Myer advances to BPSN final
Mya Pierini was the obvious choice to serve as captain of the A.N. Myer Marauders girls basketball team.
“She is our go to player. She is the one we can put on the best player or the biggest player and she is going to do all of the little jobs,” Myer coach Dave Shaw said. “She is our glue person. She holds us together and pulls us up when we need to be. She is able to score but even more she is able to create for her teammates. She is never worried about her stat line, she is more worried about the team and that’s why she is our captain and player of the game today.”
Today was the championship semifinals of the Third Annual BPSN Girls Basketball Tournament and Pierini’s play helped Myer knock off the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 50-43.
Pierini knows her role as the glue person on the squad.
“I have been with this squad every year and I have gotten to know the girls. It’s being a loud voice in practice, leading the warmup and stretches, instructing everybody in more of a friendly way rather than an imposing way, and leading by example.”
The 17-year-old is excited about the season ahead for the Marauders and thinks the team can do some damage when it counts.
“That’s our goal. We are striving to get to OFSAA (Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations) but we are taking it one step at a time with Zone (3) and then SOSSA (Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association).”
The Grade 12 student has enjoyed playing in the BPSN tournament.
“I’ve loved it. It is wonderful and I am so excited to go the championship.”
Pierini started playing basketball in the Niagara Falls house league and then played travel ball in Pelham and St. Catharines. She gave up travel basketball a few years ago.
“I have been focusing on softball and I play in the States.”
She mans the shortstop position for the New York Inferno.
“I love both sports equally but I wanted to commit to softball. The schedule to do both is too much. It was easy because I knew what I had more of a chance to succeed at and what would be best for me.”
She is hoping to land a scholarship in the States.
“That is the goal.”
Notre Dame was leading 32-26 midway through the third quarter before Myer went on an 8-0 run to lead 34-32 heading into the final quarter. The Marauders then took control of the game with a 12-3 run. Notre Dame’s shooting went cold in the later stages of the game and that certainly didn’t help.
“We had an early injury to one of our leading scorers (Aleesah Adams) which makes a difference and we had another player in foul trouble very early,” Irish head coach Kristen Dean said. “We also have a few injuries that aren’t here today but other than that we played really well and we were up at certain points. We just couldn’t hold on to the lead today.”
Dean is looking forward to the rest of the season.
“We have a lot of potential, they are really great girls who love playing and they are great competitors. We just fell short today.”
The BPSN tourney was a good experience for the squad.
“We do have a younger team and we got to play against teams that we don’t get to play against in the regular season.”
The Marauders were given a stiff challenge by the Irish.
“Notre Dame played us tough. We made adjustments and when we didn’t make shots we kept with our game plan and had the trust that our game plan was going to work eventually,” he said. “It started clicking and we were getting the shots we wanted and the shots in transition we wanted.”
The Marauders seem to be getting better as the tournament rolls along.
“Unfortunately with illness and stuff like that, this is really the first couple of games where we had our full squad,” he said. “It is those little adjustments and remembering how to play with each other but they are picking it up pretty quickly and we’re getting back into the form we need to be in.”
STATS PACK
Marauders 50 Fighting Irish 43
Cat’s Caboose Player of the Game: Myer’s Mya Pierini with a strong game at both ends of the floor.
For the A.N. Myer Marauders: Jenna Saddler 11; Carly Casciano 9; Emma Vendittelli 7; Ava Walker 6; Maia Walker 6; Mya Pierini 5; Elizabeth Cook 2; Sophia Kotsanis 2.
For the Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Lila DiPietro 12; Camilla Moscato 11; Nicole Dixon 5; Kyra DiGaetano 5; Lauryn Briggs 3; Aleesah Adams 3; Abbey Grande 2; Mia Colangelo 2.
Up next: Myer advances to the champions game Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Governor Simcoe.
The tournament is made possible with the help of Women Networking in Sports of Niagara, Tora Inc., Regional Doors and Hardware, Bromac Construction Inc., the Brock women’s basketball program, Alltech Automotive, St. Catharines CYO Basketball, Pelham Panthers basketball, Niagara Falls Red Raiders basketball, Niagara Rangers basketball, Lasting Images, the Niagara District Referees Association, the District School Board of Niagara and the Niagara Catholic District School Board.
