Seven up: Girls hoop team improves to 7-3

The Revere High girls basketball team got back on the winning track, capturing both contests that they played this past week. Coach Diana DeCristoforo’s Lady Patriots defeated two Northeastern Conference foes, Marblehead, 53-44, and then handily took the measure of Saugus, 61-28, last Tuesday.

The Revere girls now stand at a lofty 7-3 on the season as they prepare to embark on the second half of the 2009-2010 campaign. They need three more wins to qualify for a berth in the post season state tournament.

The triumph over Marblehead was a gritty affair. Lady Patriots shook off a slow start in which they allowed Marblehead to grab a six point lead at the end of the first quarter, but moved out to a three point advantage by the intermission.

However, Revere never was quite able to put away the pesky Lady Magicians, who played hard and hung in on their home floor.

“I told our girls that in order to win on the road, we have to play tough on defense,” said DeCristoforo. “It’s always harder to score points on the road, so defense is what will win the close games for you and we did that in the second half.”

DeCristoforo also credited her team’s growing maturity as a big factor in the triumph. “We managed the clock well at the end,” said the coach. “We were up by five points with about three minutes to play. We took a timeout and I told them to make good decisions and use the clock. We executed very well at the end and never let Marblehead get close.”

Morgan Jenkins led Revere in the scoring department with 21 points. Freshman Caitlyn Caramello made a big contribution with nine points. Marisa Parent added seven and Gena Restiano, Ashley DeFraia, and Melissa Adreani all chipped in with six.

The runaway win over Saugus is the sort of game that every team (and coach!) needs in the course of a season. The Lady Patriots asserted control from the outset and never looked back, taking an 11 point lead at the half and then running away in the third frame.

Parent turned in a fine all around performance, scoring 20 points, accounting for seven assists, and making seven steals. “Marisa was all over the court. She truly was outstanding,” noted DeCristoforo.

Jenkins reached double figures with 11 points, all from the foul line, including a clutch five of six in the fourth quarter. A host of Lady Patriots also got on the scoring stat sheet: Caramello with nine; Venous Hamza with eight; Restiano with five; DeFraia with four; and senior captain Nicole Kjersgard with four.

For Kjersgard, who has missed most of the season as she recovers from a knee injury, the court appearance was a big step forward.

“It was great to see Nicole out there,” said DeCristoforo. “We had expected her to make a big contribution this season, so hopefully she’ll be ready to go 100 percent as we start the second half.”

DeCristoforo and her crew will host Winthrop Friday and then travel to Swampscott next Tuesday.