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Pearl River's Moylan wins No. 500
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Pearl River coach Lorraine Moylan awoke Monday morning poised to be the first coach in the history of Rockland County basketball to reach 500 wins. While her team seemed excited to get her the milestone win, Moylan was more concerned with getting the moment over with, and focusing on the rest of the season.
The Pirates granted Moylan her wish in dominating fashion as they defeated Brewster 63-39 in the opening round of the Slam Dunk Tournament at the Westchester County Center. It was a special win, but now it’s over and Moylan is ready to move on.
“I want to improve, we’ve got another big game tomorrow,” said Moylan, who was inducted into the state's Basketball Hall of Fame last season. “The season is still early and we’re still learning and growing. This was very nice today and this is a good tournament but we’re just going to take it game by game and focus on doing well in and out of our league.”
Moylan is all about the game on the court and this attitude is reflected in the way her team handles the pressure of playing in a meaningful game such as this.
In a game where the star Scognamiglio sisters finished with just nine combined points, other players stepped in to control the game. Senior forward Christy Carty was impressive in the first half racking up 10 points and five rebounds as the Pirates jumped out to a 34-22 at the break.
“It feels good because we all work so hard and we play for one another,” Carty said. “I just wanted to play for my teammates and play for (coach) Moylan.”
Brewster cut the lead to 38-30 early in the third quarter, largely due to the hustle of senior guard Marisa Delzio. Delzio (12 pts, four steals) was the fastest player on the court and used her speed to flash into the Pearl River passing lanes and score points going the other way.
The Pirates offense stagnated in the third and Brewster was edging closer until Pearl River senior guard Allison Cook slammed the door shut with two huge three-pointers to push the lead back up to 16. Cook was 5 of 8 from beyond the arc and scored a game high 19 points.
“It felt really good to be a part of this win,” Cook said. “I’m happy that I played well and our team played well too. We pushed the pace and did what we had to do.”
Moylan joins Irvington’s Gina Maher as one of only two girl’s basketball coaches in Section 1 to reach 500 wins. At 53 years old, she has plenty of time to add to her total, but that isn’t as important to her as molding young basketball talent.
Her will to teach and impart her love for the game and all it can teach you about life is what drives her. The wins are a byproduct of that love and passion for basketball.
As anyone who watches her patrol the sidelines can see, that passion is burning as bright as ever.
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