Another great season for the Massapequa High School girls' basketball squad has ended.

The Lady Chiefs advanced to the Nassau County Class AA semifinals, only to lose to Calhoun, 58-56.

Massapequa finished the season with a 13-7 record overall, and an 8-4 mark in Conference AA play.

The Feb. 27 contest, played at the Calhoun High School gym, was a typical nip and tuck affair, with Calhoun jumping out to an 11-9 lead and Massapequa responding by taking a one-point halftime lead, 29-28.

In the third quarter, Calhoun outscored Massapequa, 16-10, but the Lady Chiefs, playing like the champions they have been for the past three years, fought back to tie the score with only seconds remaining in the contest.

Calhoun won the game when Cayla Grodotzke made a layup with 30 seconds left in the game. The goal was Ms. Grodotzke's only goal of the game and it gave Calhoun their win.

Janine Aldridge led Massapequa in scoring. With 25 points, she tallied nearly half of the Lady Chiefs total, in the process ending her career on a heroic note. A graduating senior, Ms. Aldridge will be attending William & Mary University in Williamsburg, VA, next fall. In the loss to Calhoun, Nicole Daly chipped in with 10 points.

Massapequa made it to the semifinals by defeating Herricks, 61-51 in a Feb. 20 contest.

In that game, Ms. Aldridge led the Lady Chiefs in scoring with 22 points. She was assisted by a sparkling performance by Jessica DeNicola who scored 15 points in the fourth quarter, including five straight points, a run that built up the Lady Chiefs lead to 59-51. Early in the fourth quarter, Massapequa was trailing Herricks, 45-40, before Ms. DeNicola led the comeback charge.