Weiner Tournament Wrap Up

Girls Championship Game

For the second year in a row, host Beth Tfiloh and visiting Hyman Brand of Kansas were matched up against one another for the Weiner Tournament Championship. While this year's Lady Rams did not have the same firepower as the 2008 championship edition due to graduation, BT also faced adversity, forced to play without star senior Judy Gerstenblith, who suffered an unfortunate knee injury after being unanimously selected First Team All-Tournament upon the conclusion of the round robin.

At halftime, it looked like Hyman Brand was getting more clutch performances, as Second Team All-Tournament point guard Shira Levine had led the Lady Rams to an 18-14 lead with an impressive array of scoring moves. Unfortunately for Hyman Brand, BT only used the halftime deficit as motivation. The Lady Warriors came out red hot in the second half, seizing the lead early in the third quarter and never looking back. Hyman Brand fought admirably in an attempt to win its third consecutive Weiner Tournament, but the three-peat was not in the cards. Superb shooting, excellent defense, and great use of the clock down the stretch combined to equal a BT championship!

There was no shortage of heroes for BT. Senior Jen Holzman did her utmost to replace some of Judy’s scoring, finishing with a career-high 10 points! Sara Hervitz, who was named Second Team All-Tournament, was a force inside, finishing the game with 15 points. Sara also did a great job shutting down Hyman Brand forward Hannah Towle, who made First Team All-Tournament. Michelle Safferman joined Sara on the Second Team All-Tournament roster and played outstanding defense in the championship contest. Sophomore Jackie Lebau also helped out on the offensive end with several jumpshots and great free throw shooting. Despite all these contributions and a total team effort, it was Lindsay Harris who was named the tournament co-MVP for her unflappable leadership, clutch shooting, and toughness inside. Hyman Brand's Levine was the other co-MVP, finishing the championship with a game-high 16 points. The victory was the fourth Weiner Tournament championship for the BT girls, leaving the Warriors tied with the Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto for the most championships in tournament history. Way to go BT!

Congratulations are in order for Head Coach Sonya Howell and her Assistant Coach, BT alum Stacy Hollander; this winning pair was also responsible for the 1999 and 2000 BT championships with Coach Howell on the bench and Coach Hollander on the court!

Boys Championship Game

After a pair of emotional, down-to-the-wire semifinals, the Boys Weiner Tournament saw the host Warriors take on Miami's Hillel Hurricanes. There was certainly the risk of a disappointing championship game after such a thrilling playoff round, but neither team was about to let that happen. BT got out to an early lead with great patience on offense and outstanding hustle on defense, but Hillel closed the second quarter on a strong run and tied the game at 19 apiece going into halftime. Neither team was able to open up much of a lead throughout the third quarter. The packed Hurwitz Gym was ready to burst going into the fourth quarter. Despite a strong outing by the Warriors, it just wasn't BT's night.

Hillel point guard Jared Rok, who finished with 26 points and the tourney MVP award, scored the last two baskets of the game for the Hurricanes in a 44-40 win. BT's Jeremy Schmerling finished the championship game with 15 points and was named Second Team All-Tournament. The Warriors also got strong post play from Josh Riederman, great defense from Adam Teitelman, and strong offensive contributions from Doug Chazen and Aaron Gillette. Congratulations to the Hillel Community Day School of North Miami Beach on their first Weiner Tournament Championship.

Boys Awards
Champion: Hillel Community Day School, North Miami Beach, Florida
Runner-Up: Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community Day School, Baltimore, Maryland

2nd Team All-Tournament
Solomon Schechter, #11, Aaron Campeas
Hyman Brand, #13, Cory Gutovitz
Hillel, #11, Taylor Winkle
HAFTR, #10, Andrew Oved
Beth Tfiloh, #10, Jeremy Schmerling

1st Team All-Tournament
HAFTR, #11, Matthew Zborowski
Solomon Schechter, #21, Jacob Suskind
Hyman Brand, #55, Nathan Lipsky
Solomon Schechter, #24, David Wolkoff
Hillel, #13, Jared Rok

Boys Tournament MVP
Jared Rok, Hillel

Girls Awards
Champion: Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community Day School, Baltimore, Maryland
Runner-Up: Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy, Overland Park, Kansas

2nd Team All-Tournament
Hyman Brand, #11, Shira Levine
Beth Tfiloh Varsity, #22, Sara Hervitz
Beth Tfiloh Varsity, #1, Michelle Safferman
Beth Tfiloh JV, #21, Tara Danels
Chicagoland, #4, Emily Pogrund

1st Team All-Tournament
Hyman Brand, #35, Hannah Towle
Hyman Brand, #22, Mikayla Davis
Chicagoland, #14, Alison Dreifus
Beth Tfiloh Varsity, #12, Judy Gerstenblith
Beth Tfiloh JV, #5, Atara Vogelstein

Girls Tournament Co-MVP’s
Shira Levine, Hyman Brand, & Lindsay Harris, Beth Tfiloh