John Jay Basketball Can't Contain Pelham in 54-32 Loss

CROSS RIVER, N.Y. - On Monday Dec. 16, John Jay played host to Pelham at the high school, and the game began on the back and forth. But height, long range shooting and the ability to get to the rim created separation and not in the way John Jay hoped for.

A put back by Taylor Green, a strong post up by Valendena Arakas and then a spin move through the paint by the freshman made it an 11-6 first quarter advantage and led to an easy 54-32 victory for the Pelicans.

Nonetheless, the game started with a Colleen Sheehy triple from the corner but was one upped by the Wolves. Amanda Riolo hit Jaime Bartley-Cohen inside for a layup, and after pulling down the rebound on the other end, Bartley-Cohen got the ball ahead for a Jane Brennan fast break layup.

But big was about to turn the tide. Arakas pulled down the miss this time and muscled the put back, which would set up John Jay’s last lead. Jordan Kauftheil hit Bartley-Cohen above the arc, and she sidestepped the defense to the rack for a 6-5 game.

Six straight giving Pelham the five point second quarter lead didn’t immediately spell the end, though. Charlotte Omin dropped a three, and the 12-9 score still had John Jay on track.

Unfortunately, Emma Namba was driving the train that officially began the derailment. Two hard traverses through the paint yielded six points, and while Omin rained another triple, 16 more in a row followed.

The game broken open by a score of 34-13, the second half went in search of positives for the Wolves.  The first was Bartley-Cohen. She put in a fast break basket on the pass ahead by Natalie Ellrodt and pulled down four third quarter rebounds. 

Onto the fourth, Jane Brennan went coast to coast for a fast break layup, and Omin made close in look easy too. On the baseline, the sophomore pulled up short and got a rise out of the John Jay crowd with her swish.

The same goes for Abby Armour’s similar number on the baseline. One made foul shot resulting, the senior was then true with a three, and to close the day, the youngest player on the roster made a case for the future. Gianna Pelosi scored a layup on the fast break and hit from downtown to send everyone home with a smile.