GUILDERLAND — The Guilderland girls’ basketball team continued its touring clinic of defense and on Friday it was in Ballston Spa.

The Lady Dutch held the Scotties to just seven points in the first half and cruised to 40-23 win. The girls’ game preceded the varsity boys’ contest between the two schools, starting at 6 p.m. instead of the usual 7:30 start.
"We played a great first half at both ends of the floor," said Guilderland Coach Frank Cacckello. "I think it was one of the better first halfs we’ve had all year. We shut them out in the first quarter; that says a lot about our defense."

Guilderland swarmed the Ballston Spa players on defense and even stopped the Scotties’ best player, Casey Wright, in the first period. The Dutch forced turnovers — five in the opening frame — and pressed the Scotties into taking bad shots.

Guilderland led, 11-0, at the end of the first quarter and 24-7 at halftime.

The starting five of Kristin Pezze, Nikki Branchini, Mary Kate O’Connell, Danielle Burns, and Tricia Loux got into the act early and dictated the tempo of the game.

Pezze made a jump shot to open the scoring. That was followed by a jump shot by Branchini. Burns made two foul shots and scored inside to give the Dutch an 8-0 lead.

Burns made another foul shot and O’Connell knocked down a jump shot to round out the scoring in the frame and give the Dutch the double-figured lead, 11-0.

The game wouldn’t get any closer as Guilderland controlled the ball on offense and continued to be tenacious on defense.

After holding a 17-point lead at halftime, the Dutch didn’t let up and only allowed nine points in the third quarter. Though the Dutch scored only six in the frame, they led, 30-16, heading into the final stanza.

Guilderland held Ballston Spa to just seven points in the fourth quarter and was able to cruise to the win.
"We got sloppy once we got the big lead," Cacckello said. "We knew they would play hard, especially on their home court. I called one of my time outs to get us back in the game. I was not worried about them coming back. We have high standards and a responsibility to play with those high standards."

Eight in a row

The win was the eighth in a row for the Lady Dutch and tough defense has been used at the forefront in each of those games. "That has been our m.o.," Cacckello said of defense. "We know we’ve won eight straight. We’re starting to change. We’re getting scoring from everybody. Everybody is defending and everybody is contributing.
"We can go deeper and that really helps," Cacckello added. "And the kids that don’t see many minutes in the games are so good in practice, that helps us."

Cacckello said that all the players on the roster come to work every day.
"All 12 players can play," he said. "That makes for some nice practices. That will really help us down the stretch and help us when we are in foul trouble. Today we were able to go with four guards. And to do that is impressive."

The Dutch had a week off as they don’t play until Friday when they host Burnt Hills.
"You always need a break in January," Cacckello said. "With the number of games and practices, it certainly helps. We play Burnt Hills on Friday, and it’s Senior Night. I’m not worried about them getting up for that one."

Guilderland is now 11-3 overall and 8-2 in the Suburban Council. The Lady Dutch currently sit atop of the Gold Division of the league, though Columbia is close behind. The Dutch will face the Blue Devils on Friday, Feb. 2, in East Greenbush.

With the way the defense has been playing, Cacckello believes his team will be ready for the final tough stretch of games.
"Defense has been it," the coach said. "When you hold teams to 20-something points, you are going to do well. Our players have formed a cohesive defensive unit."

The Dutch hope to be sitting in a high spot when the sectional seedings come out in mid-February.
"We’ve definitely put ourselves in position to get a good sectional seed," Cacckello said. "We have four more league games, and they are all tough. To win eight games in a row, you’ve got to do some things right. We got off to a slow start, but the girls know what to do now."