JFK gets first win against Hubbard

Former Hubbard coach Dave Konczal now coaches at Warren JFK.
By JOHN BASSETTI
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
HUBBARD -- Maybe it wasn't the best of circumstances with their ex-coach on the other bench.
Not that there was animosity, but, rather, too much camaraderie.
With former Hubbard girls coach Dave Konczal guiding Warren JFK Monday night, the Eagles won, 42-37, in overtime.
"It was kind of emotional after eight years," Konczal said after the victory at the Hubbard gym. "I still teach here, so it's real emotional. I've got a lot of good memories in this gym, especially winning two Trumbull Athletic Conference championships."
While Konczal possessed all the emotion, the Hubbard girls were devoid of it.
"Our intensity the whole game was nowhere near what it needed to be," Jerry Beltempo, Hubbard's first-year coach, said. "I didn't think we played as well as we played against Boardman or as well as we played in our scrimmages."
That's saying something because Hubbard (0-2) was beaten by Boardman last week, 71-33.
"This was a big game for our kids as it was their coach," Beltempo said, "but I'm very disappointed because I thought this was one game we'd be able to win."
Some distractions
Beltempo admits there was some distraction because of interaction between old coach and ex-players before the game.
Sam Brys had 12 points and Katie Rogner 11 for JFK (1-2), which lost its first two games to Newton Falls (36-35, OT) and Ashtabula Edgewood (50-33).
Konczal thinks the Newton Falls game had a bearing on Monday's successful outcome for his new Eagles.
"We didn't play well in the first overtime game, so I thought we handled it a lot better this time. We've been in two tight games that we lost, so that experience of being in two close games helped."
It may have helped, especially since Hubbard's loss to Boardman was one-sided.
Key 3-point goal
Point guard Michelle Chaves added nine points for the winners, including a 3-pointer that put JFK in the lead for good just 25 seconds into the four-minute extra session.
JFK outscored Hubbard in overtime, 10-5, after Hubbard tied the game near the end of regulation, 32-32, with the help of Sheila Drummond's four straight points. Drummond tied for game-high scoring honors with 12 points.
"Sammy was taking the ball hard to the basketball tonight," Konczal said of Brys, who had six goals.
Rogner made three 3-point goals, including one from the right wing with 4:59 remaining in regulation to put the Eagles ahead, 29-27.
Konczal was pleased that JFK had its best output of the young season.
"Defense hasn't been our problem, the problem has been on the offensive end. Tonight, the girls kept their composure and the second time through helped."
Expected better rebounding
Beltempo, who previously coached at Leetonia, but sat out last season, expected his girls to rebound better.
"I warned our kids about their rebounding. I put it down on paper that rebounding would be a weakness and, at crucial times tonight, it was again."
He also said that there was no excuse for letting JFK shooters stand at 3-point line loosely guarded.
"If that's not lack of intensity when you're letting girls shoot wide-open on the 3-point line, then I don't know what is."
Hubbard's coach thought his girls could have optimized opportunities during the game's first three minutes, but didn't.
"I thought we could have been ahead by six or eight points [instead of a 6-5 lead after one quarter]. When we got rebounds, I was trying to get them to push it, but they were walking the ball down the floor. I just couldn't light a fire. We had spurts where we seemed to get excited, but the intensity so far here is not anywhere near what other teams I coached had."
bassetti@vindy.com