Monthly Archives: March 2015

March 21, 2015 · 9:30 pm

Londonderry boys get first D1 title 47-46 over Pinkerton Academy

Matt Rizzo set to launch the last shot of the game

The Londonderry celebrating begins

Londonderry (2015 Division 1 champions)

Brandon Radford scored the game-winner. Here he applies some defense

(Durham NH) They aren’t very far apart geographically (five miles) and when this one ended they weren’t very far apart on the UNH scoreboard either.

#1 seed Londonderry won a good-to-the-last-shot thriller over #3 seed Pinkerton Academy, 47-46, on Saturday afternoon to get their first Division 1 boys’ basketball title in school history.

Londonderry should be one happy place for a while since both girls and boys basketball teams were still standing after championship games today and last Saturday. Nashua did the same thing back in 1986.

As you can tell by the low final score, both teams struggled to have good offense and good defense together at the same time. That is why the game came down to the last made shot. Neither team was ahead by more than a point over the closing tense 4 ½ minutes of the game.

The undefeated Lancers (22-0) scored what turned out to be the winning basket with fifty seconds left. Matt Rizzo (12 points) missed a free throw and Jake Coleman collected his 11th rebound. The Lancers’ Brandon Radford was lined up on the inside position for the free throw and when his teammate secured the rebound Brandon took off full-speed for the other end completely unnoticed by anyone on PA. Jake Coleman took a couple of dribbles and spotted and threw a pass to his wide-open sophomore teammate who finished with a layup. That gave Londonderry a 47-46 lead that turned out to be the final score.

Matt Rizzo shoots with a chance to give PA a two-point lead

Believe me, after that basket with fifty seconds to go, the excitement was far from over. The Astros used thirty seconds of clock before Geo Baker lost the ball out-of-bounds. In bounds the ball came to Jake Coleman who was fouled with twelve seconds left. Here was a chance for Londonderry to add some comfort to a one-point lead but Jake missed. The Astros got the ball into the hands of Geo Baker and I was quite certain he would take the final shot. Geo, however, was unable to penetrate and was forced left and forced to give up the ball without a shot. Matt Rizzo ended up with the ball straightaway from beyond the arc. Matt had time to fake Jake Coleman away from him and get off a shot before the buzzer sounded. The shot missed but not by much! And the celebrating began for the Lancers.

Credit the Londonderry defense in that last play for keeping Geo from penetrating and for forcing Matt into a very tough final shot.

Cody Ball defends Geo Baker

Londonderry generated good offense/defense together in 2 ½ minutes of the second quarter running ten straight points together. Two three’s by Jake Coleman (14 first half points) and a three and a free throw by Marc Corey (17 points) put the Lancers in front, 25-17.

It was Pinkerton’s turn to put the D & 0 together in the third quarter. The Astros (18-4) collected the first ten points of that quarter (3-pointers by Drew Green and Matt Rizzo were part of it) to get in front, 35-32.

You read this far in a story of a Londonderry basketball game in 2014-15 and no mention yet of NH Division 1 Player-of-the-Year Cody Ball. Cody, on this afternoon, was a cold-shooting (2-for-12) foul magnet. Cody (St. Anselm’s next year) missed a good part of the third quarter after his fourth foul.

Jake Coleman held Londonderry together with his fourteen points/six rebounds in the first half. His ability to handle the ball in the second half without turnovers was crucial. His ability to see a wide open Brandon Radford in the last minute, for the game-winner, was huge.

Geo Baker looks for an opening

I enjoyed watching first-team all-stater Cody Ball defend first-team all-stater Geo Baker.

Jake Coleman finished with a double/double (16 points/11 rebounds).

Sophomore Geo Baker spent his freshman year at Buckingham, Browne, and Nichols (BBN) in Cambridge before transferring to Pinkerton Academy in Derry.

The two teams met during the regular season at PA in February. The Lancers won 67-61 in a game in which Cody Ball had five 3’s and Jake Coleman had twenty-five points. David Faulks had twenty points in that game including four dunks.

Londonderry has now defeated their neighbors four straight games.

Great crowd and the way the game went back and forth both sides had plenty of opportunity to get excited.

The UNH stat crew did, and do, an excellent job.

Box from the game

(All of the pictures below and above enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Marc Corey (17 points) defended by Tommy Romick (11 points)

Geo Baker (10 points) gives Pinkerton the lead in the 4th quarter

Jake Coleman had a turnover-free game despite plenty of ballhandling

LHS coach Nate Stanton

Geo Baker and Jake Coleman chase a loose ball

Joey Kwiatkowski

Drew Green

David Faulks defended by Joey Kwiatkowski

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Filed under Londonderry, Pinkerton

Tagged as Cody Ball, Geo Baker, Jake Coleman, Marc Corey, Matt Rizzo

March 17, 2015 · 10:56 pm

Geo Baker (33 points) leads Pinkerton Academy past Nashua North 63-58 in D1 semifinals

Geo Baker (33 points) hit two free throws, had a steal, and a layup in the last minute

Geo Baker made eight 3-point shots

(Durham NH) It is not easy to get excited about a rematch between teams that were separated by forty-nine points (74-25) in their first meeting in January.

But #15 seed Nashua North reached the Division 1 semifinals and that gave the Titans a second chance with Pinkerton Academy at UNH on Tuesday night.

And what a rematch it was. The underdogs went down by ten early but came back with a run of eighteen straight points to lead by eleven at halftime.

But in the second half PA’s sophomore Geo Baker took over getting twenty-two points leading the Astros to a 63-58 win and a trip to the finals at UNH on Saturday afternoon. The Astros will face undefeated Londonderry for the title.

Pinkerton (18-3) rode the long ball in the second half. Geo (33 points) had five from beyond the arc while teammate Brennan Morris dialed long distance successfully three times.

PA’s nine second-half 3-pointers had plenty to do with the Astros comeback. Crunch time, however, belonged to Geo. The Astros lead was a slim two points (58-56) with fifty seconds left and they had the ball. The Titans were forced to foul and since Geo had the ball so much he was the one fouled. He made two pressure free throws in a one-and-one situation to push the PA lead to four. Next Nashua North possession Geo stole Brennan Kastens’ pass. Again Geo was fouled but this time he missed with twenty-one seconds left. NN’s Brendan Barrett got the rebound but his pass was picked off by Tommy Romick. Tommy quickly fed nearby Geo for a killer layup and a six-point PA lead with sixteen seconds left. No six-point play in the NN playbook so their remarkable tournament run came to an end.

Geo’s stat line in the second half was 22 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals. No turnovers in his second half stat line.

The Titans (8-13) looked like the #15 seed in the first quarter falling behind 17-7. Geo Baker had two three’s in the early going and Matt Rizzo also had one.

Ronnie Silva ended the first half with a long three

Nashua North, however, was taking good care of the ball (3 turnovers in the first half). In the second period PA had a 23-16 lead with 4:37 left. How do you explain what happened the rest of the quarter? You never saw momentum shift the way it did. The Astros didn’t make a point the rest of the quarter while the Titans, led by quick guard Ronnie Silva, couldn’t miss. The #15 seed ran eighteen unanswered points, including four 3’s from Ronnie, and left the court ahead, 34-23. Ronnie’s last three had NBA length and was just before the buzzer.

Stunned would be the way I would describe the halftime atmosphere. The big question was whether or not the Titans could generate enough points in their one-shot possessions against a taller PA squad to stay ahead in the second half.

Geo Baker looks to pass while Brandon Rodriguez and Ronnie Silva defend

In the second half the Astros shut out Ronnie Silva and defended the Titans into twelve turnovers. One shot possessions are one thing, when you’re hot, but twelve no-shot possessions added to them will do a team in. And if you add Geo Baker’s remarkable second half to the mix you can see why Pinkerton rallied back.

Nearly 50% of the shots taken were 3’s – 46/97.

Nathan Hale (16) and Brennan Kastens (14) also reached double figures for the Titans.

Brennan Kastens, Geo Baker, and David Faulks had dunks in the game. David’s throw down was set up by a terrific Geo Baker pass.

Good crowd on hand. I suspect that most of the Spaulding/Londonderry early arrivals were encouraging the Titans to knock off #3 seed Pinkerton Academy.

Excellent stat help from the UNH crew.

Box from the game

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Nathan Hale (16 points) finishes

Brennan Morris (12 points) ends the third with a long three

David Faulks dunks

Brennan Kastens (14 points) jams

Ronnie Silva had five 3-pointers in the first half

Drew Green goes for the block on Brandon Rodriguez

celebrating beings

Nathan Hale and Matt Rizzo

tight defense

chasing a rebound

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Filed under Nashua North, Pinkerton

Tagged as Brennan Kastens, Brennan Morris, Geo Baker, Nathan Hale, Ronnie Silva

March 13, 2015 · 11:09 pm

Londonderry wins 2nd straight D1 title 48-33 over Winnacunnet

Londonderry begins to celebrate a second straight title

2015 Division One champions

(Manchester NH) No need for any last-minute heroics by Londonderry in this one.

The #2 seed Lancers started fast and never trailed as they defeated Winnacunnet, 48-33, to take a second straight Division 1 title.

The Friday night encounter at the SNHU Fieldhouse lacked the end-game tension of a year ago when Londonderry rode a late three by Brittany Roche (assisted by Jackie Luckhardt) to an exciting 57-56 victory over Bedford.

#9 Winnacunnet reached the finals by getting the ball inside to Meg Knollmeyer (nearly 20 points per game) and getting to the foul line (83 free throws to opponents‘ 44 free throws).

Tara Burke crowds Meg Knollmeyer (11 points)

In the title game the Lancers (20-2) collapsed around Meg and wouldn’t let the talented junior or her teammates get to the rim very often. The Warriors (14-8) had only eight free throws while Meg Knollmeyer was held to eleven points. Tara Burke and Noelle Lambert were big in denying passes to the interior.

There were turnovers a-plenty in this game. The number of passes to no one in particular astounded me. It is important to note that some turnovers are more costly than others. The first quarter is a prime example. Londonderry got off to a great 8-0 start. All eight points came off of Winnacunnet miscues. That’s costly!

The Warriors played their best minutes of the game after getting down by eight. They got inside (3 layups) and closed to within two (10-8) after a quarter. Meg Knollmeyer had two of the layups.

The team from Hampton was still within two (15-13) three minutes into the second quarter after a 3-pointer by Molly Britton. But then the wheels came off for Winnacunnet as the Lancers ran nine unanswered points over the next three minutes to break away, 24-13. Jackie Luckhardt had a 3-pointer, a rebound, and an assist in the separating segment.

Winnacunnet moved to within two possessions (30-24) on Emily Britton’s 3-pointer with 2 ½ minutes to go in the third quarter. But the rest of the quarter was all Londonderry with a jumper by Brittany Roche and a long one by Kelsey Coffey. That ending restored the Lancers’ eleven point lead (35-24).

Molly Britton (#24) had two 3-pointers

The Warriors go inside a double-digit deficit briefly in the final quarter on Molly Britton’s second three-pointer and later a layup by Meg Knollmeyer. However, two straight layups by Tara Burke restored the Lancers’ double-digit spread and they played keep-away on offense the rest of the way.

Junior Jackie Luckhardt had nine turnovers for Londonderry but the rest of her stat line had plenty to do with Londonderry winning the championship. Jackie had eleven rebounds, seven points, nine assists, and six steals.

I saw at least two inbounds layups by Noelle Lambert assisted by Jackie.

This game was long on contact. Meg Knollmeyer was staggered by a Kelsey Coffey screen in the second half. Brittany Roche needed help from the trainer after she went down hard.

Winnacunnet scored just one layup in the second half.

Jackie Luckhardt (nine assists) flies over Meg Knollmeyer

Londonderry defeated Winnacunnet, 58-47, during the regular season. Molly Britton had six 3-pointers for the Warriors while Meg Knollmeyer tallied seventeen points to go with eleven rebounds. Key to the title win was significantly lessening the production of Molly and Meg in the second meeting.

Greatly appreciated getting a full set of stats from the SNHU stat crew.

Box from the game

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge significantly if you click on them.)

Kelsey Coffey takes time off the clock in the 4th quarter

Winnacunnet gets the runnerup trophy

Brittany Roche hit the game winner in the 2014 title game

Noelle Lambert and Tara Burke (11 points)

Kelly Arsenault hemmed in by a trio of Lancers

Londonderry student section

Tara Burke and Brittany Roche lock down Katie Valcich

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Filed under Londonderry, Winnacunnet

Tagged as Jackie Luckhardt, Meg Knollmeyer, Molly Britton, Tara Burke

March 10, 2015 · 10:35 pm

Slow start dooms Pentucket in 63-49 loss to Old Rochester in D3 state semifinals

Jordan Menard (13 points) was part of an aggressive assault on the Pentucket defense

Ryan Beatty (13 points) gets two

(Boston MA) The Pentucket boys did get better as the game went along but when a team starts with a two-point first quarter getting better may not be enough.

And it wasn’t as the Sachems fell to Old Rochester, 63-49, in the Division 3 state semifinals on Tuesday night at the TD Garden.

Old Rochester (#1 seed from the South) never trailed thanks to an aggressiveness on both ends of the floor that Pentucket couldn’t match up with.

Pentucket (#5 seed in the North) had a serious case of the Garden jitters and except for Pat Freiermuth (18 points) had a horrible shooting night. The accurate shooting that carried the Sachems past three higher seeds in the North sectionals vanished in the state semis.

Freshman Noah Fernandes was hard to contain

The Bulldogs (22-3) were relentless. Almost every Pentucket shot was a contested one while on offense Old Rochester just attacked the rim.

Four Bulldogs average double figures and three of them William Santos (16), Jordan Menard (13), and Ryan Beatty (13) reached that plateau in this game.

The Sachems got off to a dreadful start. Pat Freiermuth’s layup 1 ½ minutes into the game was their only basket in the first eight minutes. They missed fourteen shots, including a number of layups, and had seven turnovers. Meanwhile ORR collected twelve points including the final eight of the quarter. Five different Bulldogs contributed points in the 12-2 start.

That start would have doomed most teams but the Sachems were able to hang around even though they never found the long-range accuracy carried them through the North to the Garden. Old Rochester missed a lot of shots too.

Pentucket made two serious runs at the lead in the second half but both times the Bulldogs responded with consecutive points to deny the team from West Newbury.

Jordan Menard hit two straight 3-pointers in the third quarter

Brendan Sullivan had a three in a collection of five points that brought Pentucket to within seven (29-22) 2 ½ minutes into the second half. ORR answered with a free throw by William Santos and two straight 3’s from Jordan Menard restoring, in the process, Old Rochester’s advantage to fourteen.

Pentucket’s best chance came early in the final quarter. A Pat Beaton layup off an Old Rochester turnover and four points from Pat Freiermuth suddenly had the Sachems within two possessions (42-36) with 6 ½ minutes left. Play some defense. Make some three’s and see what happens at the end. None of that happened. Instead there were three more Pentucket turnovers up against a three by Ryan Beatty and a slashing layup and two free throws from William Santos. Back to twelve went the ORR lead (49-36) and Pentucket never recovered.

Pat Freiermuth (18 points) scores in traffic

Old Rochester advances to the D3 state finals and the DCU Center in Worcester on Saturday facing either Hoosac or Uxbridge.

Remarkable season for Pentucket of the Cape Ann League. Most of the playing time went to seniors and their poise against the higher seeds in the North carried the day for the team.

Sophomore Pat Freiermuth will be back and will surely draw plenty of defensive consideration next season as the lone returning starter. Pat ended up with 22 rebounds against Old Rochester.

Old Rochester is out of the South Coast Conference.

Where is the school? It is not in Rochester but in Mattapoisett. Okay, where’s Mattapoisett? It is about sixty miles from Providence and Boston down in the southeast corner of Massachusetts.

The Bulldogs brought nine busloads of fans to the Garden. There was plenty of red on one side of the Garden but some of it belonged to some early Watertown fans.

Old Rochester box

Pentucket box

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Pat Beaton finds an opening down the lane

Pat Freiermuth blocks

Looking for a rebound

Pentucket Garden photo

James Cleary (40) and Patrick McDonough (20)

Ben Thornton (51)

Mitch Midwood

Brendan Sullivan looks to pass

Will Sullivan and Jeff Porter try to double-team Noah Fernandes

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Filed under Old Rochester, Pentucket

Tagged as Jordan Menard, Noah Fernandes, Pat Freiermuth, Ryan Beatty, William Santos

March 9, 2015 · 11:03 pm

Hamilton-Wenham recovers to rout Cathedral 64-35 in D4 state semfinals

Marcus Zegarowski (24 points) floats in for two

Nolan Wilson (13 points) scored all his points in the second half

(Boston MA) It was as dramatic a change as you’ll ever see come over two basketball teams in a game.

For twelve minutes one team (Cathedral) was quick and made shots while the other team (Hamilton-Wenham) looked a step slow and couldn’t hit anything. That disparity sent the South champion Panthers (17-8) off to a 12-5 first quarter lead and the team from Boston was still up 18-12 halfway through the second quarter.

After that the dramatic change took place and the undefeated North champion Generals (24-0) put everything together to overwhelm Cathedral, 64-35, and win the Division 4 state semifinals on Monday afternoon at the TD Garden.

The reasons for the change? One was the HW zone defense. The Generals had size and Cathedral had limited good looks at the 3’s they generally take. The Panthers still tried to live long range and had almost no offensive rebounds or layups. The other reason for the HW turnaround was sophomore point guard Marcus Zegarowski (24 points). His ability to run an offense became more and more evident as the game went on. Marcus created for himself and he also set up teammates (6 assists). The Panthers ran a number of man-to-man defenders at him but his quickness opened up shots from near and far. Marcus was able to get to the rim for five scores.

Moses Flowers dribbles and Nikos Lara defends

But in the early going Cathedral looked to be the better team. Though smaller than HW, they connected twice from long range (Trevor Lynch and Moses Flowers) and forced three Generals’ turnovers in the first quarter.

Two layups by Julian Howell and a converted rebound by Trevor Lynch in the first four minutes of the second quarter started to make believers of some of the upset-hopers in the crowd.

But before that second quarter was over the Generals had rattled off ten unanswered points to hold a 22-18 halftime advantage.

The last minute of that first half (eight HW points) was a foretaste of Hamilton-Wenham’s domination to come. Marcus Zegarowski started it with a steal and layup. (Cathedral had three turnovers in the final minute.) Then after a turnover, reserve Nick DiMarino drained a three. After yet another turnover Max Zegarowski finished the pull-away final minute with three of his own to finish the quarter.

Marcus Zegarowski gets to the rim

You thought maybe Cathedral would regroup at halftime. They were only down four. You thought wrong. HW was just getting started. The Generals added eleven more in a row to start the third quarter before Christopher Alzate hit a three for Cathedral. That basket cut the Cathedral deficit to 33-21.

Plenty of time for the Panthers to regroup with 1 ½ quarters remaining. But as I said before, the Generals weren’t finished. The rest of the quarter was all Hamilton-Wenham. The Panthers tried to tighten up on the perimeter but HW then had husky 6-4 Nolan Wilson (13 points) getting single coverage in close. The Generals milked that mismatch for eight points. Meanwhile Marcus Zegarowski added his ten points to the 26-point HW quarter. The team from the Central Catholic League had only the 3-pointer to show for the quarter.

When that quarter ended the Generals were in complete command, 48-21. That quarter was either beautiful or horrific depending on the team you were with but there was definitely no middle ground!

If there had been a Mercy Rule, as in softball, this one would have ended after three quarters but it didn’t. I was glad for that because both teams had the opportunity to give their entire rosters a chance to play at the Garden.

Jimmy Campbell

Senior Jimmy Campbell collected thirteen rebounds for the Generals.

Hamilton-Wenham will play for the Division 4 state title on Friday night at WPI at 7:45PM.

Cathedral won the state D4 title in 2006, 2007, and 2009.

HW coach Doug Hoak won a state title coaching the Generals baseball team back in the day.

Hamilton-Wenham is from the Cape Ann League.

Cathedral had twenty-five turnovers while the Generals had only eight.

Hamilton-Wenham box

Cathedral box

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Marcus Zegarowski

Max Zegarowski

Nick DiMarino clicked twice from long range

HW whiteout

tie up

Trevor Lynch

prom question

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Filed under Cathedral, Hamilton-Wenham

Tagged as Cathedral High School, Jimmy Campbell, Marcus Zegarowski, Nolan Wilson

March 7, 2015 · 9:37 pm

Watertown takes out Pentucket 44-40 in Division 2 North finals

Kelsi McNamara found few openings but still tallied twenty-three points for Pentucket

Gianna Coppola made three of four free throws in crunch time for Watertown

Michaela Antonellis (15 points) had a strong game for Watertown

(Lowell MA) Watertown had twenty-three turnovers, missed nine free throws, and had a seven-minute scoring drought in the final eight-minute quarter.

Not the ingredients you’d expect to be part of a Watertown girls’ win but they were. The Raiders had enough defense to offset the negatives and ousted Pentucket, 44-40, to gain the Division 2 North title on Saturday afternoon at the Tsongas Center.

Watertown will face South #1 seed Duxbury (24-1) on Tuesday night (5:45PM) at the TD North Garden in the Division 2 state semifinals.

Kelsi McNamara (23 points) was option one, two, three, and four for the Sachems (23-2) all afternoon. Kelsi, who recently became Pentucket’s all-time scoring leader, saw plenty of defenders Rachel Morris and Felicia Korte during the afternoon. The taller twosome alternated on Kelsi and did a solid job of limiting open 3-point attempts.

Felicia Korte defends Kelsi McNamara

When Kelsi was able to find space past her outside defenders there was always 6-2 Shannon Murphy to also be dealt with. Almost all of Kelsi’s open shots were taken in warmups!

Kelsi, however, had two of four 3’s during the first half of the final quarter. Her second one put the Sachems within one possession (41-38) of the lead with half a quarter left.

The undefeated Raiders (21-0) made things more “interesting” than they should have as they nursed a three-point lead with a run thereafter of turnovers (three) and missed free throws (four). But the team from West Newbury didn’t answer the Watertown miscues with points. In fact, it wasn’t until twenty-four seconds were left when senior Audrey Tipson sank two free throws to put Pentucket on the doorstep trailing only 41-40.

Looking for a clutch performance? Step up, Gianna Coppola. The Sachems fouled Gianna to stop the clock after Audrey‘s free throws. The WHS senior made the first shot but not the second. The rebound on the missed shot, however, was mishandled by Pentucket and Watertown had the ball out-of-bounds. A pass in and Gianna was fouled again. This time she hit both free throws giving Watertown a four-point lead with nine seconds left. A prayer by Kelsi McNamara a few seconds later was not answered and the Raiders had the title.

Michaela Antonellis gets double teamed by McKenna Kilian and Taylor Moore

Watertown started fast (11-3) with Michaela Antonellis (15 points) cashing several inside shots. The Sachems, however, shut out Watertown for the final five minutes of the quarter and went on a 12-1 run to lead 15-12 after a quarter. Kelsi had two three’s in that segment.

The Raiders regained the lead but Pentucket was still close (27-25) in the first two minutes of the third quarter. A layup by Audrey Tipson assisted by Boo Torrisi narrowed the gap to two.

Then junior Michaela Antonellis took over with eight consecutive points on a three, a jump shot, and a driving layup. Gianna Coppola followed with a layup assisted by Michaela to end a nine-point run that put Watertown ahead 36-25 with 3:10 remaining in the third quarter.

Kelsi McNamara tries to get past 6-2 Shannon Murphy

After Shannon Murphy notched a layup to start the final quarter Watertown looked comfortable at 41-32. But two Kelsi McNamara three’s later that lead was down to three with plenty of time left. On this afternoon that “plenty of time” wasn’t enough for the Sachems. No question they had plenty of glittering chances but couldn’t find a big shot in the end game.

I was impressed with ball-handling skills of Watertown’s Michaela Antonellis.
I was also impressed with the way Pentucket turned up the defense in the final quarter. The way they double-teamed every Raider receiving a pass was effective.

This was the third straight year to the North finals for Watertown. Two years ago Pentucket won, 38-24, as they put fifteen straight points together to get an early 18-2 lead and never looked back.
(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Kelsi McNamara puts up a runner in the lane

McKenna Kilian goes baseline

Kelsi McNamara was heavily defended on the perimeter

Audrey Tipson brought Pentucket within a point making two free throws in the last minute

Kelsi McNamara gets a block on Gianna Coppola

Kelsi McNamara in the midst of four Raiders

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Filed under Pentucket, Watertown

Tagged as Audrey Tipson, Felicia Korte, Gianna Coppola, Kelsi McNamara, Michaela Antonellis, Rachel Morris

March 4, 2015 · 11:53 pm

Isaiah McLeod (35 points) leads Cambridge Rindge and Latin past Andover 78-62 in the D1 North semifinals

Isaiah McLeod (35 points) stroked early and often in the first half

Isaiah McLeod soars above the Andover defense getting sixteen points in the first quarter

(North Andover MA) Isaiah McLeod (35 points) had a dazzling first half and set Cambridge Rindge & Latin up for a 78-62 D1 North semifinal win over Andover on Wednesday night at North Andover High School.

The Falcons (20-2) now meet St. John’s Prep at the Tsongas Center on Saturday (7:45PM) for the D1 North title.

Senior Isaiah McLeod had a first half (25 points) in which shots from everywhere were dropping. Layups, jump shots, 3-pointers, and foul shots, you name it, he hurt the Warriors from them all.

The Falcons never trailed. The Warriors (17-6) were only down 8-6 after an EJ Perry old-fashioned 3-point play after less than two minutes.

EJ Perry shoots from long range

Isaiah, however, took over the next 2 ½ minutes as Cambridge ran thirteen unanswered points. Isaiah had ten of them including two 3’s. Now down fifteen (21-6) the Warriors unsuccessfully played catch-up the rest of the way.

Andover was down but the out part took a little more doing for the Falcons.

Cambridge was up by twenty (40-20) with less than two minutes left in the second half but three’s by David Giribaldi and Jonathan Rodriguez plus a Connor Merinder layup narrowed the Andover deficit to twelve (40-28) at halftime.

Seniors David Garibaldi (19 points) and Connor Merinder (22 points) caught fire together in the third quarter and suddenly Andover was within six (44-38) with 2+ minutes left in the quarter.

But that Andover momentum came to a stop as Demitrius Woodson (just off the bench) drained a three from the right corner on an inbounds play.

Tevin Charles (15 points) hits a big 3rd quarter 3-pointer in front of the Andover student section

On Cambridge’s next possession Tevin Charles duplicated the three-spot from the other corner. Tevin had all fifteen of his points in the second half. Back down by twelve went Andover.

The Warriors would get within eight a couple of times early in the final quarter but the combo of fatigue and persistent Cambridge offense never let them get closer. The nail in the coffin was at 2 ½ minute mark when Andover senior inside presence Connor Merinder fouled out.

The Falcons ended up with eight 3-pointers including five in the breakaway first quarter.

I don’t know how many three’s Andover took but there were plenty of them. Their long-range insistence turned costly in the first half as their inaccuracy allowed Cambridge to build up a big lead.

Connor Merinder (22 points)

Connor Merinder showed a nice baby hook inside that Cambridge struggled to defend.

Isaiah McLeod is committed to Southern Connecticut State in New Haven. When a good player like Isaiah has it going from anywhere he chooses there isn’t a defense that can stop him. Andover ran a bunch of players at him but nothing worked in the first half. St. John’s better have something prepared for #1 or they’ll be in serious trouble at the Tsongas Center on Saturday.

Cambridge coach Lance Dottin won his 300th game in December.

The Falcons two losses have been to out-of-state teams – Albany Academy and Archbishop Molloy.

Cambridge is in the Dual County (Large) League. Andover hails from the Merrimack Valley Conference.

Where does the “Rindge” part of Cambridge Rindge and Latin come from? Generous Frederich Hastings Rindge was connected to the school in the late 1800’s.

No sign of Cambridge alum Mayor Bill DeBlasio of NYC at the game.

Cambridge box

Andover box

(All of the pictures above and below will enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Connor Merinder draws a charge on Kakigh Dottin

Eric Smith-Sokol and Ryan OConnell

David Giribaldi (19 points)

Isaiah McLeod passes to teammate Tevin Charles as Connor Merinder defends

EJ Perry looks to block

Isaiah McLeod had three 3-pointers in the breakway first quarter

Isaiah McLeod afterwards

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Filed under Andover, Cambridge Rindge and Latin

Tagged as Connor Merinder, David Giribaldi, Isaiah McLeod, Tevin Charles

March 2, 2015 · 11:17 pm

Colleen Jameson and Kelsi McNamara come up big in Pentucket’s 34-25 win over Arlington Catholic in D2 North semifinals

Colleen Jameson killed Arlington Catholic with five 3-pointers

Kelsi McNamara (15 points) became the top all-time scorer at Pentucket

Pentucket celebrates

(Danvers MA) Colleen Jameson provided separation and Kelsi McNamara added the finishing touch as #2 Pentucket defeated #3 Arlington Catholic, 34-25, in the North D2 semifinals on Monday night at St. John’s Prep.

Arlington Catholic had trouble taking care of the ball in the first half (sixteen turnovers) and made only three-of-ten free throws in the second half. But despite that unsavory combination, the Cougars trailed by only four (29-25) with 2:19 left. A three by Marie Gaffney (11 points) keyed AC’s late run.

This was where Kelsi McNamara (15 points) took over the scoring load for the Sachems. She put up five unanswered points (two jump shots and a free throw) to seal the deal for Pentucket (23-1) and became, in the process, the Sachems’ all-time top scorer with over 1200 points.

Kelsi McNamara puts up a three

Pentucket coach John McNamara was forced to play Kelsi sparingly after she picked up her 4th foul with plenty of time left in the final quarter. But when Kelsi came back for the final 2+ minutes you knew that she would try to find shots no matter what the defense did. In both baskets Kelsi went left in heavy traffic, including 6-2 Demi Fogarty, and still made the shots. A third try in the same area earned her free throws. The active Pentucket student section then saluted her with, “MVP, MVP.”

If anyone was giving out an MVP award I suspect that sophomore Colleen Jameson (15 points) would also deserve plenty of consideration. Colleen drained five three’s including four in the decisive third quarter.

Colleen’s second three gave Pentucket the lead (16-13) for good. The next three was assisted by Kelsi and then came the backbreaker (for AC) when Colleen had the ball with time running out on the shot clock and rushed a long three that swished as the shot clock went off. That prompted an AC timeout and some significant defense on Colleen the rest of the way. But before the quarter ended there was Colleen behind the arc in front of the Sachems’ student section and one more time she clicked from long range. Thanks to Colleen’s accuracy the Sachems were in front, 26-16, after three quarters.

Boo Torrisi shadows Melissa Rogers

There was plenty of time for the defending D2 champions to respond and they did getting within four before Kelsi McNamara took over.

I am confident that when the AC faithful try to figure out where this game was lost they will say that the second quarter did them in. And who can argue! The Cougars (18-6) did not score a single point in the second quarter. Zip. Nada. All they had to show for that quarter were nine turnovers all of which were in the frontcourt. Credit the Pentucket defense. They were relentless and their double-teams kept Arlington Catholic from running organized offense and capitalizing on 6-2 Demi Fogarty in close.

Colleen Jameson had three 3’s in Pentucket’s quarterfinal win over Wakefield. Earlier in February she had five long one’s versus North Reading.

The team from West Newbury moves on to the D2 North finals on Saturday at the Tsongas Center against either Belmont or Watertown.