Bethlehem graduate Jenna Giacone of Dayton women's basketball goes to the basket against Duquesne in January.
Erik Schelkun/Elsestar Images
Jenna Giacone has been solid all season long for the Dayton women’s basketball team, but the redshirt senior has really caught fire in the Flyers’ past four games.
The 6-foot-1 guard from Delmar and a Bethlehem High graduate has led the team to a 10-1 record with a 9-0 mark in the Atlantic 10 Conference after an easy 95-66 league victory over La Salle last Sunday in Philadelphia. Giacone played just 27 minutes but led the team with 17 points along with eight rebounds and four assists.
Giacone leads the Flyers in scoring with a 13.1 average but has averaged 18.0 points since she scored 20 in a 68-51 league triumph over St. Bonaventure on Jan. 31. She came back with another 20 points in a 59-52 overtime victory against St. Louis on Feb. 2. She’s averaging 4.7 rebounds with 24 assists but averaged 5.7 rebounds with 13 assists in the past four games. And, she has connected on 11 of 22 3-pointers in that span.
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Prior to this season, Giacone was the team’s go-to player off the bench having played 74 games in reserve in three seasons.
Victoria Whimple (Castleton)
Was named to the SUNYAC All-Decade team in women’s track for her efforts with Plattsburgh. The Maple Hill graduate competed for just one season (2018-19) but earned All-American honors when she finished seventh in the triple jump at the NCAAs in 2019. Three Cortland and three Oneonta athletes were named. Cortland had middle-distance runner Kailyn Balzano of East Greenbush (Columbia High), multi athlete Nikki Schafer of Troy (Columbia High) and multi athlete Dana Kupiec of Salem (Salem Central). Oneonta’s selections were distance runner Alyssa Drapeau of Glenville (Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High), hurdler Liz Maziejka of Fort Edward (Hudson Falls High) and middle-distance runner Rachael Shine of Clifton Park (Shenendehowa High). Brockport chipped in with thrower Jessica Craven of Waterford (Shenendehowa High) and thrower Nichole Jones of West Charlton (Galway Central).
Mikey McElroy (Saratoga Springs)
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Was named to the SUNYAC All-Decade team in men’s basketball for his standout play with the Oneonta men’s basketball team from 2013-17. The Saratoga High graduate finished his career as the team’s career scoring leader with 1,754 points. McElroy’s sister Staci was named to the All-Decade team in women’s basketball. A member of the Buffalo State squad, she finished her career in 2014 with 1,412 points and 691 rebounds. New Paltz graduate Kit Small of Slingerlands (Holy Names) was also named to the women’s squad. She finished her career with 1,344 points and 622 rebounds.
Kelsey Wood (Wynantskill)
The 6-1 freshman is coming into her own for the 5-5 Sacred Heart women’s basketball team. The Averill Park High graduate scored a college career 14 points with six rebounds in a 79-71 victory over Mount St. Mary’s on Jan. 15 and had 10 points and a college career-high 13 rebounds in a 68-42 triumph over Central Connecticut on Jan. 28. Wood came up with another double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds in a 70-56 victory over Central Connecticut on Jan. 30.
Zac Zwijacz (Saratoga Springs)
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The Penn State junior had a good prep heading into the Big Ten Conference men’s swim championship March 3-6 in Columbus, Ohio. The Saratoga High graduate helped the Nittany Lions close out the regular season with a 108-54 league victory over Michigan State last Saturday in University Park, Pa. He captured the 100 butterfly in 49.52 seconds and finished third in both the 200 freestyle (1:45.99) and the 200 butterfly (1:59.62). He also swam a leg on the winning 400 medley relay, which posted a time of 3:17.28.
Kasey Kearney (Altamont)
The freshman, a Guilderland High graduate, is competing with the Buffalo women’s swim team. In a 175-68 victory over Duquesne on Jan. 29 in Pittsburgh, Kearney scored points in all three of her events. She finished third in the 100 breaststroke in 1:07.91, fifth in the 50 breaststroke in 32.18 and fifth in the 200 IM in 2:12.96. She swam but didn’t score as the Bulls topped Akron 169-131 last Friday in a Mid-American Conference meet in Buffalo. The Zips are the defending league champion.
