GIFT OF GAB: Hun School girls’ basketball player Gabby D’Agostino goes in for a layup in recent action. Last Wednesday, sophomore guard D’Agostino scored 28 points to help Hun defeat Pennington 58-53 in double overtime. The Raiders, who moved to 7-10 with a 46-34 loss to Christian Academy Blue (Md.) last Saturday in the Rose Classic Super Jam in Brooklyn, N.Y., play at the Peddie School on January 17 and at the Blair Academy on January 23. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Gabby D’Agostino was looking to be a crowd-pleaser for the Hun School girls’ basketball team as it hosted the Pennington School last Wednesday.

“We only have five home games,” said sophomore guard D’Agostino, who transferred to Hun this year from New Hope-Solebury (Pa.). “So being able to have them show out, we really just want to win for them because we don’t get a lot of these.”

D’Agostino gave the home fans plenty to cheer about, pouring in 28 points as Hun rallied from a fourth quarter deficit to pull out a 58-53 win in double overtime.

The Raiders were expecting a tough battle against Pennington in the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) clash.

“It is a hard matchup, especially in the MAPL,” said D’Agostino. “I think we just found out what we needed to do and we got it done.”

D’Agostino got it done in the second overtime, hitting a clutch 3-pointer with 20 seconds left to put Hun up and then coolly drained four straight free throws to seal the deal.

“I saw an opening, I knew I had to take it,” said D’Agostino, referring to her 3-pointer. “If I couldn’t make it fine, but I did. I was glad to help my team.”

Coming to the foul line in the waning seconds of the contest, D’Agostino was primed to come through.

“Because I have put so much work in and I want to make sure that my teammates know that they can trust me in those situations, I tried to keep it cool,” said D’Agostino.

In D’Agostino’s view, the fan support helped pull the Raiders through the topsy-turvy contest.

“With the crowd and being home, we wanted to win so badly and we did it,” said D’Agostino. “Being on the road a lot and seeing how much our students and classmates like cheering us on, it is really a confidence builder.”

In making the transition to Hun, D’Agostino has quickly developed a comfort level with her new teammates and the school.

“It has been very, very good — they are so welcoming,” said D’Agostino. “I have only been here for four months, but I feel like I have known all of them my whole life. I am close with absolutely everyone on the team and that makes it so much easier in the classroom as well.”

On the court, D’Agostino is looking to trigger the Hun offense with her playmaking and scoring.

“It is whatever they need me to do, I am still kind of finding my footprint being halfway through the season,” said D’Agostino. “I have to facilitate a little bit more than I did at New Hope, and just do whatever I can do to get my teammates open shots. If I have an open shot, I am going to take it because it helps the team.”

D’Agostino believes that the team is getting on the same page. “The spacing is very good, being able to pass and cut through the lane and being able to have all of those open options,” said D’Agostino. “With them being able to find me and me being able to find them, it is very easy to work with.”

Hun head coach Sean Costello liked the way his players worked hard for the home fans.

“We are playing on the road a lot so I told them, ‘Let’s give them something to cheer for,’” said Costello. “They responded well in the second half. They played hard for them. It is great to be at home in front of friends and family. The student section was great.”

Costello was proud of how Hun responded at the defensive end as it dealt with a potent Red Hawk attack featuring high-scoring Morgan Matthews.

“We talk a lot about when we struggle offensively, that we can make up for it on the defensive end and give good energy,” said Costello. “We weren’t getting good looks and we were second-guessing some decisions, but we were able to really chip on the defensive end and get some stops and kind of grow into it.”

The play of D’Agostino has been a big plus for the Raiders. “Gabby hit some big shots; it is interesting, you forget sometimes that she is a sophomore,” said Costello. “We ask a lot of her. She is tough, that three at the end is a perfect example of who she is. She is as cool as it gets — just even the guts to take that three. I think that explains who she is as a player. We are lucky to have her, I think the kids play really well with her. There are kids sacrificing shots and roles and it is a really good team that we are working with.”

Hun gets good production in the paint against Pennington from the 1-2 punch of juniors Cee Jay Thomas and Amira Pinkett.

“It was the second game we have had Cee Jay and Amira working together,” said Costello, noting that Pinkett had been sidelined with an injury. “I think everyone is learning how to play with one another still within different lineups. Cee Jay was great — she was good on the glass, she ran the floor hard. Amira hasn’t been back very long with her injury. We were asking a lot of her defensively in the first half. We went a little smaller against Matthews and allowed her to play off the ball a little more — I think that helped her. Amira and Cee Jay will be a really good duo.”

Sophomore guard Sam Jolly exemplified the grit that Hun displayed at the defensive end.

“We always know what we are going to get out of her, she is going to put in a shift,” said Costello of Jolly. “She is going to work hard on defense, she is going to be scrappy, she is going to jump passing lanes. I think collectively defensively as a team in the second half, we gutted it out a little bit. I told them those are important wins; you don’t have to win pretty, you can win ugly.”

The Raiders, who moved to 7-10 with a 46-34 loss to Christian Academy Blue (Md.) last Saturday in the Rose Classic Super Jam in Brooklyn, N.Y., have been on the road a lot this winter, playing in showcases or tournaments at the Hill School (Pa.), Lansdale Catholic (Pa.), in the Washington D.C., area as well as two events in Brooklyn.

“We are trying to find the best competition that we can so that when we get into league play, the league tournament and the Mercer tournament, we have some experience against some really high level teams,” said Costello, whose team plays at the Peddie School on January 17 and at the Blair Academy on January 23.

In Costello’s view, his squad has been steeled by facing that competition.

“I think it is the growth, we still have a long way to go but I think we are learning to play with one another which morphed into who our identity is now,” said Costello. “We were playing really and fast shooting a ton of threes to start the year to get the tempo up. Now we can win ugly if we have to. If we are not hitting shots, we have to be able to defend and I think that is who we have become a little bit. We can get some stops and we are going to be alright because we have some offensive players where someone is going to hit a shot at some point.”

D’Agostino, for her part, believes that the victory over Pennington is a harbinger of good things to come for the Raiders.

“It is just making sure that was are always locked in right now,” said D’Agostino. “This win is going to really help us; it is a total confidence booster.”