Emmaus head coach Kelsey Gallagher had a simple message for her girls’ basketball team following their season-opening loss on Saturday afternoon at ‘The Hive.’
“Obviously, it was the first game and we’re still trying to figure some things out after having so many practices so the message was take this game, learn from it and let’s get better.”
Playing infront of their home fans to begin one of the most anticipated season’s in recent history, the Hornets certainly had their hands full facing a young, but talented Wilson squad from Berks County and their star player Laila Jones.
The sophomore guard, one of four 10th graders in the Bulldogs lineup, put on a show scoring half of her team’s points and finishing with a career-high 30 as Wilson pulled away from Emmaus in the second half to earn a 60-45 road win.
A BCIAA All-County League performer a year ago, Jones scored 17 of her points in the first half and 11 in the fourth quarter alone as Wilson avenged for a 17 point loss (38-21) to Emmaus a year ago by opening up their season with a 15-point win. It was the second time in the last three years that the Bulldogs have defeated the Hornets on their home court.
“I think Jones was super impactful and she’s a really nice player and if she wasn’t scoring she was probably assisting on most if not all the other points,” said Gallagher who’s beginning her seventh year at Emmaus. “We needed to be more tuned in defensivley and knowing where she was at all times but also being where we need to be on the floor to limit her passes which turned into layups.
“Overall discipline offensively and defensively has to come and be much better if we want to move on from what we did last year.”
After allowing just 42 points per game a season ago, Emmaus struggled to come up with stops on the defensive end as they gave up 29 points in the first half and 31 in the second.
Despite that, the Hornets still found themselves very much in the game as they trailed by just four at the half and eight after three quarters.
But the Bulldogs were able to withstand Emmaus’ comeback and pull away for the victory with Jones leading the way and being unstoppable for most of the game.
“I told the girls afterwards be mad about the result,” said Gallagher. “We’re not happy about the outcome and that’s how it should be but don’t let it take over. Learn from it, regroup and let’s get back to it on Monday.”
In a losing effort, freshman Kayla Snyder shined in her varsity debut as she scored a team-high 16 points.
“I thought Kayla did a really nice job,” said Gallagher. “I think the only time she came off the floor was when she got herself into some foul trouble. She’s our point guard and she got us into our offense and made some really big shots and she was also tasked with the primary responsibility of guarding Jones. At times she looked exhausted but she was still producing so all in all she did what we expected of her and I’m proud of her effort.”
Junior Cassie Doemling also reached double figures for the Hornets finishing with 11 points, while seniors Mya Cooper and Taylor Griffith each chipped in seven.
Sophomore Violet Houck added 11 points for the Bulldogs who shot 74 percent (17 of 23) from the free throw line compared to the Hornets who struggled at 50 percent (9 of 18).
Emmaus will look to bounce back on Wednesday at 7 p.m. as they host Northampton in their Eastern Pennsylvania Conference opener. The game will be carried LIVE on The Eastern Pa. Sports Network beginning with the pregame show at 6:40 p.m.
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Wilson 60, Emmaus 45
Wil – Violet Houck 5 1-3 11, Laila Jones 7 14-15 30, Jasilyn Moncada 0 0-0 0, Laura Crocona 3 1-2 8, Emma Williams 2 1-3 5, Janal Tisdale 3 0-0 6, McKenna Peacock 0 0-0 0, Janal Tisdale 3 0-0 6, Kylee Evans 0 0-0 0, Ryan Leaman 0 0-0 0. Totals: FG 20, FT 17-23, 3s (3) – Jones 2, Crocona
Em – Mya Cooper 3 1-3 7, Kayla Snyder 6 1-3 16, Gabby DeVita 1 0-0 2, Taylor Griffith 2 1-2 7, Cassie Doemling 2 4-6 8, Sofie Laird 1 0-0 3, Julia Adams 0 0-0 0, Sylvia Sokolofski 0 1-2 1, Emma Naccarato 0 1-2 1, Olive Whitney 0 0-0 0. Totals: FG 15, FT 9-18, 3s (6) – Snyder 3, Griffith 2, Laird
Wil – 11-18-11-20 – 60
Em – 12-13-7-13 – 45
JV: Em 31-22