GIRLS BASKETBALL Kennedy Catholic coasts by Farrell

It marked the second time in two weeks the Eagles had beaten Farrell.
By BILL ALBRIGHT
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
HERMITAGE, Pa. -- Two weeks ago, Kennedy Catholic jumped out to a big early lead before Farrell closed the gap in a 58-47 loss to the Golden Eagles.
Saturday in the return meeting, Kennedy Catholic again broke out to a big lead, but Farrell couldn't rally this time as the Golden Eagles cruised to a 65-26 win.
"I have said that in every game we are trying to learn something new," said Kennedy Catholic coach Pat Mastrian. "From the first game with them, we learned that once we get a big lead, we can't let teams back in to the game."
As for why his team didn't react to many of the situations it encountered, Farrell coach Ed Turosky was left scratching his head.
"I don't really have any answers as to why this happened to us again," he said. "I just have three starters back and I have a young team and I guess I have to accept the fact that these are games to hopefully prepare us for down the road."
Strong defense: The key to the Kennedy Catholic (6-2) explosion on the offensive end was an "in-your-face" trapping defense employed by the Eagles.
"We have been working on the traps and I think the kids are finally understanding where they need to rotate to the different positions," said Mastrian.
As for his kids not dealing with the trapping defense, Turosky sees it as a learning experience.
"The kids are taught when they see a defense like that, you have to go to the open areas and pass the ball," said Turosky. "They weren't reading things well today and were making a lot of mental mistakes."
En route to the win, Kennedy Catholic had different people step up at various times to keep the offense in gear.
Other scorers: Becca Gasiewicz had seven in the first quarter and finished with 15. Leanne Madden totaled nine in the second period and wound up with 11, and Leah Mastrian complemented Madden's effort in the second quarter with 13 points before leading all scorers with 17.
"We have four or five good offensive players," Mastrian said. "In each game, we try to have each of them hopefully get an opportunity to get their points."
While the Golden Eagles had three double-digit scorers, Farrell (1-9) could manage just one as Gena Elerby topped the list with 11 points.