HOPEWELL TOWNSHIP– The want, the effort and at times the execution were all there, unfortunately it didn’t result in a win.
Last night, the Hopewell HS Girls basketball team hosted the Beaver Falls Tigers and lost 57-44.
The Lady Vikings competed hard for all 4 quarters but in the end, they came up short.
As we’ve written, this 2025-26 team has a limited to injuries and other circumstances, so Coach Homziak only has 8 players, with the 3 players on the bench all being freshman.
A big story in last night’s game I believe was fatigue. Beaver Falls used a full-court press and pressure man-man defense for the entire game. For the first two quarters, Hopewell handled it Ok but in the second half, that wasn’t the case. As the game went on, the players made a few more turnovers, which resulted in easy BF baskets, along with missing some shots in the paint and free throws that they’d normally make.
For the most part, six players were used on the court and its only human nature to get tired.
This will be a learning year for the players as they’ll no doubt improve throughout the year. A few players that stood out to me were-
1) Avery Boyd. I’m not positive but she might have played the entire game without leaving the court. Boyd was Hopewell’s best player last night as she did a tremendous job dribbling the ball up court and beating the Beaver Falls pressure. The junior guard was also the Vikings most aggressive and productive player getting the ball to the rim. Boyd also did a nice job dribbling and running Hopewell’s offense when they were in their half-court offense.
Hopewell’s Avery Boyd
2) Ava Ray– I was able to watch Ray a number of times over the last couple of years while she was on the junior high team and was curious to see her on the varsity level. She did not disappoint. Ava was the first person off the Vikings bench and although she didn’t get heavy minutes, she made positive things happen when on the court. She was a big help in breaking the press because of her ball handling skills and speed. Ray had a career-high 7 points, all of which were strong drives to the rim for layups. The thing that impressed me the most was the “dog in her”. In other words, Ray had zero fear despite playing against a team that was a lot bigger than her. She got after it on the defense end with tight man-to-man pressure and for the most part, was strong with the ball and wasn’t afraid to try and make things happen.
Hopewell’s Ava Ray
3) Lili Enders– Enders was the second player off the Hopewell bench and despite not receiving a ton of time, when she was on the court, you saw things that got you encouraged. First and foremost, when entering the game in the second quarter, while I don’t have the exact number, Enders pulled down at least 5 or 6 rebounds in a short period of time. That’s no small feat considering the size that the Beaver Falls roster possessed. Enders is only a freshman but if she can continue to be aggressive on the boards, that would be a valuable asset for this team and would likely earn her more minutes. Like with Ray, I’ve watched Enders play the last couple of years and she has offensive skills as well, it’ll just take time for them to develop at the varsity level.
HOPEWELL/BEAVER FALLS GAME RECAP:
1ST QUARTER-
-Hopewell breaks the press and Boyd with strong drive to the rim and gets fouled shooting (1 of 2). Hopewell 1-0
-Boyd makes a layup and is fouled, Hopewell 3-2
-Hopewell breaks the press, Boyd is fouled shooting layup, Hopewell 5-5.
-Cici Smetana dribbles into paint, passes back out to Hannah McDowell, who connects on a corner jumper, 7-7.
-Addison Blosnick with a steal and goes in for a coast-to-coast layup, Hopewell 9-7.
-Smetana with an offensive rebound, Blosnick with a miss shot but McDowell gets rebound and layup, Hopewell 11-7.
-Hopewell in transition and McDowell uses her length to go up and catch the pass, brings it down and converts a layup (really nice athleticism), Hopewell 13-9.
END OF 1ST QUARTER: HOPEWELL 13 BEAVER FALLS 9
2ND QUARTER-
-Boyd with another nice, strong take to the paint, passes off to Blosnick, who is fouled while shooting (1-2), Beaver Falls 15-14
-Fast break, McDowell with a nice pass up the court to Ray, who races to the paint for a layup, Hopewell 17-15
-Enders with a rebound, eventually Boyd knocks down a 3-pointer, Hopewell 20-15
*This was the turning point of the game as Beaver Falls went on a 13-0 run to end the half.
HALFTIME: BEAVER FALLS 28 HOPEWELL 20
3RD QUARTER-
-Nice in-bounds play, Boyd to McDowell for a layup, Beaver Falls 28-22
-Boyd with a nice dump down pass to Blosnick in the paint, who finishes, BF 31-24
-Boyd from the top of the key, drives to her left for a left-handed layup, BF 38-27
-Ray with a steal at midcourt and drives to the other end for a layup, BF 42-29
END OF 3RD QUARTER: BEAVER FALLS 42 HOPEWELL 29
4TH QUARTER-
Hopewell’s Addison Blosnick
-Inbounds play, Ray gets it to Blosnick, who finishes with a nice across the lane floater, BF 42-31
-McDowell with a miss, Blosnick with the offensive rebound and layup, BF 44-33
-Hopewell transition, Boyd with strong drive, passes off to Ray, who goes in for a layup, BF 50-36
-Following a BF miss, Blosnick races to the other end for a layup, BF 50-38
-Following a BF miss, McDowell with a nice pass to Allison Ramaley, who converts a layup, BF 50-41
-Last basket of the game, McDowell with a steal at midcourt and gets to the other end for a layup, BF 55-44
FINAL SCORE: BEAVER FALLS 57 HOPEWELL 44
The Hopewell Girls basketball team returns to the court tomorrow as they travel to take on Lincoln Park.
