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Niagara Juel Prep improves to 4-3

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The Niagara Juel Prep girls basketball team improved to 4-3 in league play after a pair of wins last weekend.

The fifth-place Niagara squad recorded a 57-40 victory over the Tri-County Soldiers and a 71-69 overtime triumph over Halton Region.

Against Tri County, Niagara trailed 6-4 after one quarter and 21-20 at the half. Niagara took control of the game by outscoring its opponent 21-9 in the third quarter.

Leading the way for Niagara against Tri County were: Maude Law (E. L. Crossley) with 18 points and nine rebounds; Camilla Moscato (Notre Dame) with 10 points; Jaylen Stienstra (Blessed Trinity) with six points and seven rebounds; Kate Kolbinson (Port Colborne) with six points and five rebounds; Teagan Fraser (Blessed Trinity) with four points and four rebounds; and, Lyla Rodrigue (Centennial) with four points.

“Niagara had a slower start to the game with a low shooting percentage but regrouped at half, forced Tri County turnovers and converting them to points,” Niagara head coach Chris Moscato said. “We used to struggle with the third-quarter slump, but with some consistent mindset work, the girls rallied in energy on and off the bench to win both the third and fourth quarters.”

Against Halton, Niagara led 21-18 after one quarter and 35-35 at the half before falling behind 51-47 after three quarters. Niagara forced overtime by outscoring Halton 15-11 in the fourth quarter.

Topping the stat sheet for Niagara in the win were: Moscato with 21 points and 12 rebounds; Law with 16 points and 10 rebounds; Ava Briggs (Notre Dame) with 11 points; Kolbinson with nine points and 13 rebounds; and, Rodrigue and Talia Hultink (Smithvillle Christian) with four points each.

“It was a hard-fought game that saw the team persevere until the very end into overtime,” he said. “We had a strong defensive game forcing Halton turnovers and drove the net, putting Niagara at the foul line more than 22 times.”

Niagara is next in action on the road. It plays Simcoe Muskoka and the Durham City Chameleons Feb. 17 and the GTA Blues Feb. 18.

Bernie Puchalski, a graduate of Brock University and Niagara College, worked in journalism in Niagara for more than 27 years before taking a voluntary buyout from The Standard at the end of 2016. He started his career as a news reporter for the Niagara Falls Review before switching to sports reporting. He was a sports reporter and sports editor at the Niagara Falls Review before joining the Standard's sports department in 1996. He was named the Standard's sports editor in 2000 and became the regional sports editor, in charge of the Niagara Falls Review, Welland Tribune and Standard, in 2015, a position he held until he left the company. During his time in newspapers, he was a multiple winner and finalist for numerous Ontario and Western Ontario Newspaper Awards for sports reporting, spot news reporting and humour writing. He was a member of the Standard Boys Basketball Tournament committee and co-chair of the Standard Girls Basketball Tournament, helping to raise tens of thousands of dollars for bursaries presented to participants in the tournament. He also served on countless local sports committees both in Niagara Falls and St. Catharines.

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