McClelland Miscellanea

January 16, 2013 · 10:41 pm

Governor’s Academy hangs on to defeat Tabor Academy 46-44 in prep school girls basketball

Kat Fogarty (25 points) gets above the Tabor defense

loose ball in the last minute

(Byfield) The Governor’s Academy girls held on down the stretch and eked out a, 46-44, win over Tabor Academy on Wednesday afternoon at GA.

The Govs (7-3) made a 46-44 advantage stand up through three possessions by Tabor (7-4) in the final 1 ½ minutes.

The first two tense possessions ended with Seawolves’ turnovers. The game-on-the-line last one ended with a missed shot by Tabor’s Sarah Kourtesis with Kat Fogarty running at her. The resulting rebound led to a wild scramble as the final buzzer sounded.

Kat Fogarty (25 points) was terrific for the Govs despite drawing plenty of attention from the Seawolves defenders in a full-game performance.

Kat Fogarty made ten of eleven free throws

6-1 Kat hit three 3’s and made 10-of-11 free throws. She will be playing for Division 1 Marist in 2013-14.

Kat’s points were one thing but her rebounding, passing, and shot blocking were eye-catchers as well. I was equally impressed with her part in finding open spots where she could receive outlet passes during Tabor’s relentless pressure.

What surprised me reviewing the play-by-play from this game was that Kat Fogarty did not score a single point over the final nine minutes of the game! She made two free throws with nine minutes left to end Tabor’s eight-straight run and give GA a 37-36 edge.

The final nine Govs’ points were produced by the Ham sisters (Jackie and Kendall) and Hayley Newhall.

After a Gia Doonan (nine points) layup, Jackie Ham (nine points) answered with a layup of her own. Sister Kendall converted a rebound before Aly Griffin answered with a driving layup. This action put the score at 41-40 in favor of the Govs with five minutes left.

Katie Vareika chases down Jackie Ham

Next we watched the Ham sisters, in reverse order, tally two more baskets. Kendall’s was a layup in the half court. Jackie’s was a full-court sprint. Sarah Kourtesis responded with a layup to make this a 45-42 game with 2:48 to be played.

Hayley Newhall made one of two free throws with 1:46 to go and not long after that Anel Ethenage (seven points) tallied Tabor’s last basket with a jumper in the lane.

To say that the final 1 ½ minutes were hectic is putting it mildly. Not only did Tabor turn the ball over on their first two possessions but the home team did the same thing.

After the second turnover by the visitors from Marion, Jackie Ham was at the free throw line with 11.7 seconds left with the chance to build on the Govs’ two-point lead. She missed both and that led to a final shot for Tabor that could have sent this game into overtime.

Kat Fogarty blocks Izzy Nappa

The Seawolves held a 6-4 lead after five minutes before Kat Fogarty keyed an 18-1 run over the next seven minutes. Kat put together twelve straight points in the GA surge of good offense including two 3’s in a row.

Tabor’s lone point came from Lydia Caputi. The Seawolves registered (by my count) nine turnovers during this segment and found themselves down, 22-7.

Tabor was down but definitely not out…too many good athletes. Over the next 10 ½ minutes of playing time, stretching into the second half, the Seawolves climbed all the way back outscoring GA, 29-13, and pulled in front, 36-35, to set up an exciting final ten minutes.

Tabor was the Class A New England champion in 2011.

Jackie Ham shoots a free throw

Governor’s Academy was 14-10 last season.

The two teams played at Tabor last year where the Seawolves won, 62-51.

Kat Fogarty has led the ISL (Independent School League) in scoring during the past two seasons. She reached 1000 points last season.

Covering prep school games can be difficult and this one was especially so. I have to have names and numbers of players to identify players that turn up in the pictures I take. Neither school in this game offered any roster help on their websites and neither school had a typed roster at the site to use or at least look at and copy. I ended up looking at a scorebook that was tough to read on some of the Tabor names. The retired teacher in me wants to spell names correctly.

Governor’s Academy boxscore

Tabor Academy boxscore

(The pictures above and below enlarge considerably if you click on them.)

Hayley Newhall tightly defended by Aly Griffin

Hayley Newhall puts her shoulder into Katie Vareika

Aly Griffin

another loose ball in the last minute

Gia Doonan (nine points) shoots over Kendall Ham

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Filed under Governor's Academy, Tabor

Tagged as Aly Griffin, Gia Doonan, Jackie Ham, Kat Fogarty, Kendall Ham

January 14, 2013 · 10:42 pm

Manchester-Essex girls get by Triton 37-21 with strong second half

Sydney Christopher (nine points) heads down the lane

Liza Logue (seven points) looks for an opening

(Byfield) Manchester-Essex put together a strong second half and defeated Triton, 37-21, in Cape Ann League girls action on Monday night.

The Vikings (1-10) trailed only by three (17-14) with 3 ½ minutes left in the third quarter but were done in by a ten-point run by the Hornets (4-7) over the next 2 ½ minutes.

This good segment of offense for ME opened up a 27-14 advantage that turnover-prone Triton could not recover from the rest of the way.

The point scorers for the Hornets during the game-deciding run were Maya Heath (two free throws), Sam Taylor (converted rebound), Liza Logue (layup), and Ivy Silag Sterns (layup and jump shot).

The run of points was certainly a factor in the Hornet win but equally important was a second half in which they took better care of the ball. In the first half ME had fourteen giveaways (by my count) while in the second half the miscues fell to six. With fewer turnovers the Hornets were able to get more shots and enough of their attempts went in to result in a victory.

Kaitlyn Muldowney (eight points) led Triton in scoring

Triton went down 6-0 early but thanks to converted rebounds by Kaitlyn Muldowney and Harley Wood, as well a long shot by Kaitlyn, the Vikings tied the score early in the second quarter.

Triton was within two (13-11) just before halftime but Sydney Christopher nailed a last-second shot for ME giving the visitor a 15-11 halftime lead.

The Vikings were still in contention down only 17-14 after an Amanda Colpitts layup in the third quarter.

However, Triton put together a stretch of poor ball management (five turnovers) that coincided with ME making shots. That combination did in the home team.

The Vikings had seventeen turnovers in the second half while ME had only six. Both teams applied full-court pressure.

Ivy Silag Stearns takes a long pass from Sydney Christopher in for a layup

Freshman Sydney Christopher (nine points) led the Hornet scorers. Liza Logue had seven and Ivy Silag Sterns six.

Kaitlyn Muldowney was Triton’s top point getter with eight points.

The best pass in this game was a long inbounds pass from Sydney Christopher to a breaking Ivy Silag Stearns that set up Ivy for a layup in the final quarter.

Triton and Manchester-Essex met on December 28th in a tournament non-league game which the Hornets won, 35-24.

Division 4 Manchester-Essex was 5-16 last season. They are now 2-6 in the Cape Ann League.

Division 3 Triton last won four weeks ago defeating East Boston. The Vikings were 4-16 last season.

eyes on the ball

There is no pattern to the games I will be cover. My first inclination is to watch top teams play – I saw the Pentucket girls defeat Billerica. I expect to see the Central Catholic boys (9-1) face a very good Lowell team on Friday night.

However, I am also drawn to games in which the two teams have losing records. It is my belief that the intensity will be very high as both teams go after something that has been hard for them to get.

Such was the case in the Triton/ME game. The effort by both teams was apparent and for 2 ½ quarters this game was even. Triton gave it their best shot and never let up.

Manchester-Essex box score

Triton box score

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

Carolyn Heslop defended by Megan Muldowney

Sydney Christopher hits a shot late in the first half

Sam Taylor blocks the shot of Harley Wood

Christine Ciccone and Allyson Conway (24)

Fraley Morton and Amanda Colpitts

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Filed under Manchester-Essex, Triton

Tagged as Carolyn Heslop, Harley Wood, Ivy Silag Stearns, Kaitlyn Muldowney, Liza Logue, Sydney Christopher

January 11, 2013 · 11:39 pm

Newburyport rally falls short as Manchester-Essex wins 54-38 in boys basketball

Liam Aldrich (10 points) looks for someone to pass to

Ian Michaels (17 points) gets airborne

(Newburyport) Newburyport had Manchester-Essex on the ropes early in the final quarter but went verrrrry cold over the last six minutes and lost to the Hornets, 54-38, on Friday night in Cape Ann League action.

The Clippers (5-3) trailed by thirteen (37-24) in the closing minutes of the third quarter but, led by Ian Michaels (17 points), cut the lead to six (42-36) with six minutes to go in the fourth quarter.

But over the last six minutes Newburyport had only one basket (Dillon Guthro layup from Ian Michaels) and that enabled the visitors to pad their lead to a comfortable sixteen by game’s end.

Max Nesbit (19 points) sent the Hornets (5-4) into the comfort zone with an old-fashioned three and an assist on Sean Gutierrez’s layup. Liam Aldrich (10 points) capped the eight point run with an old-fashioned three. This consecutive point surge gave ME a commanding 50-36 advantage with three minutes left. They coasted in from there.

Petey Morton (8 points)

Newburyport, which had won five of their last six, was ahead for most of the first quarter, until a three by Petey Morton (8 points) gave ME their first lead, 16-14, in the last thirty seconds of that quarter. The Hornets stayed in front the rest of the game.

Manchester-Essex, which has now won five of their last six games, boosted their advantage to seven in the second quarter and thirteen in the third quarter before the Clippers made their run to within six points in the final quarter.

Senior Max Nesbit nailed four 3’s in the game and saw a lot more open looks than a player with his shooting reputation should have had.

The Clippers continue to play without ball handler/shooter Co-Captain Colby Morris. Poor shooting was certainly an issue for Newburyport versus ME but just as significant was shaky ball management. By my unofficial count, Newburyport had eighteen turnovers including nine in the second quarter.

Dillon Guthro (eight points) waits for a pass

Clipper Dillon Guthro (8 points) was injured in the first quarter and returned in the second quarter with a noticeable limp.

A good matchup was between point guards Adam Traxler and Liam Aldrich. Liam showed a fancy move down the lane in the third quarter that raised some ooh’s and ah’s from the crowd.

ME’s tallest player (Sean Gutierrez) went out with four fouls early in the third quarter.

Both ME and Newburyport have lost to undefeated North Reading.

The Hornets were 19-3 last season and 52-14 over the last three seasons. Coach Bryan Shields is a first-year coach. This year’s Hornets started with three straight losses but have done very well since.

Freshman Dan Baribeault chases a loose ball

Newburyport was 15-7 last season.

I was told that in their last game at Ipswich the Clippers had an 11-7 lead at halftime.

The Hornets will host Triton on Monday in their next game.

The Clippers travel to Rockport on Tuesday for their next action.

Manchester-Essex boxscore

Newburyport boxscore

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

halftime shooter

in bounds play

Max Nesbit had nineteen points

Taylor Ketchum splits the Clippers defense

Hornet Sean Gutierrez leans into John Baribeault

loose ball

Dan Baribeault finds an opening

Taylor Ketchum runs into defenders Matt Canning and Dillon Guthro

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Tagged as Dillon Guthro, Ian Michaels, Liam Aldrich, Max Nesbit

January 9, 2013 · 11:34 pm

Danvers defeats Lynn English 90-70 to remain undefeated after seven games in boys basketball

Nick McKenna (23 points) gets two

Dan Connors (20 points) heads for the hoop

(Danvers) Danvers (7-0) put together a thirty point third quarter and defeated Lynn English (4-4), 90-70, on Wednesday night at Danvers in Northeastern Conference action.

This game was fast-paced from beginning to end as both teams applied full-court pressure. That pressure produced more fastbreaks than it did turnovers. On this night, the Falcons were better finishers, often making an extra pass to get an open layup.

The defending Division 3 state champs, if anything, look stronger than last year. So far they have won every game by at least twenty points.

All five starters for Danvers reached double figures with Nick McKenna leading the way with twenty-three.

Fred Hogan (21 points) gets a three at the buzzer

The twenty-point spread at the end was a bit misleading because the Bulldogs only trailed by four (42-38) at halftime.

The possibility of the Bulldogs going on in the second half to pull the upset vanished as the Falcons exploded during a four-minute segment of their thirty-point third quarter.

With 5 ½ minutes left in the third quarter, the Falcon lead was just five (49-44). During the next four minutes the game got away from the Bulldogs as Danvers outscored them, 19-4, to race to a twenty-point lead (68-48).

This game ended with a twenty-point difference so the two teams were even on the scoreboard over the remaining nine minutes of playing time.

During the crucial run, Vinny Clifford (16 points) collected eight points including a pair of 3’s. Teammate Dan Connors (20 points) also added eight points getting his from in close.

Eric Martin (13 points and 8 assists) and Stevie Collins (6 points)

The Falcons had the long-ball going (they made eight 3’s) and they also had plenty of assisted baskets. I had point guard Eric Martin down for eight assists. Eric had the knack of drawing the defense to him and then feeding to open players lining up 3’s. Nick McKenna had five long ones.

It is easy to go on and on raving about Danvers but undersized Lynn English never quit no matter what the score was. Their speed was impressive and their willingness to go at the Falcons led to some acrobatic shots. Unfortunately, the visitors missed a ton of layups or this game could have been closer.

Fred Hogan (21), Erick Rosario (15), and Johnny Hilaire (12) led the Bulldogs in scoring.

LE got down 29-14 early in the second quarter but Erick Rosario put five points into seven straight Bulldog points to close that gap. The Bulldogs finished the final 2:22 of the half with a 10-1 segment as Fred Hogan cashed seven points including a last-second three to pull LE to 42-38 at the half.

Erick Rosario (15 points) goes for two

In the fourth quarter the Bulldogs had every reason to lose heart down 77-54 with seven minutes left. Instead LE put up twelve unanswered points getting four each from Erik Rosario and Johnny Hilaire over the next 3+ minutes and the difference between the two teams was eleven (77-66).

But Danvers is so explosive that one minute later they had put together seven consecutive points (Nick Bates had three of them) and an eleven point lead quickly jumped back to eighteen, 84-66.

The next game for Lynn English will be at Winthrop on Friday night (7PM). Danvers will be hosting Salem at the same time on the same night.

I suspect that it will be a standing-room only crowd at that Danvers/Salem game. One side of the court still doesn’t have the wooden bleachers in place.

Johnny Hilaire took a Falcon turnover (they had thirteen) in for a dunk in the fourth quarter.

Dan Connors found plenty of openings in close.

Nick Bates (14 points) takes a three over Anthony Silfa (11)

Nick Bates went coast-to-coast after getting a rebound in the last two minutes of the game.

This was my first time seeing Danvers play since March 17, 2012 at the Worcester Centrum when they defeated St. Joseph’s of Pittsfield, 59-47, to win the D3 state title.

It is not hard to imagine the Falcons being the number one seed in Division 3 North come tournament time. I know, there are a lot of regular season games left! Just sayin’.

Danvers boxscore Lynn English boxscore

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

Danny Lukanda blocks

Danvers cheerleaders

Brian Redondo goes for the fake

Erick Rosario

Fred Hogan shoots

Ben Bowden (11 points)

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Filed under Danvers, Lynn English

Tagged as Dan Connors, Eric Martin, Erick Rosario, Fred Hogan, Johnny Hilaire, Nick Bates, Nick McKenna

January 7, 2013 · 11:32 pm

Masconomet runs away from Newburyport 62-32 in girls basketball

Nicole Femino (14 points) breaks in alone

Hannah Kiernan (12 points) takes and makes a difficult shot.

(Newburyport) After losing badly to the cream of Division 3 (Pentucket) on Friday, Newburyport hoped for a better outing against Masconomet.

Didn’t happen.

Masco (6-2) ran away from the Clippers, 62-32, on Monday night at Newburyport.

“Ran away” is a good description because the Chieftains put fastbreak after fastbreak on the cold shooting home team. The Clippers (3-4) got caught numerous times chasing offensive rebounds instead of getting back on defense.

When Masco wasn’t getting layups (they had fourteen) they were getting foul shots (they had twenty-eight).

The Chieftains made eighteen free throws.

Aly Leahy tries to split two Chieftain defenders

Aly Leahy of Newburyport opened the scoring with a free throw. Nicole Femino (14 points) matched that and then sent Hannah Kiernan (12 points) off on a breakaway layup. Hannah’s basket gave Masco the lead (3-1) for good.

Masco led, 14-6, after one quarter and doubled it to, 28-12, at halftime.

The Chieftains started the second half with a 12-4 run over 3 ½ minutes to increase their lead to, 40-16. Sophomore Meghan Collins (8 points) scored the first two baskets, one on a nice spin move.

During the last 12 ½ minutes of the game Newburyport was only outscored, 22-16, but this was not a night in which a late rally materialized.

Janelle Shea blocks the shot of Mary Pettigrew

There was no point in the game where the Clippers were able to put more than four points together in a row. Cold shooting was part of it but the Chieftains were defending well inside – Newburyport scored four layups in the game.

On the other hand, because of the frequency of layups, Masco ran points together. On seven different occasions they scored at least six points in a row.

Lilly Donovan (9 points) paced Newburyport. She hit a three in the first quarter that went off the backboard.

Casey Barlow (8 points) was credited with a basket when her attempt at a pass under the basket was deflected in off a Masconomet player.

Coach Bob Romeo of Masco was deep into his bench late in the first half. He ended up having eleven different players score.

Amy Sullivan defends

You have to feel sorry for Newburyport. What a killer schedule! They have just finished playing Ipswich, Pentucket, and now Masconomet. Next game (Thursday) they host Ipswich in a league game. Ipswich and Pentucket are undefeated. Masco is a Division One team that gave both of those teams a run for their money before losing to them.

Molly Rowe (Bentley) and Joe Clancy (Merrimack) were in the house.

Masco’s next game will be hosting Amesbury on Wednesday night.

Finding information on Cape Ann League teams is a serious challenge. One helpful site is www.calscores.com. There you’ll find schedules, scores, and standings.

Details about teams can be very illusive. However, that is no longer true regarding the Lady Chieftains. Click on this link and see what I mean.

Masco box score

Newburyport box score

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

Aly Leahy shoots in traffic

Casey Barlow defends

Jaycie Triandafilou pressures Meghan Collins

Sarah Lang (23)

Rebecca Kell heads for the hoop

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Filed under Masconomet, Newburyport

Tagged as Casey Barlow, Hannah Kiernan, Jaycie Triandafilou, Lilly Donovan, Meghan Collins, Nicole Femino

January 4, 2013 · 11:36 pm

Triton stuns Masco 46-45 on late 3’s by Paul Dacy

Paul Dacy of Triton shoots the game-winner over Brian Reardon in front of the Viking student section.

(Byfield) What a game!

Senior Paul Dacy hit two 3’s in the final thirty-five seconds enabling Triton (4-2) to edge Masconomet, 46-45, before an excited home crowd on Friday night.

Celebration on the court began even before the final three had been posted on the scoreboard

That crowd rushed the floor when Paul’s final shot went in and the buzzer sounded.

The Chieftains (1-6) led by seven (41-34) with four minutes left but four turnovers the rest of the way had plenty to do with the bad ending for them. Two of the turnovers led directly to Viking layups by Zak Alaoui (20 points) and Sam McKenzie (4 points).

Another Masco miscue gave Triton the ball with one minute left. Trailing by three (43-40), the Vikings passed and passed and, with few seconds on the shot clock, Paul Dacy was forced into a fall-away three. The shot caromed off the backboard and in tying the score with thirty-five seconds left.

Jalen Aho put Masco ahead late in the game

No timeout by Masco. Point guard Jalen Aho controlled the ball throughout the Masco possession. He dribbled one way and then the other looking to be intent on passing to anyone. However, when the lane opened up the junior sailed in for a layup with 10.9 seconds left.

Triton took a timeout. Coach Dave Clay said afterwards that the plan was to get to the basket. Trailing by two it made sense. But the Masco defense was tough. Zak Alaoui attempted to drive from the left but the Chieftain defense collapsed to prevent it. However, by preventing Zak from penetrating they gave him a chance to get the ball to Paul Dacy in the nearby corner. Paul had a split second to let the shot fly from in front of the Triton student section. He also had defender Brian Reardon running at him but it didn’t matter as he canned the game-winner.

Why all the excitement at Triton? The Vikings are coming off a 5-15 season and already have four wins in 2012-13. An energetic student section is in place. They stood throughout the game offering plenty of encouragement before swarming the court after the final buzzer.

I chose to cover this game for two reasons: (1) to take a look at the suddenly successful Triton Vikings and see how they’re doing it, and (2) try to figure out what has gone wrong with a Masconomet team that was 14-7 in 2011-12.

Zak Alaoui (20 points)

The answer to the first is that this season’s Vikings play tight defense and are eager to run with turnovers. They also can make shots from long range.

The answer to the second was not as clear with just one look. I never saw Captain Chris Schleer. He certainly would have made a difference. It was obvious that Masco made far too many mistakes. I had them for twenty-four turnovers including eight in the final quarter.

After Paul Dacy (11 points), the two standouts in this game were Triton’s Zak Alaoui and Masco’s Zach Turcotte. Both players had twenty points. Zak had a couple of three’s but most of his scoring came from breakaway layups set up by good defense. 6-6 Zach dominated the inside doing all of his scoring from in close.

Triton had a four-point lead (13-9) early in the second quarter but later on Masco got ahead on two inside scores by Tighe Van Lenten (7 points) and Ben Hinckley. A three from the right corner by Zak Alaoui set up the halftime score at 18-18.

Masco led for most of the third quarter before three’s by Connor Barry (9 points) and Zak (off the rim and backboard) knotted things at 30-30.

Zach Turcotte (20 points)

Over the next 5+ minutes of playing time, stretching into the fourth quarter, the Chieftains put an 11-4 run together. Two of the scores were on converted rebounds (Alberto Arenaza and Zach Turcotte). Brian Reardon drained a three as the visitors looked to be pulling away.

But over the final four minutes, despite being down 41-34, the Vikings rallied and won a thriller at the buzzer.

Triton, now 3-1 in the Cape Ann League, visits North Reading on Monday night. On the same night, Masco, now 0-4 in the CAL, will host Newburyport. Coach L’Italien was on hand for the Triton/Masco game.

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

Zak Alaoui ends the first half with a three

Tighe VanLenten chased by Sam McKenzie

Travis Kneeland gets medical attention

Paul Dacy

Triton student section

Brian Reardon drives on Ellsworth Rogers

Zak Alaoui caught in traffic

Connor Barry soars over Tighe VanLenten

Alberto Arenaza blocks Ellsworth Rogers

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Filed under Masconomet, Triton

Tagged as Jalen Aho, Paul Dacy, Tighe VanLenten, Zach Turcotte, Zak Alaoui

January 3, 2013 · 12:15 am

Strong shooting and a strong finish get Pentucket past Billerica 59-39 in girls basketball

Kelsi McNamara (15 points) fires a three

McKenna Kilian (13 points) pullup jump shot

(West Newbury) Pentucket hit eight 3’s and scored the game’s last eleven points as they defeated Billerica, 59-39, in a nonleague contest on Wednesday night.

A little over a year ago Billerica, at their place, had a strong second half and routed the Sachems, 63-43.

But this time around undefeated Pentucket (6-0) made shots from long range (eight over the first three quarters) and shut out the Indians (4-1) over the last 4:25 of the game. That combo did in the Division One opponent from the Merrimack Valley League.

Pentucket took the lead for good midway through the first quarter (7-6) on a three by Kelsi McNamara (15 points). That lead would get to nine (17-8) before the Indians ran seven straight into the second quarter. Brittany Lomanno (10 points) had Billerica’s only three as the Indians moved to within two (17-15) 1 ½ minutes into the second quarter.

Pentucket would get that lead up to eight (29-21) as Coley Viselli (9 points) ended the half with a three and two free throws.

Shannon Hayes (eight points in third quarter)

Kelsi McNamara dropped three 3’s in the first 2 ½ minutes of the second half to offset a strong third quarter by junior Shannon Hayes (eight points in the quarter). Pentucket led, 46-35, after three quarters.

The final quarter started out harmlessly enough – full court drive by Kayla Leverone, two free throws by Alex Moore, and two free throws by Danielle Nickerson. 48-39 with 4:25 left.

The rest of the way? All Pentucket. McKenna Kilian (13 points) sparked the Sachems. The speedy sophomore started things with a block of Brittany Lomanno’s layup attempt. Later she added a couple of full-speed, stop-on-a-dime jumpers, two free throws, and a last-second toss off the backboard.

Alex Moore (8 points) from the corner

Pentucket had four three’s in the first quarter, one in the second, and three in the third. Normal starter Alex Moore (8 points) came off the bench late in the first quarter and promptly drained two 3’s in thirty seconds.

Billerica coach Chris Doneski surprised me plenty by going to a zone defense after Pentucket had four 3’s in the first quarter. But it actually worked in the second quarter. The third quarter? Not so much! Blame Kelsi McNamara. The sophomore found three openings around the top of the key and connected on all of them.

Back to the man-to-man went the Indians. Playing that defense and facing full-court pressure all game long may have been the culprits in the Indians disastrous last 4 ½ minutes.

Tess Nogueira (12 points) looks to go under and up

Tess Nogueira (12 points) had the best game I’ve seen her play. She faced a taller defender (Joslyn King – 6’1”) and was able to score points and get Joslyn (6 points) into foul trouble. Two memorable Tess moments were a flip-back as she went under the basket and a full-court drive in the last two minutes. On that drive I’m certain she was planning on giving the ball up but no one from Billerica stepped up to stop the senior and she kept on going.

It is hard not to be impressed with Division Three Pentucket being able to defeat a quality D1 opponent. Billerica was 17-4 last season. I saw them lose to D1 undefeated state champ Andover (with Nicole Boudreau) by a point at Andover. The Indians missed four free throws in the last 1 ½ minutes in that tough loss.

Brittany Lomanno (10 points) looks to get open

The pace of this game was certainly to the Sachems liking. They forced the ball away from Billerica’s primary ball-handlers much of the game and made passing difficult. Credit the Indians for being able to handle the pressure in the backcourt. The struggle was in the front court. Billerica had twenty-one turnovers (by my unofficial count) and missed a ton of rushed shots.

You win by twenty you probably will overlook your own team’s eighteen turnovers. Billerica’s athleticism forced that many and showed well in the one-on-one matchups when the pace was to their liking. However, Pentucket was able to speed things up most of the night and get enough openings to dominate from long range.

Billerica will next be hosting a very tough North Andover team at home on Friday night.

Pentucket will be hosting Cape Ann League opponent Newburyport also on Friday night.

ESPN Boston was in the house. So was Masco’s Bob Romeo.

The state championship banner has now found a spot on the gymnasium wall.

Pentucket boxscore

Billerica boxscore

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

McKenna Kilian along the sideline

opening tip

McKenna Kilian in the lane

Kayla Leverone (3), Tess Nogueira (32), Danielle Nickerson (22)

Coley Viselli (9 points) sets for a three

Joslyn King

Kelsi McNamara

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Filed under Billerica, Pentucket

Tagged as Alex Moore, Brittany Lomanno, Coley Viselli, Joslyn King, Kelsi McNamara, McKenna Kilian, Shannon Hayes, Tess Nogueira

December 31, 2012 · 5:11 pm

Joel Barlow overwhelms Platt Tech 50-30 in girls basketball

Drew Bartro (14 points) gets loose inside

Kelly Mahoney (10 points) fires from the corner

(Redding) The Platt Tech girls ventured out of the comforts of Class S and into the deeper waters with a Class L opponent and came out on the wrong end of 50-30 score at Joel Barlow on Monday afternoon.

The host Falcons (4-2) tallied the game’s first ten points, built their lead to twenty (28-8) in the second quarter, and were never seriously challenged.

Platt Tech (3-4) may have been taller but the superior Barlow quickness, organization, and unselfishness was noticeable.

Victoria Shea of Barlow took the opening tip in for a layup and Platt Tech needed 5 ½ minutes of playing time before they could match that basket. Camileia Collier (15 points) hit the ice-breaker for the Panthers and it ended a ten-point run by Barlow.

The Falcons defended full-court but it caused few turnovers. However, when PT missed, Barlow was quick to fast break and outnumbered the visitors from Milford in transition often. That was when the unselfishness kicked in as open ten-footers were turned down for assists to teammates even closer to the basket.

Victoria Shea chased by Karolina Liszezynska (13) and Broghan Lavery (14)

Platt Tech was content to use a zone defense and they had game-long trouble getting back after missed shots. Even when the Panther defense was in place the Falcons passed and cut into openings for good shots.

Drew Bartro (14 points) led the Falcon scorers despite sitting out the fourth quarter. She had eight of her points in the first quarter. Drew was very effective inside even though (6-5) Aaliyah Bohannon was often in the area defending.

Kelly Mahoney (10 points) was the other Falcon in double figures.

Barlow coach Joe Carollo took off the full-court pressure even before halftime and had his team in a half-court zone for most of the second half. This act of sportsmanship was a key to a 32-10 halftime lead not getting out of hand.

Platt Tech outscored the team from Redding, 20-18, in the second half.

Camileia Collier (15 points) rushes out to defend

Camileia Collier (15 points) paced the Panthers while Aaliyah Bohannon (10 points) also reached double figures.

Joel Barlow’s next game is at home with Masuk on January 2nd at 7PM.

Platt Tech travels to Kaynor Tech on the same day to play at 6PM.

I was surprised that PT didn’t try to lob the ball often inside to Aaliyah. She had moves around the basket and there certainly wasn’t a Barlow defender close to her size.

The most remarkable thing about this game, to me, was the lack of whistles. There were only nine fouls called in the entire game! And it wasn’t that the officials were letting them play……..there just wasn’t a lot of contact. The game was over in just over an hour even though at the start of the game every player was introduced and the National Anthem was played.

I like the lack of a shot clock. The Falcons took a lot of time off the clock passing, passing, and then passing some more, against the PT zone.

I did some homework on the teams beforehand and came away impressed with Sarah McAniff’s resume. I’m guessing that there will be some real tears shed by the volleyball, basketball, and softball coaches when she puts on the Joel Barlow graduation gown in 2013.

Joel Barlow boxscore

Platt Tech boxscore

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

Ally Stillman (24) gets fouled

Emma Gallagher (7 points) gets a good look

Drew Bartro defends Broghan Lavery

Sarah McAniff (10) looks to pass over Britany Jackson (20)

6-5 Aaliyah Bohannan (10 points)

relaxing 4th quarter on Joel Barlow bench

Kelly Gilbert (20) defended by Aaliyah Bohannon (12)

Tianna Reeves defends

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Filed under Joel Barlow, Platt

Tagged as Aaliyah Bohannon, Camileia Collier, Coach Joe Carollo, Drew Bartro, Kelly Mahoney, Sarah McAniff

December 28, 2012 · 11:27 pm

William Tennent girls defeat Quakertown 56-31 to take Quakertown Christmas Tournament title

William Tennent – Quakertown Christmas Tournament champs

Nikki Alden (14 points) beats Taylor Herd on inbounds play

(Quakertown) William Tennent (6-2) pulled away from Quakertown in the second half and won the Quakertown Christmas Tournament, 56-31, on Friday night.

(Both girls teams are the Lady Panthers so I will refrain from using the name.)

Quakertown (2-6) trailed just 23-17 at the half but the visitors from Warminster put a 10-2 segment together in the first three minutes of the third quarter and never looked back.

Q’Town’s deficit was twelve (37-25) with two minutes to go in the third quarter. WT, however, scored all the points in the next 4 ½ minutes of playing time and this game became a 45-25 blowout with 5 ½ minutes left.

The rest of the game featured non-regular players. Quakertown was assessed a technical foul during this part of the game when they tried to use a player who wasn’t even listed in the scorebook. Trust me, this miscue had no bearing on the final outcome.

Allison Chadburn (12 points) on the break

Nikki Alden (14), Angie Pomponio (13), and Allison Chatburn (12) led William Tennent on the scoresheet. WT was very unselfish and there were plenty of eye-catching assists setting up high-percentage shots. Backdoor cuts and weak-side cuts caught Quakertown napping numerous times.

WT was also very effective on inbounds plays in their scoring end. Quakertown stuck with a man-to-man defense and WT screens led to layups.

Quakertown was impressive early on. They made three’s and actually led, 11-9, one minute into the second quarter. Freshman Taylor Herd had two long ones and senior Kathryne Vetter added another one. Unfortunately, those three 3’s would be the only ones the host team would get in the game, although quite a few others were launched.

tight Quakertown defense

When the outside game deserted Quakertown they were in big trouble against a team playing well on both ends of the court. WT took the lead for good, 12-11, on a three by Angie Pomponio. That would be WT’s only three.

William Tennent full-court pressure caused several pick-two’s. However, it was in the half-court that Quakertown was most effected by WT pressure. By my unofficial stats, WT forced twenty turnovers.

Ashlee Ruzicka (12 points) led Quakertown in scoring getting eight of them coming in the third quarter. She was a force inside but Q’Town had trouble getting the ball inside to her.

Ally Fenner shoots over Taylor Herd and Ashlee Ruzicka

WT separated from Q’Town with nine unanswered points in the second quarter. Baskets by Nikki Alden, Ally Fenner, and Allison Chatburn plus free throws by Nikki (two) and Ally (one) did the damage and turned a 14-13 close game into a ten-point (23-13) WT advantage.

The decisive surge in the third quarter, when WT pushed a 23-17 halftime lead to 33-19, was engineered by Nikki (layup and two free throws), Angie Pomponio (layup), and Allison (two baskets). This spurt turned out to be the one that Quakertown didn’t recover from.

I was impressed with the improvement of Quakertown from last season. The recovery from injury of Kathryne Vetter and the addition of freshman Taylor Herd have significantly upgraded Q’Town.

Credit the WT defense. They were well aware of both Kathryne and Taylor and there were very few good looks for either of them.

Ashlee Ruzicka (12 points) looks to the hoop

I recall seeing Ashlee Ruzicka last year playing with one knee brace. Now she has two.

I was impressed with the organization of WT on both ends of the court. The team concept was in play in both areas. Good shots for them and tough shots for Quakertown were the results.

Kathryne Vetter fouled out with over five minutes left. She was held to three points by WT after getting twenty-one points in the opening round of the tournament.

Most of the basketball games I see (Massachusetts) are played with a shot clock. There is no sitting back in PA games waiting for the shot clock to help you get the ball out of an opponent’s hands. Being able to create pressure and handle pressure are absolute musts in PA.

Who can you trust? The very fancy program given out at the game had William TennEnt spelled, “William TennAnt.”

William Tennent boxscore

Quakertown boxscore

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

Brooke Alwine launches

Taylor Herd (21) heads for the hoop

Kathryne Vetter

Ally Fenner drives on Ashlee Ruzicka

Taylor Herd (9 points) tries to get past Alyssa Christiansen

Spenser Gray and Angie Pomponio (13 points)

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Filed under Quakertown, William Tennent

Tagged as Allison Chatburn, Ally Fenner, Alyssa Christiansen, Angie Pomponio, Ashlee Ruzicka, Kathryne Vetter, Nikki Alden, Quakertown Christmas Tournament, Taylor Herd

December 21, 2012 · 11:26 pm

Undefeated Ipswich dominates Georgetown 74-20 in girls basketball

The Ipswich defense surrounds Georgetown senior Kylie Troy

Freshman Jenna Gagnon (17 points) puts up a long one

(Ipswich) That’s two straight routs by Ipswich to start season.

The Tigers (2-0) buried Georgetown, 74-20, in a Cape Ann League game on Friday night in their home opener.

A week ago the Ipswich girls opened their season on the road with a lopsided, 66-21, win over Amesbury.

I thought that Georgetown (2-2) might offer a challenge to the Tigers since they have 1000-point scorer Kristin Hogan as well as defender/shooter Marissa Agganis. But it didn’t matter.

It was clear right off that the Royals would struggle against the aggressive Tiger defense. Before the first quarter was half over the visitors already had seven turnovers and trailed, 6-0.

Kristin Hogan (11) chased by Brigid OFlynn (33) and Julia Davis (32)

Ali Newbury’s layup from Kristin Hogan broke the ice for GTown with 4:15 left in the first quarter.

The Tigers followed with a productive run that ended any outcome suspense that may have existed. Over the next 5 ½ minutes of playing time, extending into the second quarter, Ipswich dominated Georgetown to the tune of, 22-2, including one stretch of sixteen unanswered points.

The result of this terrific offense/defense was a, 28-4, Tiger lead with 6:48 left in only the second quarter. The rest of the game was played but at no time was there any doubt at the Ipswich Tiger Den about the final outcome.

Keys to the Ipswich success during that special 5 ½ minutes were that they; had no turnovers, made three 3’s, and forced six Royal turnovers.

The Tigers put together another stretch of unanswered points (nine) in the second quarter. Their halftime lead was, 42-9.

This was not a run-up-the-score kind of game. Every player on both rosters played plenty. Substituting five at a time was the norm in the second half.

My scoresheet had freshman Jenna Gagnon with 17 points and sophomore Caroline Soucy with 16 points to lead Ipswich. Jenna had four 3’s. Julia Davis (10), Jordan Morrissey (9), and Masey Zegarowski (8) also contributed points for Ipswich.

Marissa Agganis (7 points) sails in for a layup

Marissa Agganis (7 points) paced the Royals getting two 3’s in the second quarter. Kristin Hogan only played in the first half and was limited to two points by defender Brigid O’Flynn.

Next for Ipswich will be Manchester-Essex at home on December 27th. The Royals next opponent is Winthrop at home on December 28th.

Ipswich was 18-5 last year and have made the post-season tournament eight straight years. Anyone attending the game I’m written about would feel quite certain that another Tiger tournament team is in the making.

Two of the teams that have had the Tigers’ number over the last few seasons are Masconomet and Pentucket. This season Pentucket has already defeated Masco.

The Tigers will host Masco on January 3rd. A win there by Ipswich will make the circle-the-date (January 15th) encounter with Pentucket at Pentucket a huge one in the Cape Ann League.

Former Tiger Shannon McFayden was in the house.

You knew that the outcome was decided early when both coaches sat during the entire second half.

Unofficially, Georgetown made only two of nineteen free throws.

Caroline Soucy (16 points) goes down the lane with Graceann Conte (4)

Most impressive player? Caroline Soucy. The sophomore caused Georgetown trouble on both ends of the court.

Biggest surprise? Jenna Gagnon. The lefty put in four long ones and certainly wasn’t freshman shy about shooting. Adding an outside shooting threat to the Ipswich lineup will open things up for the numerous Tiger drivers.

There was a Pentucket scout in the house.

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