Harrison Cub Girls Capture County Title

Under the bright lights of the Westchester County Center, the Harrison recreation girls basketball team took home the Cub Division championship Tuesday night with a 26 - 18 victory over Shrub Oak.

Avery LaBarbera netted 13 points to lead the way for the young Harrison team, Jamie Provino added four, in what was a low-scoring defensive battle most of the way.

Both teams got off to a slow start in the first quarter, as each team hit only one shot from the field. LaBarbera got the scoring started for Harrison, hitting a three-pointer to keep her team within two.

"We were a little nervous at first," said Harrison Coach Coco Lefkowitz, who coached the team with her husband Bruce. "It's overwhelming to come here and play where all this history is."

In the second quarter Harrison began to use more pressure on defense, which led to better looks on the other end. The local girls went on a 7 - 0 run to start the quarter before Shrub Oak's Meghan Fahey hit a shot to bring her team back into the game. Harrison held a 12 - 7 lead at halftime.

The third quarter was again marked by great defense on both sides of the ball. But despite a great effort from Fahey, who led Shrub Oak with 8 points, Harrison extended their lead to 22 - 11 by mixing a couple of jump shots and strong drives to the basket.

Neither team was able to find any offensive rhythm in the fourth quarter. Despite several great looks at the basket, Shrub Oak couldn't seem to get the right bounce, while Harrison struggled to break their opponent's press defense.

"They move the ball, everybody can handle the ball, they can all shoot and they're really well coached," Coco Lefkowitz said of Shrub Oak. "We knew we would have to play a really great game."

That's exactly what Harrison did. After Fahey made a basket with just more than a minute remaining to bring Shrub Oak within nine, Harrison responded with a basket of their own to put the game away. When the final buzzer sounded Harrison led 26 - 18 to claim the championship.

The Harrison Maroon girls team was made up of all-stars from local recreation leagues. The girls advanced for two weeks in the single elimination tournament, and were the only Harrison team of any age group to reach the finals.

"They take a lot of pride," Coco Lefkowitz said, thanking the Harrison Recreation Department for their work during the season and league organizers for setting up the tournament. "The County Center does an awesome job making the girls feel so special.

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