On The Way To The County Championships: Tappan Zee 65, Albertus Magnus 57

The Tappan Zee Flying Dutchmen locked up a spot in the Rockland County Championships with a 65–57 win at home over the Albertus Magnus Falcons Monday at Tappan Zee.

The game got off to a rocky start for both sides. Turnovers came before made baskets early in the first quarter. The two teams traded three pointers to start off the scoring on consecutive possessions, which settled both offenses down and got them running properly.

Jack Sullivan and Arnelle Dandridge both scored 10 in the first half to lead the Falcons' offense and Pat Peterson was the lone Dutchmen in double digits in the half with 10 points of his own.

It was really a tale of two halves between the Dutchmen and Falcons. The first half was tight, with Albetus taking a 30–28 halftime lead.

“Both defenses are playing well,” said Tappan Zee Head Coach George Gaine at halftime. “It is an emotional game. Both teams are giving it everything they have.”

“We need to take better care of the ball,” said Falcons Head Coach Pat McFadden. “If you turn it over in the second half you’re coming out.”

The Dutchmen came out and won the third quarter 16 – 10 and sent them into the fourth quarter leading 44 – 40.  At that point in the game, Tappan Zee made six of six from the free-throw line and Albertus was only one of two.

The Dutchmen continued their superior offensive play at the start of the fourth quarter as they went on an 11–2 run which put them up 55–42 with only five minutes left to play.

"We came out with a lot of energy in the fourth," said Tappan Zee's Taj Vines. "We had to pick it up, we were kind of flat earlier on. It was close there for a while and coach put us in position but we had to execute or we would have went down."

The Falcons rallied to make it close with their shooting from long range. Sullivan, who scored a team-high 19 points, made two three-pointesr and his compatriot Dandridge, who finished with 17, made another to pull the Falcons within three with two minutes remaining.

Tappan Zee’s Patterson was not to be denied. He pulled up and sank a pair of clutch three-pointers and made all four of his free throws down the stretch to give Tappan Zee a lead they would not relinquish.

The Dutchmen shot 15 free throws (nine in the fourth quarter) and made them all while the Falcons went just 7 for 10 from the charity stripe.

“I’ve got to tip my hat to them,” McFadden said. “They have a solid team. They made shots and got stops when they needed to and we didn’t.”

The Dutchmen were certainly flying high as they clinched a spot in the Rockland County Championships with the victory.

“It was hard for us in the first half,” Gaine said. “We made some adjustments and tried to move the ball around against the zone. It is great to get a win against a good team like Albertus.”

Pat Peterson scored a game high with 25 points, Vines finished with 17 and Ryan O’Rourke had a dozen.

The Dutchmen play North Rockland for the Rockland County Championship Saturday at Clarkstown South.

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