League play begins this week for three teams, with boys’ basketball and boys’ hockey facing two of their toughest opponents of the season in home matchups. Basketball takes on Eastern Athletic Conference rival Bishop Feehan on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m., while hockey plays Coyle and Cassidy Wednesday at 4:30 p.m.

Girls’ Basketball

The still-undefeated Vineyarders picked up three wins in three days over the final weekend of 2012 as they walked away champions of the Stripes Tournament on Cape Cod. The girls defeated Nauset in the title game 51-29 on Saturday, with senior Jennie Lindland notching 22 points. Lindland was the high scorer in Friday’s game as well, with 19 points against Dennis-Yarmouth in the Vineyard’s lopsided 65-25 win. Three other Vineyard players landed in double-digit scoring: senior Kat deBettencourt, sophomore Lucy Hackney and freshman Sam Hargy each had 11 points.

deBettencourt led the scoring effort in the team’s first tournament game, scoring 20 of the Vineyard’s 73 points in their victory over Upper Cape. Lindland and fellow seniors Kendall Robinson and Katie Stewart scored ten points.

“We still have really balanced scoring,” head coach Lisa Stewart said on Wednesday, adding that the team was absent key rebounder Maggie Riseborough for the entire tournament. “We can get offense from any of our starting five, and some of our subs [as well].”

The team enters league play in the challenging EAC this week, and coach Stewart said she is optimistic about the Vineyarders being able to compete in the conference this year. Last year, the girls won nearly all of their non-league games, but could not muster a victory in the EAC.

The Vineyarders play Bishop Stang today and take on Bishop Feehan on Tuesday in away games.

Boys’ Basketball

League play kicked off for the Vineyarders with a 60-49 home win against Bishop Stang. The Vineyard led by 10 points at the half. Bishop Stang pulled within four points of tying, but struggled at the free throw line and often found itself on the wrong side of a trademark defensive rebound by senior Izak Browne.

Senior Deshawn James led scoring with 18 points. Senior Brandon Watkins scored 12 points, and senior Jack Robert notched 11, with three 3-pointers.

The boys came within four points of earning a tournament title of their own over the weekend, fighting their way back from a double-digit first-half decifit, but lost 64-68 to Mashpee in the finals of the Stripes Tournament. Senior captains Browne and Roberts led the team in scoring, with 15 points apiece. Roberts also landed five three-pointers.

In Saturday’s tournament game, the Vineyarders showcased a balanced offense against Cape Cod Academy to win 70-66. Five players scored twelve points or more: Roberts (14), Browne (12), and seniors Navardo Anderson (14), Brandon Watkins (12) and Liam Weston (12).

Roberts and Browne rolled to 20 and 21 points, respectively, in last Friday’s rematch against Dennis-Yarmouth. The Vineyarders evened their season against the Dolphins with a 72-51 win.

Boys’ Hockey

After two days of shutdown hockey at the inaugural Heuchling & Swift Memorial Classic in New Hampshire, the boys’ hockey team fell 5-0 to host team Oyster River in the championship game.

“They found our weakness,” head coach Matt Mincone said, not shying away from his disappointment. “I think we just sort of got away from playing the team defense we’d been playing . . . we seemed a little bit tired mentally and allowed things we shouldn’t have.”

The Oyster River loss was the Vineyard’s first of the season. They are now 5-1.

Still, coach Mincone said, “It’s tough to take away from the two games before that. We played really well.”

“All three lines were contributing,” he said. “There was no one [star] player.”

The team defeated a squad from Bow, New Hampshire, 5-1 in their first tournament game, and blanked Dover, New Hampshire 6-0, the next day. Freshman goalie Wyatt Jenkinson earned his first varsity shutout.

Senior captain Charlie Ashmun and junior assistant captain Tyson Araujo made the All-Tournament Team. Coach Mincone also noted the consistent play of senior forward Shay Hill.

The team travels to Nantucket tomorrow before beginning league play on Wednesday.

Girls’ Hockey.

The girls are 3-3 on the season after a 3-2 loss to Marshfield on December 28 and a 3-0 win over Quincy/North Quincy on Wednesday. They are 2-2 in league play.

The team record is a testament to the development of the Southeastern Massachusetts Girls’ Hockey League, head coach John Fiorito said on Thursday.

“It’s a great league this year,” he said. “The parity is perfect to be a part of.”

Coach Fiorito said he was pleased with the team’s rebound against Marshfield. Down 3-0 after the first period—the Vineyard was outshot 13-2—the girls rallied to score twice in the final minutes of the game. Sophomore Sydney Davies scored on an assist from sophomore Aubrey Ashmun, and junior Emily Hammett scored her first goal of the season on an assist from Davies and junior Alex Clark with 1:12 left to play.

“They absolutely dominated us [early on],” coach Fiorito said. “I couldn’t be prouder…we showed some resiliency; we didn’t give up.”

Senior goalie Texe Craig earned her first shutout of the season against Quincy/North Quincy, stopping 16 shots en route to the Vineyard victory. The defense—senior Tayla Kuehne, sophomores Erin Hegarty and Olivia Ogden, and freshman Sydney Minnehan—turned in a great effort as well, coach Fiorito said. Ogden and Clark assisted senior captain Kassidy Bettencourt on the Vineyard’s first goal in the second period. Senior Emily Cimeno scored fifteen seconds later on an assist from sophomore Aubrey Ashmun. Ashmun notched an unassisted power play goal in the third.

The girls travel to rival Scituate on Saturday, and play Hanover in an away game on Wednesday. After spending much of the first part of the season traveling, they will play 10 of their last 12 games at home.