With each passing game, it seems like this is Sacred Heart Greenwich’s season.

Though they still have plenty of work to do, the Tigers seemed poised to capture the FAA title and Tuesday afternoon, they moved one step closer to accomplishing one of their season-long goals.

Sparked by a strong second quarter, top-seeded host Sacred Heart built a double-digit lead on eighth-seeded Greenwich Academy and never looked back in recording a 58-28 victory in the quarterfinal-round of the FAA Basketball Tournament.

The Tigers, who are undefeated in the FAA at 9-0 (including the quarterfinal-round win), advanced to Thursday’s 4:30 p.m. FAA Tournament semifinals, where they will host No. 5-seeded Hamden Hall Country Day School.

Getting points from eight players, Sacred Heart was paced by senior guard Payton Sfreddo’s 16 points. Sfreddo also grabbed seven rebounds in the winning effort. Freshman guard/forward Lucianna Parrotta added 10 points, while also pulling down four rebounds and making two steals for the Tigers.

Sacred Heart sports a sparkling 16-5 record heading into Thursday’s FAA Tournament semifinal-round matchup vs. Hamden Hall. In Tuesday’s game versus Greenwich Academy, the game was tied at 11-11 after the first quarter, with the Gators having their best moments of the game early on.

“GA came out great, they are a young team and they are feisty and they came out fighting,” Sacred Heart coach Ayo Hart said. “It was good to see a competitive start to the game. We got into a groove a little bit. I’m happy with the looks we were getting. If we can continue to get those looks, I think we’ll be fine.”

Sophomore guard Ava Curto tallied 10 points and 10 rebounds for her first career double-double for SHG. She also notched four steals to add to her impressive game.

Curto made the game’s first basket, a 3-pointer, then GA scored four straight points, with sophomore forward Mirabel Rodgers converting a pair of foul shots and sophomore forward McKenna Brewer scoring on a layup early in the opening quarter.

A putback by Brewer later in the first quarter knotted the score at 6-6. Freshman Emma Matthews swished a 3-point shot for SHG, putting her team ahead, 9-6 and senior point guard Madison Hart made a layup, giving the Tigers a five-point lead.

Senior guard Sydney Detter nailed a 3-pointer from the left side and junior point guard Ruby Montanez hit a jumper from the right wing for GA, which evened the score at 11-11 heading into the second quarter.

“I think we played the best first quarter of my entire career,” Dettmer said. “Obviously, the game didn’t go how we wanted to, overall. But we really proved ourselves and how much we worked this year. It shows how much we improved and I’m really proud. There have been a lot of ups-and-downs, but this season was so much fun and we have gotten so much better from the first time I stepped on the court as a freshman until now.”

Said Greenwich Academy coach Jordan Griffith: “I just think this year was all about growth for us. We only have one senior and two juniors. For us, starting multiple games with underclassmen, it was all about progress for us. We had some pretty harsh injuries throughout the year. But they did a great job of staying together and getting better and better each day.”

The Tigers steadily built their lead during the pivotal second quarter, outscoring the Gators, 18-3. Parrotta’s layup gave the home team the lead for good at 13-11, then Sfreddo scored in transition, making it 15-11. Baskets by senior guard Victoria Hart and Matthews capped a 16-0 Sacred Heart spurt, giving them a 27-11 advantage.

“I think we just came out slow with not enough focus and the key was coming out ready to go,” said Sfreddo, a three-sport Sacred Heart star. “We needed to make adjustments, focus on the little things and make layups, which was kind of a struggle for us this game. It was just about getting those things done.”

The first half ended with Sacred Heart holding a 29-14 lead.

“It definitely was a challenge at first, but I’m really happy with how we persevered and stuck to who we are as a team,” SHG senior guard Olivia Leahy said. “We were able to build our lead, even though we had a strong start.”

Matthews had 10 points with two 3-pointers, while Leahy and guard Mackenzie Gillen scored three points apiece for the victors. Madison Hart, Victoria Hart and Ryan Hodge had two points apiece, with Madison Hart totaling 10 assists, three rebounds and two blocked shots.

For Greenwich Academy, Rodgers posted 12 points, Brewer had five points and Dettmer added three points.

“That was a tough game for us,” Rodgers said. “After our last game against them, which was a big loss for us, we were just trying to build up stronger compared to last time and have a good mentality coming into this game and play tough.”

The defeat ended the season for the Gators.

“We have a young group so we have a lot of time to develop the players,” Rodgers noted. “We have a freshman, two eighth graders, so I think there’s great hope for our team to have a better year next year and the years coming. I’m proud of how we have learned to play for our senior and coming in with a good mentality, even though our record isn’t great.”

Said Montanez: “Throughout the season we worked on improving and keeping our mentality in the right spot. It’s such a good group of girls. I love this rivalry, it’s so intense, but both girls from each school are so nice. It’s so much fun to be out there.”

Sacred Heart has plenty of season left. They hope to have two more games left in the FAA Tournament and they have qualified for the NEPSAC Class A Tournament, where they are ranked No. 2.

“The semifinals is definitely not going to be an easy game,” Sfreddo said. “Everyone is coming ready to play. Especially being the No. 1 seed there’s a lot of pressure, everyone is after you, because we’ve beaten everyone this season. The key is going to be just play our game and play the way we’ve been playing all season, with intensity, with heart.”

Said Leahy: “We feel great, having this win today is building our confidence. We are really excited to head into the semifinals, we have beaten every team in the FAA so far, so that definitely boosts our confidence.”

Ayo Hart said: “It’s a new game, a new day, we know they (Hamden Hall) are bringing their best game to us.”