The Westport girls basketball team celebrated their seniors by blasting Bishop Connolly 70-18 at the high school on Friday night. The Wildcats went 2-1 this week, losing to Case 63-50 on Monday and beating Avon 44-14 on Wednesday to improve their record to 15-4. 

Senior guard Leah Sylvain and junior guard Korynne Holden each scored 24 points to lead Westport in the onslaught. Sylvain drained six 3-pointers, two in the first half and four in the second. Holden scored 17 of her 24 points in the second quarter, mostly driving to the basket on fast breaks. The junior also sank a pair of 3-pointers, one in each half. Sophomore guard Julia George scored 7 points. Dirt dogs Sarah Perry and Meghan Molloy each netted 6 points. Jenna Egbe and Gigi Mendes each added 2 and Shelby Orr sank a free throw. 

Westport muzzled Bishop Connolly with their fierce defensive press, allowing just 3 points in the first half. The Wildcats gave the Cougars fits just getting the ball to half court. When they did get though, Bishop Connolly had the difficulty of dealing with forwards Perry, Molloy and Egbe to get to the basket. 

The Westport captains have been leading the team in the four major categories. Sylvain currently has 296 points for the year with one game to go in the regular season. She has accumulated 1328 points in her high school career as she started playing varsity as a seventh grader. The senior guard also grabbed 50 rebounds this season, dished out 46 assists and made 84 steals. 

Holden scored 265 points, pulled down 61 rebounds, gave out 26 assists and made 74 steals. Perry scored 145 points, grabbed 107 rebounds, made 15 assists and 28 steals.

Wildcats celebrate their seniors 

Westport celebrated their seniors before the game. Pep band director Chris Nunes spoke of his four seniors, Cadence Tavares, Olivia Morris, Molly Bazinet and Ethan Tripp. Then the Wildcats announced seniors Shelby Orr and Leah Sylvain to the court. They promenaded with family members to center court and received flowers and gifts before head coach Jen Gargiulo spoke glowingly about their efforts. She thanked Orr for her dedication and commitment and heralded her for being an outstanding teammate. 

“You have come to practice ready to learn and pushed yourself to be the best player you can be. You are a leader for the younger players and have shown the way with hard work and a smile.”

She came to tears speaking of Sylvain, a player that grew up before her eyes.

“Leah for the past six seasons you have led your team as their point guard. I have had the honor of watching you grow on and off the court. As a captain, you have transformed into an unbelievable leader. Your effort and grit on the court never ceases to amaze me…You are a special player #4. You will ever leave a mark on my heart. I am so proud of the person you have become.”

She thanked both players for being role models that future Wildcats could look up too. 

Playoffs

The Wildcats are currently ranked seventh in Division 5 with one regular season to go according to the Mass interscholastic league website. The Wildcats host Wareham on Tuesday, Feb 21, at 6:30 p.m. in their last game of the regular season and are currently marked to host a playoff game on Friday March 3.