East Windsor Girls Basketball Falls to Thomaston in Class S Semifinals

The No. 10 East Windsor High girls basketball team’s season came to a close Saturday with a 46-34 loss to No. 3 Thomaston in the state Class S semifinals in New Britain.

In the end, East Windsor, like many teams this year, had a difficult time handling Thomaston’s exquisite All-State guard Maggie Eberhardt, who poured in a game-high 24 points.

“We knew Maggie was a special player and she’s shown that all year,” East Windsor head coach Robert Lengyel said. “Sometimes you can try to game plan for a particular kid, but when they have a great night and they’re a terrific player, they show why they’re good.”

Eberhardt was spectacular, draining four 3-pointers in the first three quarters to pace the Golden Bears on offense.

Defensively, Thomaston denied Elissa Wabble, East Windsor’s terrific guard, the ball at every opportunity. When Wabble gained possession, she was swarmed by several defenders, disrupting the Panthers' natural flow on offense.

“We knew Thomaston would come out and be aggressive in their man-to-man defense and be physical, two things we don’t play well against and tonight was clearly was one of those nights,” Lengyel said. “My hat goes off to them for playing a terrific game.”

The Golden Bears jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on two Eberhard 3s and a free throw by Abigail Hurlbert.

East Windsor started to claw back, eventually closing to 13-11 with 39 seconds left in the first quarter on a Wabble basket. But the momentum shifted when guard Sydney Keith sank a 3 at the buzzer to extend the Golden Bears’ lead to 16-11.

Thomaston built a 28-15 lead at halftime and never looked back. The Golden Bears led by as much as 16 at one point in the third quarter, but a 7-0 run by East Windsor on 3s by Makinsey Carolus and Ashley Gallant as well as a free throw by Madison Carolus cut the deficit to 34-25.

But an Eberhardt basket put the Golden Bears back up by 11 with 3:31 left in the third quarter, effectively ending the run.

Even though they trailed for the entire game, the Panthers fought until the end, with Allison Rodrigue sinking a 3-pointer at the final buzzer.

Madison Carolus led the Panthers with 11 points, while Makinsey Carolus and Gallant had 8 points apiece, Rodrigue had 3 and Danielle Sassi and Wabble each had 2.

Despite the loss, East Windsor players had little to hang their heads over after an historic season.

Indeed, the Panthers (16-8) tied the school record for most victories in a season and advanced to the state Class S semifinals for the first time ever.

“Looking back in a week or so it will sink in what a great year this was, but we have to be proud of this season and tying the record for most wins in our school history,” Lengyel said. “Just to be a team, to be known to compete every night and gain some respect for East Windsor girls basketball.”

Thomaston (22-2) will play No. 1 Capital Prep (21-2) in the championship game at Mohegan Sun next weekend.