STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.— In a matchup between two teams that entered Tuesday night a perfect 5–0, the visiting McKee/Staten Island Tech Seagulls edged Petrides 37–34, securing a razor-thin victory and emerging as the final unbeaten team in the PSAL 3A Brooklyn/Staten Island division.
“I knew it was going to be a close game. Petrides plays extremely tough defense; they worked really hard, but we came out with the win because we made a couple more stops in the fourth quarter, and that was huge,” MSIT head coach Peter LaMarca said after the contest.
To his point, the Seagulls trailed for most of the game before finally grabbing their first significant lead, 31–28, in the fourth quarter. They stayed within striking distance throughout and refused to fold, making their decisive move in the final frame.
When asked how he kept his team believing, LaMarca shared, “The message on the bench was that you guys worked your butts off all year for this moment.”
“In the first half, I don’t think they were answering the call. In the second half, though, they really did. They’re like the cardiac kids — they make me lose my voice every game — but they answered the call,” LaMarca added with a grin.
McKee/Staten Island Tech’s Eva Paraskevadis takes the ball up the floor during a matchup against Petrides on Dec. 16, 2025.Michael O’Brien
One key catalyst for the Seagulls’ fourth-quarter surge was senior guard Eva Paraskevadis, who drilled a huge trio of treys and finished as LaMarca’s leading scorer on the night with 16 points.
“Today they were falling for her; it was nice to see,” LaMarca said of his senior leader.
Also playing a pivotal role in the win was forward Thalia Treasure. Despite scoring just five points, the MSIT senior dominated the glass all game long, hauling in an impressive 11 rebounds—more than all other Seagulls combined—and providing LaMarca’s crew with a much-needed physical edge.
While the Seagulls’ offense was up and down throughout the evening, their defense was outstanding, highlighted by holding the Panthers’ offensive leader, Asha Bell—who poured in a whopping 41 points in her previous outing against Sunset Park—to just 15 on the night.
If there’s one area LaMarca wants his team to clean up moving forward, it’s execution during inbounding plays, as the Seagulls nearly turned the ball over and allowed multiple potential game-tying baskets late.
McKee/Staten Island Tech’s Madisyn Chen handles the ball during a matchup against Petrides on Dec. 16, 2025.Michael O’Brien
“We’re going to talk about that in practice,” LaMarca affirmed.
“We have a game tomorrow, and we’ll definitely be discussing it then. What’s funny is we had an inbounds play to win the game against Lincoln, but today, you’ve got to give credit to Petrides. They did a really good job on defense denying us the ball. We’ll take a look at that,” he added.
Now sitting at an unblemished 6-0 with one of the thinnest benches on Staten Island, LaMarca was asked if he expected his team to still be undefeated at this point in the season before it started.
His answer?
“Absolutely not,” he said with a laugh.
“All I wanted was competitive basketball. I always tell them to play hard, play smart, and play tough, and they’ve definitely been doing it; it’s been nice to see,” he concluded.
McKee/Staten Island Tech head coach Peter LaMarca addresses his team during a timeout in the midst of a matchup between MSIT and Petrides on Dec. 16, 2025.Michael O’Brien
The Seagulls will look to roll onto 7–0 when they face Port Richmond on Wednesday, while the Panthers will aim to return to winning ways in their own matchup against the Raiders on Thursday.