NEWBURGH, N.Y. — The Pine Plains Bombers were knocked out in second round of the Section IX regional tournament after a hard fought game against the Tuckahoe Tigers on Tuesday, March 11.
The Bombers won the tip and got off to an early lead, but the Tuckahoe Tigers outpaced them quickly and finished the game 59-25.
Giana Dormi, no. 3 of Pine Plains, and Neveah Rennie, no. 34 of Pine Plains, started the game strong, scoring six points for the Bombers in the first few minutes. Tuckahoe responed in kind by promptly running up the score, sending Cara Doherty, no. 5, to the backboard for four field goals before the end of the first quarter.
Tuckahoe's runaway lead started in the first quarter. Going into the second that team led the Bombers 19-8.
The lead was further cemented in the second quarter, when Tuckahoe sank another nine field goals — one a three-pointer from Grace Kern, no. 15 — adding up to an additional 19 points and putting the score at 38-13 going into the half.
Neveah Rennie, no. 34 of Pine Plains, attempts to drive a layup through a group of Tuckahoe defenders during the second round of the regional tournament at Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh, N.Y., on Tuesday, March 11.Photo by Nathan Miller
"Tuckahoe's a great team, they've got everything," girls varsity coach Les Funk said. "They're in shape, they run. Those kids out there didn't even look like they were breaking a sweat. That was a tough matchup for us."
The Bombers tried their hardest, but Tuckahoe's precision in defense was too much for the Pine Plains girls. Tuckahoe's fouls only sent Pine Plains players to the free throw line on five occasions. The Bombers couldn't make those free throw attempts count, with the team racking up a free-throw make percentage of just 20%.
Coach Funk is setting his sights on next season and another chance at the regional title. "They've got a taste of it now," Funk said. "I think if they work in the off-season they've got a chance."
The Bombers held their heads high after their loss to Tuckahoe in the second round of the regional tournament at Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh, N.Y., on Tuesday, March 11.Photo by Nathan Miller
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Growing up in the Bronx, Hearn was captivated whenever she saw horses. Her grandfather, a Korean War veteran, had cared for military horses during the war. After returning home, he struggled with addiction, and the invisible wounds of military service. Through every difficult chapter of his life, however, one thing consistently brought him peace.
“Horses bring peace,” he told his granddaughter.
When Hearn was 11, after years apart, Hearn and her grandfather began spending weekends riding together. Less than a year later, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Before he died, he asked family members to help buy Hearn’s first horse — a stubborn paint horse that bit, kicked and frequently threw her off. She wanted to sell him. Her father refused.
“Every life has value,” he told her.
Looking back, Hearn says that lesson became the foundation of everything she would later build.
What began as a boarding stable in 2003 took a different direction after the Dutchess County SPCA asked Hearn to care for horses seized in cruelty cases. She soon realized that although Dutchess County had one of New York’s largest horse populations, there was no dedicated nonprofit equipped to care for neglected and abused horses. Lucky Orphans officially became a nonprofit in 2008.
Some of the more than 40 horses at Lucky OrphansProvided
Today, Hearn is quick to point out that Lucky Orphans is not simply a rescue.
“We’re a sanctuary,” she said.
Many of the more than 40 horses living there arrive with broken bones, chronic illnesses, heart conditions, missing eyes or other injuries that make them unsuitable for riding or adoption. Rather than rehabilitating and rehoming them, Lucky Orphans makes a lifetime commitment to every horse.
In 2013, Hearn became certified in equine-assisted psychotherapy, combining her lifelong relationship with horses and the lessons she learned from her grandfather to create programs for veterans, trauma survivors, children and families facing emotional challenges. The transformations she witnesses continue to surprise her. She recalls one woman who arrived convinced she would not fit in with a group of strangers. During the session, a horse quietly chose to follow her without a rope or commands. For the first time in years, the woman said she felt truly seen.
Another memory has stayed with Hearn ever since. A teenager in a juvenile probation program, wearing an ankle monitor and struggling with anger, entered a round pen with a horse. As his frustration grew, the horse moved farther away. When he finally calmed himself, the horse walked directly toward him and rested its head against his chest.
“I told him, ‘If you can control your energy, you can control the world around you,’” Hearn said.
Stories like these sustain her through the difficult realities of running a nonprofit. Operating the sanctuary costs roughly $52,000 each month, and Hearn lives on the property, where the work never truly ends. Veterinary bills, staffing, fundraising and the daily care of dozens of horses are constant concerns. Then someone returns years later and tells her that the horses changed their child’s life.
“That’s why I keep going,” she said.
Looking ahead, Hearn hopes more people discover what makes Lucky Orphans unique. The organization is expanding its community programming with educational visits, yoga sessions, horse encounters, volunteer opportunities and family events designed to reconnect people with horses and with one another.
Her vision is simple: to create a place where people slow down, reconnect and remember something modern life often makes us forget. If horses could speak, Hearn believes they would offer just one piece of advice.
“They’d tell us to slow down,” she said.
After spending an afternoon at Lucky Orphans, it’s hard to disagree.
For more information or to plan a visit, go to luckyorphans.org
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