HSMSE Girls' Basketball Finds Victory Within Defeat

The HSMSE's Girls Basketball season ended early after losing to the 35th seeded Clinton School Hawks in the first round of the PSAL Class B playoffs at the Nat Holman Gymnasium. To an outsider, this may seem like a failure; however, the 2019-20 season was a great improvement for the Dragons. Last season, HSMSE lost a majority of their games, completely missing the playoffs.

The Dragons were able to advance farther this year, largely due to alterations in their practice style and to changes within their division. Coach David Scheiman had the team practice more often, and introduced rigorous versions of previously used drills.

“[There were] a lot more practices, a lot more dedication, a lot more leadership,” Scheiman said. “[We had] more intensity, more in-game drills, more practices, and a lot more conditioning in there.”

HSMSE benefited from changes in the PSAL’s division alignment. They avoided playing seven of the eight teams they lost to last season.

“We’re in a division in which I think we could be more competitive than we were in the past,” he said. “Some of the other teams that got out of our division [were] notoriously some of the best teams in the B division.”

The team’s newfound resolve and motivation has them eager for the upcoming season. The girls have high hopes, believing they can go much farther with their new players.

"We still have many of our starting players and many new players that can help us achieve more than we did this season," sophomore guard Taylor Jeffery said.

The team’s aspirations of a winning season will not be easily achieved, but with the Dragons continuous hard work, dedication, and practice, their ambitions could very well become a reality.

- William Reusing also contributed to this story. 

Alex West: The rising dragon of HSMSE

Alex West has shown her potential this season as a junior for the High School For Math Science and Engineering’s girls' basketball team. Her impact on the team as a leader and valuable scorer played a large role throughout the season and in the playoffs. 

In the 2015-2016 season, West averaged only six points per game. She looked to her team for inspiration for the next season, specifically coach David Scheiman and team captain Annabelle Shultz.

“Mostly Annabelle and Scheiman [have helped me improve] because they knew I had the potential and I have finally been achieving what they always thought I could do,” West said.

West showed great improvement this season as she averaged 14 points per game and led the division in assists. The Lady Dragons finished the season 10-1 and faced Eleanor Roosevelt in their first playoff game, where they suffered a heartbreaking 50-45 loss. West performed well in the playoff contest, scoring 16 points and making key defensive stops.

She attributed their playoff appearance to the strength of the entire team. The team's chemistry improved as the season went along.

“This year we [were] more of a team even [when] we lost," she said. "We are bonded closer together. Scheiman has focused more on the technique behind our shooting and layups, so we have become more consistent and we have had better practice of this.”

Scheiman described technical improvements in West’s play that has raised her confidence on the court. As her role in the offense has grown, so has her output.

“Her dribbling, her shooting, and her on and off-court leadership [has improved], she has been very vocal on and off the court," Scheiman said. "She’s starting to come into her own and feels a lot more confident dribbling and shooting this year.”

As a coach, Scheiman saw potential and growth in West both on and off the court. Since freshman year he was impressed by her athleticism and fierce determination.

“On the court she’s a leader," he said. "She’s a fierce competitor and a lot of the other players will follow her on that effect. Off the court, she is the leader amongst her grade and people look up to her. So pretty much, for Alex for next year the girls [will] look up to her, so if she leads the way they will follow her."

West will be looking forward to playing her last season with the Lady Dragons next year. Scheiman has high expectations for her next season as a leader both on and off the court, as well emerging as a top player in the league with Shultz’s departure.

“I would like to see her anywhere from a 15 to 20 point scorer," Scheiman said. "I would like to see her averaging five rebounds per game. I think she can be a top player in the league, she’s very good in basketball and she can do that next year.”

Although she suffered a crushing loss in the playoffs after improving immensely, West held her head high in hopes of winning it all next year.

“We’ll practice harder, play harder, and I’ll do my best to lead the team,” she said.

HSMSE Girls' Basketball overcome injuries to make playoffs

During the 2015-2016 season the High School for Math, Science, and Engineering girls’ basketball managed third place in the Manhattan B West division. The HSMSE Dragons' managed an eight and five record while lead by the PSAL girls basketball leading scorer, Annabelle Shultz.

There has been a noticeable progression with this season’s team, as players have come to understand their roles. Having this young core of players allowed the team time to develop. Coach David Scheiman recognized being, “a year older,” as one of the changes to the team this year.

“We haven’t had much roster change this season," Scheiman said, "we don’t have many seniors.”

HSMSE Girls' Basketball Team / HSMSE Yearbook

The Dragons' faced a number of injuries during the season, including their two highest scorers, which impeded upon their success. When a team loses such a prolific scorer such as Shultz it is difficult to remain competitive. Shultz’s injury was soon accompanied by that of Hillary Rodriguez, the Dragons' second highest scorer, and later freshman Gabrijella Ceni. Scheiman feels that it is due to the fact that these injuries were sequential, rather than all at once, that the team was able to compete and make the post season.

“Thankfully, the injuries did not occur all at once," Scheiman said. "For example, when Annabelle went down it was right before winter break. She had time to rest. Then Hillary went down, but Annabelle was back. When Hillary came back, Gabby went down.”

The Dragons' realized what had to be done to make up for these injuries; greater responsibility was placed on the offensive core. Scheiman has constantly made coaching adjustments throughout the season.

“There always has to be adjustments,” he replied. “Someone has to step up … you have to prep them up in practice for what their new roles are going to be. Certain players have to bear the burden more.”

Players took initiative and motivated one another through the difficult patches. Players created a familial culture. Certain team members took on more of a leadership role during this season. Leaders assisted others in their role changes, often as a result of injuries.

“Were very family like … we keep pushing and cheering each other on. Even when someone is injured for a long period of time we just have to learn from that; some people just have to play a larger role on the team,” Shultz said.

Scheiman feels that the Dragons could have went farther into the playoffs if the team had remained healthy throughout the season. The team's core will remain largely intact next season. If the players remain healthy, the team will likely find more success next year come postseason.

Lady Dragons struggle through a tough season

Lady Dragons / Thomas Henning

The High School of Math Science and Engineering’s girls’ basketball team had a tough 2012 season. Even though the team was unable to win any games throughout the season, they were able to develop their skills and gain confidence in their capabilities.

The team compensated for their loss of seniors from last season by recruiting new players. Compared to last season, there were a record number of students trying out for the girls’ basketball team, “About 22 girls tried out for the team,” said the coach Nick Diunte.

Though vast in number, the players struggled with their positions on the court. “The team got nervous during games, dribbling, driving, and taking shots,” said team captain Leah Cabrera.

Towards the end of the season, the players showed that they were getting out of their shells and had increased their confidence. “They became more comfortable as the season went on because they had a greater idea of what to expect on the court,” said Diunte.

Despite their rough season, the players showed great promise. The team is developing chemistry; they cheer each other on and they are not afraid to make mistakes in order to improve and help each other grow. “The team needs to continue to improve their confidence and that will help with everything else,” said junior Mikaela Bloch.

Navigating their way through a losing season, the team was still able to further their skills, build strong bonds and gain confidence. Even though the girls did not win any games they created memorable moments and had fun playing. The team will need to continue to work on their skills and motivate each other in order to do better next season.

Contributed by : Dionys Gutierrez 

The Dragons disappoint the fans

The game between the Dragons of High SchoolFor Math, Science And Engineering and the East Side Community was a disappointing game as the Dragons lost by 36 on their home court. The ESC team played a brilliant first quarter. They made great passes and played great on offense. There were many fast breaks and they were quick to get on loose balls. The first quarter ended with the Dragons down by 14 and the score was 16-2.

However when the 2^nd quarter arrived there was a noticeable improvement from the Dragons. They played a much tighter defense and were able to make great passes. There were many opportunities but they were just unable to get the ball in the hoop. They started off the 2^nd quarter with two attempts and were quick to get the rebound. However they were just unable to score. Fans cheered as the Dragons made some great set-ups that brought the ball up court effectively but the fans were disappointed when the team was just unable to put the ball in. Coach Diunte for the Dragons shouted advice ferociously on the sidelines trying to help out the team. A few minutes into the game I recall the coach shouting, “Box!, Box!, Box!, Box!," as he tried to tell the players on court to box out.

The 2^nd quarter ended with ESC in the lead now by 20 and the score was 25-5.

Hands down the 3^rd quarter was the best quarter for the Dragons. Donna Fintz, was able to make a steal and made a quick layup to the hoop making the score 25-7. After that they played a tight defense and ESC’s first shot of the quarter was four minutes in. After that ESC made two more shots, one of them a free throw. The Dragons played a great quarter only letting ECS score five points. They were now down by 23 and the score was 30-7.

But I guess in their minds the Dragons knew they needed a miracle to win the game with only one quarter left and they were down by 23. In the last quarter the Dragons were unable to make a single shot and ESC was able to take control and score 13 points. In the last few minutes of the game, freshmen Omotayo Adeoye was put into the game. However soon after she was put in she collided into Zhu over a loose ball. And to top it off ESC took control with their zone defense and even made a shot and the buzzer.

After the game in a interview with the Dragons junior forward, Hannah Creutzfeldt jokingly answered, “Passing and everything,” when asked what could they improve on. But on a more serious note number 14, Bloch Mikaela a sophomore answered,” We could probably improve on passing and shooting.” Coach Diunte however was very proud of Zhu and said,”… Nancy played her most energetic game all season…,” when asked about the team’s performance.

The Dragons lose with pride, but have high hopes for the future

Courtesy of Tom Henning

Although the HSMSE Girls Varsity Basketball team lost to the Institute for Collaborative Education on Friday December 9th, 2011 by 13 points, they had an improvement in their offense. They also had indicators of what needed to be done to go forward and achieve more wins.

Normally, 16 points would be a low score in basketball, but it is a good sign for the Dragons. In their previous two games, they only had six points each game and a combined total of six offensive rebounds. "I think it's a great improvement. I see a lot of us trying harder now and being more focused and putting in more energy and taking time to see what's happening," said Leah Cabrera. They made more shots with the opportunities that they had, including two three-pointers that helped boost their offense.

The game also gave some hints on what to improve in the future. There was only two offensive rebounds, which obviously will not get them far. "A shot goes off and some people are just kinda watching the person shooting, which is typical of high school basketball, but I think it's a problem," said Nick Diunte, the coach of the Dragons. They also need to improve their passing game if they want to continue to improve. Their weak passing game has caused turnovers and has resulted in the ball being easily intercepted. "I feel like we just have to get stronger and more accurate passes and that'll help get the game flowing better," said Donna Fintzi.

Despite their loss, they have made vital improvements and now know what they need to do to progress further. The loss will also not have an impression on their future games. Donna said, "We're improving ... I think we tried our hardest."

Female dragons break a season record

Courtesy of Tom Henning

The High School for Math, Science and Engineering Girls Varsity Basketball team achieved their highest points scored in a game this season in a 29-16 loss to Institute for Collaborative Education on December 9th, 2011.

One of the biggest problems for the Dragons was their passing. The Dragons would usually either overpower a pass or misinterpret a player’s path when passing to each other. Many fast breaks for the Dragons were ended by these little errors. “I feel that next practice we are probably going to take a step back and focus on like the mechanics of the pass a little bit more and then add passing under pressure a bit,” said head coach Nick Diunte.

With a close score near the end of the first quarter, ICE began a full court press. The press proved troubling for the Dragons as ICE began to cause several turn overs near the rim. To make up for these turn overs, the Dragons double teamed the ICE players, but the fast breaks sometimes proved too quick for this. Once the clock finally finished its countdown, the Dragons saw themselves down 8-2.

ICE went through the second quarter causing many fouls, but the Dragons only managed to score two out of seven of the free throws, one of which was to convert a three point play. The problem with this is that those were the only points the Dragons could get during the quarter which ended 15-6.

The third quarter was the most productive quarter for the Dragons. Not only did the defense stop ICE from scoring for more than four minutes, but the Dragons’ offense erupted. After having been double teamed for a while, Fintzi scored an impressive three pointer four minutes into the quarter to send the crowd cheering.

The Dragons continued to score and even managed to put up more points in the quarter than they had in their past two games. This was only accomplished when Mikaela Bloch connected with a three point shot at the buzzer to bring the score to 25-14.

With the Dragons finally getting used to the ICE offense, other than limiting ICE to only four points for the fourth quarter, the Dragons also managed to finally gain an offensive rebound with four minutes left in the game.

A playoff run is out of the question, but Leah Cabrera, HSMSE’s captain, looked at this game as a good sign. “I think it's a great improvement. I see a lot of us trying harder now and being more focused and putting in more energy and taking time to see what's happening.”

Tough Season for Lady Dragons

Coptsias leads the attack / T. Henning

This season has been one of rebuilding for the HSMSE Lady Dragons Basketball Team. The Lady Dragons 3-13 finish was a decline from last year's 7-9 record. “Last season was more successful but I believe that is only because majority of the players had been playing with each other for at least a year so we knew each other's strengths and weaknesses and played off of that,” said Chartia Coptsias, the current team captain and four year starter at the point guard position.


Despite their struggles, the team stuck together throughout the entire season. “The strength was our team chemistry. We got along with each other,” said senior forward Rija Baig. Our seniors averaged solid numbers. Leading the scoring attack for the Dragons were seniors Shaquasia Myrie (9.7 ppg) and Chartia Coptsias (9.5 ppg). Rahshel Brown led the team in rebounding with 7.1 boards per game.


There were a few brave freshmen who joined the team and put in the time to get better. Donna FintziMikaela Bloch both attended the practices and games, and had the desire to learn how to improve in basketball “With the help of Mr.Diunte, the team has improved in both basic shooting and dribbling skills,” stated Fintzi. and


The most memorable game from the season was the blowout win against Chelsea Career on December 21st. The team as a whole was firing on all cylinders and playing united. Coptsias scored 20 points that game and Myrie contributed 11 points giving the Dragons their second victory of the season.


The seniors graduating in June will leave big shoes to fill, as they dominated the playing time on the court. The rest of the team and other interested students will need to use the off-season to practice their skills to be able to fill the playing time of this year’s seniors.