Basketball season is underway and both Nease and Ponte Vedra have tasted their share of wins in the early going.
The Panthers girls have started the year 5-2, including commanding victories over Oakleaf and Bartram Trail.
Sydney Gomes led the way with 28 points and 11 rebounds en route to a 64-50 win over Oakleaf Nov. 29, while Camryn Robinson connected on three of six shots from long range for 15 points.
The Panthers then followed it up with a 73-55 victory against Bartram Trail Dec. 3, in which senior Allison Fifield posted a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds and Robinson scored 20 points of her own.
Despite the team dropping to 0-1 in district 4-6A following a 50-42 loss to St. Augustine Dec. 7, Gomes surpassed 2,000 career points with a team-high 20-point performance.
The Sharks girls basketball squad have bounced back nicely after two consecutive closes losses by beating Providence, 57-39, and Riverside, 47-31.
The Sharks have kept their last three opponents to less than 40 points, which usually presents an excellent opportunity to score especially with the balanced scoring attack the Sharks have showcased thus far.
Morgan Gavazzi and Kennedy Rosendahl each scored 13 points against Providence Dec. 3 and Regan Chappell was not far behind with 11 points of her own.
Against Riverside Dec. 7, it was senior Paige Hulihan who led the team with 12 points, including a pair of three-pointers.
On the boys side of things, the Sharks are off to a 4-0 start and have shown the ability to win tight games down the stretch after defeating the rival Panthers 52-48, Dec. 3, and Providence 53-48, Dec. 7.
The Sharks had four players finish in double figures scoring against the Panthers with Ross Candelino’s 14 points leading the way. Luke Pirris and Nathan Bunkosky each had 11, while J.T. Kelly had 10.
Kelly had a hot shooting night against Providence, especially from three-point range, where he buried six of 10 attempts en route to a team-high 20 points.
The Panthers are 3-2 and rediscovered its winning ways after the loss to the Sharks with a 47-43 home win over Oakleaf Dec. 7.
Senior guard Logan Ryan continued to be a force for the Panthers on the offensive end with 19 points against the Knights.
