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By Emily Brennan
Mystic Valley girls’ basketball soared to a 33-25 victory over the Notre Dame Academy Lancers inside the Eastern Avenue Athletic Complex on Friday afternoon. The Eagles improved to 2-2 overall on the 2023-24 campaign.
The scoring was highlighted by Breana Nansamba’s game-high 14 points. Sophomore Sylvie LaFeber poured in 6 points and four rebounds while junior Bailey DeLeire added in 4 points. Senior Aya Abbassi was a force down low, scoring 4 points with a game-high 19 rebounds. Freshman Abby Ssewankambo logged two points with seven rebounds. Sophomore Anna Luiza-Batista poured in 2 points with three steals to round out the Eagles scoring on Friday afternoon.
Mystic Valley mustered the opening score of the contest around five minutes in. Stifling defense from the Eagles coupled with remarkable efficiency from the floor culminated in a 7-2 Mystic Valley lead at the end of the first. Notre Dame was on roll offensively after the brief break, forcing turnovers and netting back-to-back buckets. DeLeire closed the second quarter with a layup underneath the basket and the Eagles took a 13-9 lead into the halftime break.
Notre Dame came out of the halftime break red-hot from beyond the arc, draining a pair of jumpers to crack the double-digit point mark. The Eagles maintained their composure on both ends, with Nansamba earning multiple scoring opportunities to put Mystic Valley up 20-11. Mystic Valley’s defense was unstoppable for the remainder of the quarter. After the Lancers connected on one of their two free throws in the final few minutes, Mystic Valley managed a 26-15 lead with 1 quarter of work remaining.
Luiza-Batista hit a pair of shots at the free throw line, but NDA replied on the other end to open the fourth quarter. NDA’s dominance continued through the final buzzer, but their effort was not enough as Mystic Valley held onto the victory with a 33-25 result.
The Eagles travel to Rockport on Wednesday, Dec. 27 and Thursday, Dec. 28 to play in the Rockport Christmas Tournament.
