she has plenty of options on the bench to turn to, as Seaford had nine girls score.
"I never know exactly who it’s going to be what day, and that’s why I’m so lucky," Bartkus said. "I always pull girls off the bench and say, ‘Who is it going to be today?’ and Amanda has had a few of those so far this season where I put her in and she shines. It’s really important to have those kinds of players."
The Vikings opened the game on a 12-0 run before Long Beach rallied and brought the score to 14-7 after the first quarter. Long Beach closed the second quarter on a 9-1 run to take a 24-21 lead into halftime.
Surace scored six of her 15 points in the third quarter as Seaford took a 31-30 advantage after the period.
"I love when she’s able to drive when it’s the right times," Bartkus said. "And today she found those times and she was finishing, which was big for us."
