Timely rebounding and just enough defense proved effective for the Derby Red Raiders Friday night as they eked out their fourth straight victory and clinched a spot in the state Class S girls basketball playoffs.
The Derby girls’ work on defense and grabbing Wolcott missed shots in the second half helped the Red Raiders to a 44 – 39 victory over the visiting Eagles.
Mary Hyde led the way for Derby with 17 points, including a crucial score on a long range inbound pass to widen Derby’s lead to four with 30 seconds left in the contest.
Derby started slowly and finished the first quarter trailing 9 – 7.
The Raiders eventually stepped into the game and took the lead early in the second quarter. Hyde again was prominent, hitting a 3‑pointer before time expired in the first half to give the Raiders a 19 – 18 advantage.
The third quarter was just as tight for the teams, but Derby managed to get some distance on Wolcott with about three minutes left in the third with a 6 – 0 run with about 2 minutes left in that period.
Wolcott stayed close for most of the game by keeping the ball inside with Ally McDonald (18 points) and Meghan Dunn (16 points).
Dunn gave Wolcott at 34 – 33 lead with 4:20 left. Hyde and fellow senior Heather Smith carried the load for the Raiders in the final quarter, scoring 11 points between them. Smith also converted a pair of free throws after Hyde stole a Wolcott inbound pass.
Derby Head Coach David Chevarella sounded happy to escape, though he’d like to see his team work more on contesting shots more often.
Chevarella said the team did a decent job pressing the Eagles on defense to create turnovers, but his Raiders still have things to work on. While the win was not what he’d call beautiful, Chevarella and his team will take it.
“They’re not pretty once again. We do what we gotta do to win the game,” he said.
Chevarella praised Hyde for playing through some sickness and her will to win.
“She’s a competitor,” Chevarella said.
Smith, who scored 12 points, credited the win to her team pushing hard.
“Last game we had to battle back. We were down by eight, too. We battled back and won against Ansonia. We’ve just got to stay with it,” Smith said. “The next three games are going to be hard. We have to play better than we did tonight.”
Chevarella hopes Smith will gain more confidence and assert herself more on offense to alleviate pressure on Hyde. “If we can get that second person to be more consistent, it will be a plus for us,” he said.
Wolcott Head Coach Rick Laferriere credited Derby for its play and was critical of his team for not cashing in when Hyde was taking a breather.
“Derby wanted it a little more than us. A lot of loose balls in the first half killed us. They get loose balls, they get second shots,” Laferriere said. “We had a 5‑point lead, he takes his leading scorer out and we can’t make hay.”
Derby’s win puts the Red Raiders at 8 – 7, qualifying them for the state Class S playoffs.
Chevarella said his team would have to win about two more games in order to qualify for the Naugatuck Valley League tournament.
Derby’s next game is at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Woodland.
