Tag Archives: Kelsi McNamara

February 12, 2013 · 11:20 pm

Pentucket wins 18th defeating Newburyport 60-29 in girls basketball

Kelsi McNamara (12 points) breaks clean to the basket

Coley Viselli (10 points) gets an open three

(Newburyport) Normally it’s the pressure defense that gets you when you face the Pentucket Sachems.

Not so tonight. It was an on-fire Pentucket offense.

Newburyport (10-7) had no defensive answers and were defeated, 60-29, by the defending Division 3 state champs on Tuesday night in Cape Ann League action.

The girls from West Newbury took great care of the ball (three turnovers in the first half) and made shots from everywhere.

Pentucket (18-1) had the long ball going early. Four minutes into the first quarter three different Sachems (Alex Moore, Kelsi McNamara, and Coley Viselli) clicked from downtown. That barrage of 3-point offense helped put the Clippers behind, 13-2, and there was no recovery.

The visitors closed the quarter with yet another three (Alex Moore) and two Tess Nogueira layups and the rout was on, 24-7, after one period.

Tess Nogueira (10 points) gets loose inside

It was one of those games where no matter what defense NHS coach Greg Dollas tried ran into trouble. He used a zone and Pentucket made three’s. He played man-to-man and the Sachems blew past one-on-one defenders for easy layups. It was a defensive nightmare for the Clippers, plain and simple.

In the second quarter the 3’s were key in another Pentucket run of points. With the score, 28-10, after three minutes, the Sachems put a 10-2 package in place over the next four minutes. Three-pointers by Alex and Coley as well as layups by Coley and McKenna Kilian provided the points. The Sachem advantage was extended to, 38-12, in the process, with a minute left.

The rest of the game was played mostly by reserves on both teams. Pentucket only had a 22-16 edge during the rest of the game but that was probably little consolation to anyone connected to the Newburyport program.

All of the Pentucket starters reached double figures in limited minutes: Kelsi McNamara (12), Alex Moore (11), Tess Nogueira (10), Coley Viselli (10), and McKenna Kilian (10).

Emily Pettigrew blocks the shot of Coley Viselli

Newburyport had ten girls score with the Pettigrew sisters (Mary and Emily) leading the way with four points each.

The Sachems connected on nine three-pointers. Reserve Kassidy Kennefick nailed two in the 4th quarter.

In the previous meeting between the two teams on January 4th at West Newbury, the Sachems rode Kelsi McNamara’s four 3’s to a, 61-33, win.

Newburyport, which has qualified for the state tournament, finishes its regular season on Thursday against Masconomet at Masconomet.

Pentucket will be hosting Hamilton-Wenham on the same night in what should be an emotional Seniors Day for the Sachems. Key pieces in the Pentucket success over the past few seasons (Alex Moore, Tess Nogueira, Coley Viselli, and Emily Dresser) will be honored.

Newburyport recognized its seniors tonight – Lea Tomasz, Rebecca Kell, and Casey Barlow.

Lea Tomasz

Casey Barlow

Rebecca Kell

Casey had her left hand wrapped but that didn’t stop the usual lefthander from making two free throws with her right hand.

Newburyport boxscore

Pentucket boxscore

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

Mine!

action under the basket

Aly Leahy heads for the hoop

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Filed under Newburyport, Pentucket

Tagged as Alex Moore, Casey Barlow, Coley Viselli, Kelsi McNamara, Lea Tomasz, Rebecca Kell, Tess Nogueira

February 1, 2013 · 11:30 pm

Pentucket defeats Masconomet 44-43 in overtime as Tess Nogueira gets twenty points

Tess Nogueira (20 points) drives on Claudia Marsh

(West Newbury) It is not often that you see two good teams have so much trouble shooting and taking care of the ball.

But those on hand at Pentucket High School saw a night full of misfiring and mishandles before the Sachems (15-1) eked out a, 44-43, overtime win over Masconomet (11-3) on Friday night in Cape Ann League action.

Tess Nogueira made ten free throws in fourteen attempts

No question the key to the Pentucket win was the steady play of Tess Nogueira. The 6-foot senior led all scorers with twenty points and owned the boards.

Masco had Pentucket on the ropes (40-36 with 1:11 left) in regulation. However, a Tess Nogueira offensive rebound and two Chieftain turnovers opened the door for the Sachems to get back and get overtime.

The four-minute overtime fit perfectly into the pattern established in regulation – missed opportunities galore. Masco didn’t make any shot until the final buzzer!

Kelsi McNamara missed two free throws with 2 ½ minutes remaining in OT. However, Tess Nogueira made two with 1:02 to go and Pentucket had a 42-40 lead.

Nicole Femino (14 points) about to launch a buzzer-beating three in overtime

Nicole Femino (14 points) then missed both free throws with forty-three seconds left but a Pentucket turnover gave Masco another chance with fourteen seconds left.

However, the visitors messed up the inbounds pass (Tess was in the vicinity of where the pass went) and now the Chieftains were forced to foul (Kelsi McNamara) with 7.7 seconds left. Kelsi had missed two earlier in OT but this time she connected twice to give the Sachems a four-point advantage.

Good thing, for Pentucket, that Kelsi made both of them because Nicole Femino tossed in a buzzer-beating three.

Hannah Kiernan blocks the shot of Kelsi McNamara

It is easy to harp on the poor shooting and turnovers and forget that both teams are loaded with tireless defenders. In a gym that is always tropical, the wear-and-tear of facing game-long Pentucket pressure will usually cause trouble. By my count, the Chieftains had thirty turnovers.

Another factor in the Masco loss was Claudia Marsh getting into foul trouble. Claudia picked up her third foul late in the first half and fouled out late in the game. Her strong defense on Tess Nogueira was sorely missed for many minutes. Claudia scored a basket at the buzzer to end the third quarter.

There were ten lead changes and neither team was able to get ahead by more than four points.

Meghan Collins and Kate Kitsakos connected on consecutive three’s in the fourth quarter.

Kassidy Kennefick gets into the lane

Kassidy Kennefick came off the Sachem bench in the first quarter to hit a quick long one.

One of the biggest baskets in the game was a jump shot in the lane by McKenna Kilian off a missed Kelsi McNamara shot in the last thirty seconds of regulation.

Pentucket was determined to spread the Masco man-to-man defense and get to the hoop for layups or foul shots. On this night making the layups, under heavy Masco defensive pressure, was difficult. The Sachems did get thirty-four free throws out of attacking the basket and made twenty-two of them. Tess Nogueira was 10-for-14.

This game featured two of the areas most successful coaches. John McNamara in his 7th season with Pentucket is now 149-19. Bob Romeo in his 11th season is 175-51.

John McNamara and Bob Romeo

Pentucket won the first meeting in December with Masco, 45-33.

Pentucket suffered its only loss of the season on January 26th at Hingham against Division 2 Notre Dame. A week earlier, at Pentucket, the Sachems had won.

Masconomet hosts Hamilton-Wenham on Tuesday. Pentucket will visit North Reading on the same day.

Good crowd on hand. We saw some organized Sachem support late in the game.

Pentucket Boxscore

Masconomet Boxscore

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

Hannah Kiernan blocks the shot of Tess Nogueira

Pentucket crowd

Kate Kitsakos

Kelsi McNamara lines up an overtime free throw

Coley Viselli

Kelsi McNamara looks for an opening

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Filed under Masconomet, Pentucket

Tagged as Bob Romeo, Coley Viselli, Hannah Kiernan, John McNamara, Kate Kitsakos, Kelsi McNamara, Nicole Femino, Tess Nogueira

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 18, 2012 · 11:57 pm

Pentucket girls defeat North Reading 57-35 after championship banner unveiled

2011-12 Division 3 state champs – March 17, 2012

championship banner unveiled

Alex Moore (11 points) fires from long range

(West Newbury) The Pentucket girls struggled mightily in the first half but returned to last year’s form in the second half as they defeated North Reading, 57-35, in Cape Ann League action on Tuesday night.

The “first half Sachems” could well have been thrown off by the festivities before the game.

The 2011-12 Division 3 state championship banner was unveiled and the thirteen team members from that 23-4 squad were reunited one last time before an adoring home crowd.

This was my first look at the team since the March 17th win over Sabis (55-32) at the DCU Center in Worcester as they captured the D3 title. Leading the way for Pentucket on that memorable afternoon were Sarah Higgins with 22 points and Kelsi McNamara with three long ones.

Elise Makowski soars in the lane over Coley Viselli during a strong Hornet first half

You know that the bar has been set pretty high for a team when they lead by three (20-17) at halftime and you describe them as, “struggling.”

But the 2012-13 Sachems (2-0) were struggling. There wasn’t a shot near or far that they could make consistently. And there were plenty of turnovers.

In the second half, a crucial ingredient in years of success returned……….shooting, and when that happened in the third quarter, the 2012-13 team started giving a great impression of the championship team of the previous season.

North Reading (0-2) actually got within two points (21-19) a minute into the second half but then the Pentucket scorers started hitting shots from everywhere, especially long range.

With shots falling, the Sachem defense could setup and pressure North Reading into a pace that created turnovers and rushed shots.

The visiting Hornets would make just one basket (Tarah Reilly) over the next six minutes while the Sachems put up twenty-one points and blew this one wide open, 42-21, with a minute left in the third quarter.

Kelsi McNamara (13 points) about to pass to a breaking McKenna Kilian (14 points)

Two treys by Alex Moore and one each from Coley Viselli and Kelsi McNamara highlighted the surge. The Sachems also added 7-of-8 free throws and a floater in the lane from McKenna Kilian.

That burst of positive production separated the two teams and North Reading was unable to get within double-figures of the Sachems the rest of the way.

Not only was the championship banner unveiled but the home fans also got a look at seven new players including five freshmen.

Sophomores McKenna Kilian (14) and Kelsi McNamara (13) paced Pentucket. Senior Alex Moore added eleven points. The Sachems next game is Friday night at Triton.

Carly Swartz (11 points) launches a last-second shot

Freshman Carly Swartz (11) led the Hornets. Carly scored all eleven in a first half in which North Reading made things very interesting for Pentucket. 6-5 freshman Jessica Lezon was a defensive presence for NR.

The Hornets will look for their first win at Masconomet on Friday night.

Quietly in the background during the pre-game celebrations was Pentucket coach John McNamara. His 136-18 record at Pentucket, and counting, is truly remarkable.

A look ahead at the Pentucket schedule has them starting off with Division 1 Billerica in January in a non-league game. Last season I saw Billerica nearly defeat Nicole Boudreau and the Andover Golden Eagles at Andover. Their key players were underclassmen. The Pentucket/Billerica contest is at Pentucket and should be special.

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

junior Sydney Snow

Coley Viselli chases a loose ball

Elise Makowski double-teamed by Alex Moore and McKenna Kilian

McKenna Kilian (14 points) and Morgan Maiola

Kelsi McNamara defends

Morgan Maiola (7 points)

Emily Dresser in close

freshman Rebecca Torrisi

Coley Viselli shoots a technical foul shot

Tess Nogueira (6 points) drives

6-5 Jessica Lezon

Coach John McNamara

Alex Moore pressures Carly Swartz

Leigh McNamara returns

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Filed under North Reading, Pentucket

Tagged as Alex Moore, Carly Swartz, Coach John McNamara, Coley Viselli, Elise Makowski, Jessica Lezon, Kelsi McNamara, McKenna Kilian, Tess Nogueira

March 17, 2012 · 9:43 pm

Pentucket defeats Sabis (55-32) to win the Division 3 state title

Pentucket Regional – 2012 Division 3 state champs

Sarah Higgins (22 points) heads for the hoop

(Worcester) Pentucket 55 Sabis 32

There was no denying Pentucket (23-4) this time around. Same building two years earlier the Sachems lost in the state finals to Lee.

Pentucket led from beginning to end in this one capturing the Division 3 crown for the first time. The title game was one of six played on Saturday at the DCU Center in Worcester.

The Sachems led from beginning to end thanks to a combination of distracting defenses and take-what-you-give-us offense.

Senior Sarah Higgins (22 points) had a huge game for Pentucket. It seemed as if every time she wasn’t making a layup she was getting fouled. She made her last eleven free throws in a row and totaled fourteen for the game.

Sabis (20-6) gave up the first six points and were down 20-10 after a Tess Nogueira layin with 4 ½ minutes left in the second period.

Jazmine Collins (10 points)

The Lady Bulldog tandem of Jazmine Collins (10 points) and Shyanne Wellington (10 points) kept Pentucket from turning this one into a rout. The Sachem lead was 29-17 at halftime and 39-27 early in the final quarter. The game seemed, at the time, far from over for the charter school from Springfield.

However, a Coley Viselli triple followed on an assist from Alex Moore and up went the team from West Newbury, 42-27, with 5 ½ minutes left. A couple of drives later by Sarah Higgins and that lead was 46-29 with four to go.

Sabis was forced to foul the rest of the way and Pentucket cashed in nine times. The final score was a misleading, 55-32.

Kelsi McNamara (14 points) finds an opening

Kelsi McNamara (14 points) connected on three long ones in the first half. Equally impressive was the willingness of the 5-5 freshman to take the ball to the basket a couple of times.

The Sabis cause was hurt when Janaiya Sanchez went out with an ankle sprain for most of the second period. The 5-7 freshman played in the second half but was definitely limping. She has been on the Sabis varsity since 7th grade.

Jasmine Collins had several impressive coast-to-coast drives. The Lady Bulldog junior started this season with over 1000 points. The unpleasant memory for her in this one, besides the loss, could be making just one of eight free throws.

I always enjoy watching the Pentucket defense in action. Against teams that don’t handle the ball well, down twenty usually happened in the first half. Credit Sabis, they had girls (Jasmine and Janaiya) who could dribble the ball but they ran into trouble trying to find open teammates.

Inbounder Coley Viselli hit Sarah Higgins on a couple of deep fly patterns versus Sabis pressure.

Sabis won their first D3 West title ever this season. They had won eleven straight games before this game.

Pentucket ended on a fifteen-game winning streak. They will not be able to replace Sarah Higgins next season but they have many of their other key pieces back.

Pentucket boxscore

Sabis boxscore

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

Shyanne Wellington (10 points) defended by Leigh McNamara

Pentucket seniors head for trophy

rebounding action

scoreboard

Sachem coach John McNamara

Coley Viselli

Madison Sinkfield, Leigh McNamara, Jazmine Collins

tie up

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Filed under Pentucket, Sabis

Tagged as Coach John McNamara, Coley Viselli, Jazmine Collins, Kelsi McNamara, Sarah Higgins, Shyanne Wellington

March 14, 2012 · 1:10 am

Sarah Higgins and Kelsi McNamara spark Pentucket past Fairhaven (53-39) in the state D3 semi-finals

Kelsi McNamara (10 points) lines up one of her 4th quarter triples

Sarah Higgins (20 points) layup

(Boston) Pentucket (22-4) secured passage to the state D3 finals on Saturday in Worcester with a solid second half as they defeated Fairhaven (22-3), 53-39, on Tuesday at the TD Bank Garden.

Each team tallied just five points in a second period that may well have been impacted by a serious injury to Fairhaven starter Ashley Brown in the first quarter. Ashley dove out-of-bounds for a loose ball and collided with the edge of the scorer’s table. Considerable time was rightly spent by the numerous medical people on hand to take care of Ashley. She was taken to Mass General.

The Sachems had a 19-18 lead after the sluggish second period and I had no sense of how the second half would go.

As it turned out, for Pentucket it went very well. Their defense produced turnovers (six in the 3rd period) and Sarah Higgins (20 points) hit from the outside, inside, and from the foul line. The Sachems actually took the lead for good (26-24 on a full-court Sarah drive at 4:54) with the advantage being 34-28 heading into the final quarter.

Kelsi McNamara destroyed any Fairhaven thoughts of a last-quarter rally with three long ones. The first one gave Pentucket a 40-30 lead with 5:23 left. The second one, on the next possession, built the Sachem advantage to 43-31 with five minutes left, and the third one kept the lead at twelve (48-36) with 2:45 to go.

Also in that final frame, Sarah Higgins continued to be productive. She had an old-fashioned three, a layup, and a steal and a layup by the two-minute mark. Sarah’s last score put this one out of reach, 51-38, with two minutes left and many reserves saw action the rest of the way.

Basketball is a team game and every coach knows the value of having players who get the ball to scorers. Pentucket’s Alex Moore had four assists in the last quarter. The 5-7 junior assisted Kelsi McNamara on all of her triples and also spotted Sarah Higgins in close for a layup.

Kara Charette (15 points) and Tess Nogueira

Kara Charette led Fairhaven with fifteen points. The Pentucket full-court defense double-teamed Kara to try and keep the ball away from her. That approach paid off especially in the final quarter when Pentucket earned point separation from the Blue Devils by holding the talented senior scoreless.

Pentucket scored the first seven points of the game (Sarah Higgins layup, Coley Viselli triple, and Tess Nogueira layup) but Fairhaven answered with six straight (Kay Mullen jumper, Ashley Brown fast break layup, and a Kara Charette converted rebound).

Coley Viselli (10 points) had three triples in the first half. Kelsi McNamara had three in the final quarter. Fairhaven did not connect from beyond the arc.

Tess Nogueira had four points and during the days leading up to this Saturday’s D3 finals in Worcester will probably be spending considerable prep time at the foul line. The normally reliable free-throw shooter was an abnormal 2-for-11, including one air ball, against Fairhaven.

Pentucket had only six turnovers in the decisive second half.

Ashley Brown

Ashley Brown had already scored seven points before she was injured. I overheard her coach say in the pressroom afterwards that Ashley usually averages fifteen points per game. I suspect that many of the Fairhaven faithful will recall this game with, “What if Ashley…….” I hope that the Blue Devil junior recovers fully for next season.

Two years ago Pentucket reached the D3 finals only to lose to Lee at the DCU Center in Worcester. Maybe this time around things will be different.

Pentucket boxscore

Fairhaven boxscore

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

Pentucket team afterwards

Kelsey Perron-Sovik and McKenna Kilan

Pentucket celebrates

Fairhaven cheerleaders

Leigh McNamara and Kara Charette

tight defense

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Filed under Fairhaven, Pentucket

Tagged as Alex Moore, Ashley Brown, Coley Viselli, Kara Charette, Kelsi McNamara, Sarah Higgins, Tess Nogueira

March 9, 2012 · 12:37 am

Pentucket gets by Swampscott easily (53-27) in Division 3 North semi-finals

Coley Viselli (19 points) shoots a three. She made five long ones.

Tess Nogueira (12 points) finds a way to the basket.

(Beverly) No one expected a game like this.

Swampscott (18-4) was embarrassed by Pentucket, 53-27, on Thursday night at Beverly High School and now the Sachems move on to the Division 3 North finals on Saturday (10:30AM) at the Tsongas Center in Lowell against familiar Cape Ann League foe Ipswich.

The Big Blue (#2 seed) had won eight straight, won the Northeast Conference Small, and buried Stoneham in their previous tournament game. None of that carried an ounce of weight versus the Sachems. Swampscott shots were not falling and their zone defense could best be described as “porous.”

The game was certainly a lot easier for Pentucket (#3 seed) because Coley Viselli (19 points) was honed in from long range. Who cares if one went in off the backboard (end of first quarter) and another took a high bounce off the rim and dropped in (start of the 4th quarter)? All five that the talent junior made, counted. Kelsi McNamara (8 points) hit two other triples.

Pentucket’s outside accuracy forced the Big Blue zone to stretch toward the perimeter and opened the inside for Tess Nogueira (12 points) and Sarah Higgins (9 points).

It took Pentucket a while to get going but Coley’s backboarded triple gave them a 7-6 first quarter lead. They would never trail again.

Coley Viselli heads for the basket.

Coley hit her second three to start the second quarter. Then she took a Big Blue turnover in for a layup. She followed that with another triple assisted by Kelsi McNamara. That was all in the first 1 ½ minutes of the second quarter and was part of an eleven-point run that extended the Sachems lead to, 15-6.

By the time the second quarter ended Kelsi had added her two long ones, Swampscott had eight turnovers, and they were in trouble at halftime, 25-12.

I was sure that the #2 seed was much better than what I had seen in the first half. The local papers had stories about how big the rivalry was and also Niki Laskaris, who had twenty-six points against Stoneham, had only two points in the first half.

The Big Blue did make a response. Niki had six points in the third quarter and her layup with 4 ½ minutes left cut the Sachem lead to 29-21.

Ara Talkov (11 points) gets to the rim.

But that was as close as it got. Over the next six minutes of playing time, extending into the final quarter, Pentucket put a 14-2 run together and turned this game into a 43-23 rout. Almost all the damage in this winning segment came on the inside. Sarah Higgins (9 points) got three layups and Tess Nogueira one. Tess also had two free throws. And Coley drained her fourth triple.

The last 6 ½ minutes of the game were played by a fatigued and frustrated Swampscott team that on this day did not have the energy to make any sort of late challenge.

Junior Ara Talkov (11 points) and Senior Niki Laskaris (9 points) led the Swampscott scorers.

Pentucket (20-4) defeated Ipswich (Saturday’s D3 final opponent) 42-27 on January 24th at Pentucket.

The entire Ipswich team was on hand for the Pentucket/Swampscott game. Late in the game, the Pentucket student section started chanting, “We want Ipswich, We want Ipswich.” I’m not sure if they knew that the team they wanted was sitting to the left of them in the same section of seats under the basket.

Alex Moore, Tess Nogueira, and Sarah Higgins were all given medical attention during the game. Alex was limited to two points. With Coley on fire, Alex’s usual point production wasn’t needed by the Sachems.

Pentucket has now won twelve straight.

I’m not too keen on seating under the basket on both ends. Okay, I’m selfish because that’s where I like to stand to take pictures. In this game I was forced off to the side.

Credit the Swampscott student section for hanging around for the entire game and enduring the “Scoreboard, scoreboard,” chant from the Pentucket kids. Tougher still was the variation of “It’s all over,” that came out, “It’s a blowout,” as the Big Blue deficit reached twenty points.

Pentucket boxscore

Swampscott boxscore

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

Swampscott student section

Liza Brackbill in Swampscott traffic

Alex Moore defends

Niki Laskaris (9 points) floats in

Caroline Murphy looks for pass

tight defense

Sarah Higgins (9 points) steals

Kelsi McNamara (8 points) puts up a runner.

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Filed under Pentucket, Swampscott

Tagged as Ara Talkov, Coley Viselli, Kelsi McNamara, Nike Laskaris, Sarah Higgins, Tess Nogueira

February 19, 2012 · 8:23 pm

Pentucket defense crucial in win over Revere (50-27) in the opening round of the Girls Division of the IAABO Board 130 Basketball Classic

Tess Nogueira (10 points) breaks away with second half steal.

Kelsi McNamara (14 points) gets an open look along the baseline.

(Lawrence) What can you say about the Pentucket Sachems girls basketball team?

On an afternoon when key defender Sarah Higgins is on the sidelines (illness), high scoring Coley Viselli struggles to get four points, and the Sachems make just 4-of-25 3-point attempts, they still have enough to defeat Division 1 Revere, 50-27.

This was the opener of the IAABO Board 130 Basketball Classic on Sunday afternoon at Central Catholic. Pentucket will return tomorrow afternoon to face the winner of the Archbishop Williams/Central Catholic game at 5:30PM.

The Revere Patriots (10-7) came in having won six of their last seven in the Northeastern Conference North. They are probably happy that in the state tourney they’ll be in Division 1 and Pentucket will be in Division 3.

Pentucket (17-4) had their staple full-court pressure working from the outset. By game’s end they had forced the Lady Patriots into twenty-seven miscues.

But in the first half of this game, the Revere turnovers didn’t lead directly to points while the Sachem long-range shooting was scary bad (2-for-19). Those two factors kept this game close (20-13 at the half). In fact, 1 ½ minutes into the second half, two Amy Rotger free throws had Revere still in this one, 22-17.

The rest of that third quarter everything came together in a nice package for the Sachems and they went on a decisive 14-3 run.

Pentucket’s first three scores in this surge were directly off of steals by Kelsi McNamara, Tess Nogueira, and Alex Moore. Next, Tess found room in close for a layup.

Caitlyn Caramello (9 points) battles Tess Nogueira

Revere stopped the bleeding (8-point run) temporarily with a Caitlyn Caramello layin but back came Pentucket with two of their four 3’s (Kelsi McNamara and Sydney Snow). The Sachems were clearly in command 36-20 after three quarters.

Revere was held scoreless for the first 3 ½ minutes of the final quarter partly because of four more turnovers. Meanwhile Pentucket was putting up ten unanswered points to get away even further, 46-20. Reserves dominated the rest of the game. The final score was 50-27.

In a game where Coley Viselli struggled for points, Kelsi McNamara (14), Alex Moore (12) and Tess Nogueira (10) picked up the slack nicely. Freshman Kelsi had eleven of her points in the breakaway second half.

Caitlyn Caramello paced Revere with nine points. Michaela Maguire added five including a put-back just before the halftime buzzer.

Pentucket is now on a nine-game winning streak. They have won fourteen of their last fifteen.

The last time I saw them lose was in a state tournament game last year at Wilmington High School against St. Mary’s of Lynn the eventual D3 champ.

Can Pentucket be in the D3 state championship game at the Worcester Centrum in mid-March? Their multiple ways of hurting an opponent suggest to me that they can do it. We’ll see.

Pentucket box score

Revere box score

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

Coley Viselli gets to the rim

Michaela Maguire and Emily Dresser

battle under the basket

Liza Brackbill

Kelsi McNamara defends

Amy Rotger and Sydney Snow

Alex Moore (12 points) floater in lane

tie up

McKenna Kilian

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Filed under Pentucket, Revere

Tagged as AABO Board 130 Basketball Classic, Alex Moore, Caitlyn Caramello, Coley Viselli, Kelsi McNamara, Pentucket Sachem girls basketball, Revere Patriots girls basketball, Tess Nogueira

October 12, 2011 · 7:51 pm

Masco boys cross country still undefeated – Pentucket girls cross country loses tight one

Jay Polakiewicz, Liam Davis, Marco Caserta, and Jake Moorman approach the finish line for undefeated Masconomet.

Rebecca Morse finishes first.

(Topsfield) No question that Hamilton-Wenham has the best girls cross country team in the Cape Ann League and probably in the state.

The question of which girls team was second best was decided yesterday afternoon at Bradley Palmer State Park as Masconomet (8-1) edged Pentucket (7-2), 27-28.

Fiona Davis of Manchester-Essex finished 5th overall but her placement is not included in the scoring between Masco and Pentucket. Fiona fooled me because she was wearing a green shirt and I thought she was with Pentucket and was part of a 26-30 Sachem win.

As I saw it, the race within the race was over positions 5-8 between Masco and Pentucket and that was where the Chieftains Mila Zernich and Lily D’Agostino held off Sachems Brianna Repke and Emma Marchant. When the four runners went past the starting line partway through the race, they were close but by the end of the race there were sizable gaps and Masco had the key 5th and 6th spots.

Senior Rebecca Morse cruised to victory for Pentucket and has to be the favorite to win the Cape Ann League Open on October 29th back at Bradley Palmer.

The Masconomet (9-0) boys team remains undefeated with a convincing, 16-45, win. The top four runners finished together for Masco and Scott Gilfeather crossed 6th for the Chieftains to complete their scoring.

Four girls battle for 5th and 6th partway through the race.

Next week (October 19th) the Chieftains return to Bradley Palmer for a showdown with equally undefeated Newburyport. It will be nice to see how individual runners can do. I doubt that we’ll see runners from either squad slowing up so that they can finish side by side with teammates as both teams have done repeatedly this season.

This was my first look at the Sachems identical twins, Tom and Joe Labrecque. The only hope of telling them apart is that they wear different colored running shoes.

I chose this meet because after checking records I assumed that the Masco/Pentucket girls race would be a close one with something (2nd place in CAL) at stake. I also assumed that the boys race would be a mismatch, based on the records, but I would get a look at the undefeated Masco boys. I have seen the Newburyport boys win easily twice (North Andover & Hamilton-Wenham). Next Wednesday’s meet between Masco/Newburyport should be an excellent take.

I will admit that trying to cover yesterday’s cross country meet has been an adventure that only a retiree with time to spare could pursue to the end. The Newburyport News had the meet at Pentucket. I called Pentucket and they said the meet was at Bradley Palmer. I called Masconomet and was assured that the meet would be held at Bradley Palmer which was where Masco’s meets were held. I took pictures at the meet and assumed that the next day the Lawrence Eagle Tribune or the Newburyport Daily News would post the complete results which I could match with my pictures. Wrong again. That left me needing help to identify pictures and that’s where Patrick Mahoney (Masco boys) and Todd Ruland (Pentucket girls) came to my rescue. Thanks, gentlemen.

(I take my own pictures and collect my own information. In this entry two coaches helped me out. I am keen on being accurate and fair.)

The pictures in this entry assume normal size if you click on them. Enjoy.