No. 22, Rachel Bonnanzio, and no. 4, Karli Opalka, control the boards for Pomperaug in a 55-32 win over Stratford Jan. 5 in Southbury. (Ken Morse photo)
By KEN MORSE
Somewhere among the X’s and O’s on coach Joe Fortier’s chalkboard, he found the magic that turns hard work into success. On Tuesday night at Pomperaug High School, the girls’ basketball team handed coach Fortier his 100th career win in a 55-32 victory over Stratford’s Red Devils.
Fortier, in his fifth year at the helm and with an impressive 100-29 ledger, said, “There are so many memories and relationships that you form over the years. We’ve had so many amazing players that are responsible for those 100 wins. Even in some of the tough losses in the state tournament, you develop a bond. The girls don’t even know about this because I didn’t tell anyone. Because it’s not about me, it’s about them.”
The Lady Panthers improved to 6-2 on the season and made quick work of the 4-1 Red Devils, busting out to a commanding 20-4 lead after one period of play. Karli Opalka (19 points, 15 rebounds) led the way with nine points in the opening stanza and controlled the boards as she has done all season.
It was a manageable 6-2 game with 4:23 left in the period before Stratford was staggered by a lightning-quick Pomperaug response. Rachel Bonnanzio (seven points, five assists, three steals) went down the lane for a bucket, and on the next trip down the floor Katy Rafferty (five points) lined up a three-pointer from the corner.
Caly Farina (six points) created several turnovers with her quick-handed defense and her steal set up Lauren Rubinstein (four points, four steals, four assists) on a fast break. That led to Bonnanzio hitting a turn-around jumper off the window, and at 3:27 to go in the opening period it was a 13-4 advantage.
Stratford never recovered, especially when coach Fortier went to his bench and brought on Claudine Legato (14 rebounds, three points), Megan Todhunter (five points) and Maggie Lee (two points). All three players filled the lane and dominated the boards as the lead swelled to 29-7 at halftime.
“There are no juniors on this team, so my bench is mainly freshman and sophomores,” said Fortier. “But they don’t play like young, inexperienced players. They have been playing AAU ball together in the off-season for quite a while now, so I don’t hesitate at all to go to my bench.
“We like to play an up-tempo game, but sometimes you get sidetracked and lose a little focus when you get out to a big lead. But these girls know we have some tough games ahead of us and we came out in the second half, and we were able to regain that focus.”
Leah Rubinstein came on in the second half, running the point, and Allison McCormick showed that same quick-handed defense that kept the Red Devils at bay. Caly Farina knocked down a three-pointer, and Rafferty hit a pull-up jumper in the corner as Pomperaug went into the final period holding an insurmountable 46-22 lead.
Alexis Flood and Olivia Farina entered the game and got right into the offensive flow. With 4:28 to play, Flood fed Olivia Farina in the corner for what appeared to be a three-pointer, and that got a rise out of the Pomperaug bench. The referee waved it off, and the Panthers settled for the two-pointer instead.
“When you lose focus with a big lead you tend to pick up some bad habits, and that’s one thing we wanted to address in the second half,” added Fortier. “I thought the girls responded well, and they know we have some tough games coming up.
“The game against St. Paul, we got our shots; we just couldn’t get any of them to go. But we are not the kind of team that is going to panic. We just came out, worked hard the next game, and got back on track.”
Pomperaug ended December playing in the Plainville Holiday Tournament. The Lady Panthers ran into an undefeated 4-0 St. Paul team and dropped a tough 63-53 battle. Opalka led the way with 16 points and 18 rebounds. Bonnanzio added 14 points, and Lauren Rubinstein contributed 13 points and seven assists.
Pomperaug came back to win the consolation game, beating Plainville by a wide margin with a score of 69-28. Lauren Rubinstein led all scorers with 14 points, and Opalka added 12 points and 19 rebounds. Bonnanzio scored 11 points while Todhunter and McCormick scored eight points each.
The Lady Panthers began January earning a 50-38 win over Kolbe Jan. 2 with Opalka leading the way, scoring 19 points and hauling away 11 rebounds. Lauren Rubinstein added 10 points with seven assists and six steals.
Pomperaug is in a stretch of three straight home games after being on the road for the first seven games of the season. Friday, Jan. 8, the Lady Panthers will host Immaculate of Danbury and Tuesday, Jan 12, they will host New Milford.
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