1st State Title for Yonkers Since 1932
By Dan Murphy
Congratulations to the Yonkers Montessori Academy girls basketball team, who went up to Albany for the Final Four and came out with the NYS Class B Championship!
The YMA Lady Eagles are the first Girls Varsity Basketball team EVER to win a state championship, and they are the first high school team from Yonkers to win a state title since 1932.
The first final four game for the Lady Eagles was on March 20 against Mechanicville High School. All facets of their game were on as YMA rolled to a 67-38 win, a very unusual score for a final four game, with the Lady Eagles defense shutting down Mechanicville
The next day, March 21, was the Class B Championship against Chenango Forks HS. YMA had never been this far before, and Chenango was the favorite. Many speculated that it was a great season for YMA to get this far.
But the Lady Eagles stormed out to a 9-0 lead with 3, 3 pointers, and they led for most of the game.
All of the Lady Eagles starters played a great game: Liliana Toro, Emilee Doherty, Keira Peters, Grace Gleeson, and 8th grader Arsela Mustafaj, coming off the bench.
Chenango came back late in the 4th quarter to tie the game, which went into overtime. Credit the Lady Eagles for never losing focus or getting nervous in the biggest game of their lives.
After the game, as their bus arrived in Yonkers, the Lady Eagles were welcomed by a Yonkers Police Department escort.
“Congrats to the Yonkers Montessori Academy girls basketball team who brought home the NYSPHSAA Class B State Championship title yesterday!
“They got back late, but YPD and YFD were there to meet them as they got off the highway and escort them back to school to the cheers of parents, fans, and neighbors! Congrats girls!” wrote the YPD.
In his state of the City Mayor Mike Spano congratulated the team, who was in attendance for his address in the Riverfront Library auditorium.
Some comments included:
Kevin Devaney-Game one day broadcaster and a big high school basketball reporter in Westchester. “I never thought I’d see the day. But a Yonkers City school has won a state basketball championship. Unbelievable what @YMA_GirlsHoops has done with this program.
Another comment, “When you form a culture and invest in your team anything is possible.” One man is responsible for building the YMA Lady Eagles into a high school basketball powerhouse! That is head coach Elie Moise.
Coach Moise has been able to bring together a group of young girls, with only one senior graduating this year, #32 Arsela Mustafaj, and win a State Championship.
Last year YMA made it into the playoffs and was on a mission to make it upstate for the Final Four. And they did it and won it all!
Coach Elie has the girls believing they can win every game they go into. And they play great defense and work together as a team. They support each other and it is truly a team effort.
And yes, let’s let the Lady Eagles and Coach Elie relish their State Title, but the future is bright for YMA, with almost every player coming back, and another 8th grader coming who is also special, so I’m told.
Congratulations!
