Trib HSSN girls basketball team of the week for Jan. 15, 2023

By: Don Rebel
Sunday, January 15, 2023 | 9:53 PM

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As we hit the midway point of section play in the season, only four WPIAL basketball teams can claim to be perfect.

On the boys side, Lincoln Park, South Allegheny and Union remain undefeated, whereas Blackhawk remains the only unbeaten girls team.

While some may get nervous every time they take the court in the final month of the regular season from the pressure of no losses, Blackhawks players may be feeling a little Deja vu this season.

That’s because the Cougars won their first 26 games last season, including a WPIAL Class 4A championship before losing to Villa Maria Academy out of Erie in the PIAA quarterfinals 54-27.

“They do a great job with it,” Blackhawk coach Steve Lodovico said. “We talk all the time about the undefeated thing and what it really means. We know we’re going to get everybody’s best game. At the end of the day, we’re just trying to win a championship.”

Last week, Blackhawk added to its 12-0 record with a pair of section victories and a win in Brooklyn, N.Y.

On Monday, the Cougars scored 35 points in the first quarter and cruised to a win over struggling Ambridge, 87-14. Junior Alena Fusetti led the team with 24 points, senior Kassie Potts scored 13 and freshman Aubrey Hupp added 10 points.

“Those are probably some of the hardest games to coach,” Lodovico said. “You do worry about some selfishness creeping in because those first five girls know I may only have this many minutes, so I better get my stats up.”

A blowout win was the last thing on the mind of Blackhawk players Thursday when they traveled to Quaker Valley.

The Cougars were tied after one quarter and trailed the Quakers by seven points at halftime before a big third quarter righted the ship on their way to a fourth section win 48-37.

“It’s a tough place to play,” Lodovico said. “It’s a small gym and for whatever reason, we have trouble down there every year. Give Quaker Valley a lot of credit, they came ready to go in the first half. Once we got our feet under us, we were able to get our style and our pace going to get that win.”

Both Fusetti and Potts led the Cougars with 16 points each.

Win No. 12 on the season came on the longest road trip of the year, to the Big Apple.

Blackhawk knocked off host Brooklyn Nazareth Regional, 70-47.

Fusetti once again led the Cougars with 28 points, Potts added 17 and senior Quinn Borroni chipped in with 10 points.

Following their trip to New York, Blackhawk will return to Southwestern Pa. to face a tough week.

The defending district-champion Cougars will close out the first half of section play Monday when they host rival Beaver in a battle of the two past WPIAL 4A champions.

On Wednesday, Blackhawk welcomes the top-ranked team in Class 6A, Norwin, for a clash of No. 1-ranked teams.

“We build our schedule, we want to be challenged,” Lodovico said. “You go back to that undefeated thing, yeah, it’s nice to say that, but we want to be prepared when February hits that we’ve seen some really good teams.

2023 Trib HSSN Girls Basketball Teams of the Week

Week 1 — Shady Side Academy Bulldogs

Tags: Blackhawk