Bethlehem Catholic’s girls basketball team had all kinds of motivation to win its season opener against Liberty, 53-35, on Dec. 6 at Liberty.

“We remembered those losses from last year, and that was a huge motivator,” said Becahi senior guard Ella Bincarosky, whose 3-pointer put the Golden Hawks on the scoreboard on their first possession. “It was just nice to come out, score first, and it kind of set the tone for the game. I expected them to come out scrappy, and they wanted to win. We just wanted to win more.”

It was also the first win for new Becahi head coach Arnold Alleyne.

“First high school win, and I’m very proud of the girls,” Coach Alleyne said. “When Liberty came back, they were able to hold strong and continued to battle.”

The Hurricanes started a comeback in the second quarter, outscoring the Hawks, 15-8, that included an 11-0 run and six straight points from Abby Thompson, breaking through Becahi’s full-court pressure.

“That’s our identity,” Alleyene said, regarding the Hawks’ press early in the game. “We know Ava (Kopetskie) is a very strong player, and what hurt us was her passing to the big (Shanna Beatty). She came to play, and that caused us to have to adjust. We had to change our game, so then we were able to withstand their run.”

Liberty’s Ruby Miller tied the game, 25-25, to start the third quarter, but the Hawks maintained the lead as the Hurricanes missed three opportunities to tie again at the end of the third.

“It was a little rough,” said Liberty coach Jarrett Carnes. “They knew we wanted to get the ball to Ava, so they were giving her a great time out there, but I felt like we were breaking it pretty well, and we just couldn’t execute, so we were making it difficult on ourselves for not staying patient and working our half-court offense.”

Becahi guard Leah Ault put up four points to start the fourth quarter, and that was only the beginning of what would become a dominant eight minutes by the Hawks.

“We made a few adjustments, defensively, and we had the game if we wanted it,” Bincarosky said.

Akasha Santos and Aliyah Brame combined for 11 straight points, topped off by Bincarosky’s 3-pointer to seal the game.

“I felt like we kind of got tired, there were a couple things that didn’t go our way, we started to lose our focus, but Game 1, there’s gonna be some wrinkles,” Coach Carnes said. “We’ll iron them out and be ready to go the rest of the season.”

On the Hawks’ side of the court was the quiet satisfaction of a motivated victory over a city rival.

“One thing we talked about was linking together and staying strong together,” said Allyene. “I was very proud of the kids.”