The Menlo Knights dueled against rival Sacred Heart Prep in three athletic games on Friday, Jan. 11. The three varsity-level games included a boys soccer game, a girls basketball game and a boys basketball game, all held back-to-back.

Overall, Menlo ended the night with one victory and two losses; girls basketball won 58-41, while the boys soccer and basketball teams both suffered nail-biting losses. Boys basketball lost 50-48 in overtime, and boys soccer lost 2-1.

BOYS SOCCER:

The first of the three games was a varsity boys soccer game held at SHP, resulting in a 2-1 loss. The SHP gators came out strong, while the Knights had trouble matching that same energy. After a Menlo turnover about 10 minutes into the game, SHP took control of the first half by scoring one goal and then another immediately after. The first half ended 2-0 with SHP in the lead.

Menlo, eager to get on the scoreboard, came back with more vitality in the second half. Around 10 minutes into the second half, junior Trevor Perez headed the ball past the gators’ goalie and senior Ben Lasky finished it off with a tap into the goal. “The team did a good job of staying resilient and not quitting despite the initial deficit,” Perez said.

After that, the Knights were hungry to tie the game, but ended up falling short. Sophomore Christian Corcoran came close to tying up the game with a header just barely over the crossbar in the last five minutes of the game.

Although the Knights did not get the outcome they set out for, they will have a chance for redemption when they face off against SHP at home on Feb. 2. “I think that if we continue to grow as a team we should have a good shot at beating SHP in our next encounter with them,” Perez said.

GIRLS BASKETBALL:

Following the soccer game, the rivalry moved into the Menlo gym, where the Menlo girls basketball team won 58-41 against the gators. The Knights came out ready to play with a strong first and last quarter.

In the first quarter, the Knights scored 19 points with the Prep trailing behind with a mere 8 points. SHP made the game much tighter in the second and third quarter though, scoring 22 points in both quarters while Menlo scored 14, making the score extremely close at 33-30. But, the Knights took off in the final quarter, ending the game strong with a final score of 58-41.

Junior Maeia Makoni was named player of the game as she scored 13 points in the fourth quarter to help secure the win. Makoni and sophomore Avery Lee both had game highs, scoring 18 points each.

Junior Bella Stuart is proud of the way the team started and ended this game, and is ready to see how well the team is going to do this season. “We are a young team full of talent and we are ready to take on season,” Stuart said.

The Knights are currently on a 12 game win streak, the second longest streak in Menlo girls basketball history. The girls will have a chance to continue this run in their next home game against Notre Dame Belmont on Jan. 16.

BOYS BASKETBALL:

To conclude the “rival night,” varsity boys basketball faced off against SHP, resulting in an overtime loss of 50-48.

By the end of the first quarter, Menlo led 9-4, but soon fell behind in the second quarter, where they only scored two points. At halftime, SHP led 15-11.

But the Knights did not give up. Late in the fourth quarter, Menlo came back from a 12-point deficit, creating a tied score at 42-42. From there, the Knights moved into overtime where the score was brutally close. Unfortunately, by the end of overtime, the Knights were behind by two, resulting in a 50-48 loss.

Junior Cole Kastner, who had 18 points, 12 rebounds and three steals, was a key player, along with senior Nate Solomon who had nine points. “Although we didn’t get the win we wanted this weekend, there were various bright spots during the games. I thought we showed good defensive intensity in spurts,” Kastner said.