Tag Archives: MaKenna Ward

March 5, 2022 · 9:13 pm

Newburyport moves on after 57-43 win over Shepherd Hill

(Newburyport MA) The Clippers (19-2) advance after defeating Shepherd Hill, 57-43, in the Round of 32 on Saturday afternoon.

The #21 Rams (15-7) trailed the entire game but impressed Newburyport coach Karen Grutchfield.

“We had seen them on film,” she said, “but they were much better than we thought.”

The Rams handled the ball well and knew where to concentrate their defense. The issue was scoring.

“We’ve had an issue scoring all year,” said Shepherd Hill coach Maura Hackenson afterwards.

Neither team shot very well although there were plenty of attempts. There was only one three made the entire game. The Clippers scored only five points in the final quarter, yet the Rams were only able to take three points off their deficit at the start of the quarter.

“If we don’t play good defense in the backcourt, it’s a close game at the end,” said Coach Grutchfield.

But the good non-stop pressure sent the Rams into several scoring droughts that opened opportunities for the Clippers to establish separation.

SH went through a two-point, three-minute segment in the second period. Newburyport took advantage. The Clippers recorded twelve points and turned a 19-18 one-possession game into, 31-20, with two minutes left in the quarter.

Makenna Ward (15 pts) and Deirdre McElhinney each had four points during this successful segment. Olivia McDonald and Emma Foley had a basket each.

The Rams did not go away. They made the first two baskets of the second half (Emery Mullen and Heidi Jarosz), and the visitors were quickly within seven (33-26) as things got interesting.

But then the Newburyport defense kicked in again and shut down the Rams completely for the next three minutes.

While the visitors struggled, the Clippers went on a 9-0 run and their lead rose to, 42-26, and back into something of a comfort zone.

Emma Foley defended by Heidi Jarosz (11 points)

The highlight makers for Newburyport in this good section were Olivia McDonald, Makenna Ward, and Emma Foley. Olivia hit a jump shot and the only three of the game. Makenna broke full-court for a layup while Emma spun into the lane for two points.

Emma (21 points) ended up with a ten-point quarter dashing Shepherd Hill’s hopes for getting closer to Newburyport. The Clippers had a seventeen-point lead after three quarters.

“Emma (Foley) has great moves down there,” said SH coach Maura Hackenson. “She keeps the ball really high, and we didn’t have the height to match up. We tried to front her.”

Emma often had 2-3 defenders whenever she had the ball but still found ways to supply badly needed scoring.

“Emma thrives on offense,” said Coach Grutchfield. “She needs a lot of touches. She also did a good job of rebounding.”

The Rams from the Mid-Wach League were tough on the glass scoring on six offensive rebounds.

Newburyport’s next game will be on the road against Whitman-Hanson.

Quiet crowd at Newburyport this afternoon.

Newburyport 15 19 18 5 = 57

Shepherd Hill 12 10 13 8 = 43

(The pictures will enlarge.)

The MIAA this year has arranged the tournament based on power rankings. The North, South, Central, and West are history. And with the new arrangement, regional games are gone. Who around here even knew where Shepherd Hill was located? But they were seeded #21 and the matchup was against #12 Newburyport.

What has been interesting (to me) has been that so far the higher seeds almost always win. This suggests that the rankings have been accurate.

I do, however, wonder about the excessive travel the new arrangement necessitates. The Amesbury boys had to travel to western Massachusetts to play South Hadley this week on a school night. The Frontier girls’ team (Deerfield) will be traveling to Amesbury for a 5:30PM game on a school night.

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Tagged as Coach Maura Hackenson, Emma Foley, Heidi Jarosz, MaKenna Ward, Olivia McDonald

February 24, 2022 · 12:43 am

Newburyport wins Gieras Tourney 68-48 over North Andover

Newburyport Clippers win Gieras Tournament

(Danvers MA) North Andover had a five-point lead in the first half and was tied with Newburyport early in the second half.

That was the good news for the (10-9) Knights.

The Clippers (18-2) overwhelmed NA the rest of the way.

The win, at Danvers High School, gained the tournament title for Newburyport in the Ed Gieras Memorial Tournament on Wednesday night.

“This was a really satisfying win,” said Clippers coach Karen Grutchfield afterwards. “We showed up to play against a good team.”

The Knights were able to hang around thanks to long-range accuracy. Katie Robie (12 points) and freshman Sydney Rogers each had a pair of 3-pointers to keep the game close in the early going.

In the second half, the Knights lost the outside touch and couldn’t contend with a Clippers’ team that had four players in double figures.

Junior Emma Foley was the tourney MVP. Emma thrived against single coverage around the basket. When NA opted to send extra defensive help it opened opportunities for other Clippers. On this night, those “other” players; Makenna Ward (17 points), Olivia McDonald (14 points), and Deirdre McElhinney, (12 points) all needed individual attention.

“We distributed the scoring pretty well,” said Coach Grutchfield.

“There are no excuses for the way we played in the second half,” said NA coach Jess Deveny post-game.

“When you don’t play well in the defensive end, it translates into not doing well in the offensive end,” she added.

The Clippers put up forty-four points in the second half. They had consecutive point-runs of ten and eight in the third quarter and fourteen in the final quarter.

The 26-26 tie turned into 36-26 in the third quarter and 54-34 in the last quarter.

Most of the Newburyport baskets had assists attached to them. Their passing was good, and they also converted several offensive rebounds.

“Newburyport got hot,” said Coach Deveny. “They were making all their shots. They’re a great squad. They’re in the top twenty in D2.”

North Andover is in the Merrimack Valley Conference and is used to a regular dose of tough competition.

“Every night is a battle in the MVC,” said Coach Deveny. “If you’re not ready, this is what happens.”

“Sydney Turner was special for us tonight,” said Coach Grutchfield. “She does all the little things and tonight she guarded their best player.”

Hannah Martin paced North Andover with fourteen points and was named to the all-tourney team. Olivia McDonald did a pretty good job of defending her. Olivia also had fourteen points including nine in the last quarter.

Makenna Ward finished with seventeen points and that earned her a spot on the all-tourney team. Makenna had a fast-break layup (assisted by Olivia McDonald) and a three-pointer when the Clippers gained the ten-point separation in the third quarter.

North Andover defeated Reading (58-44) to reach tonight’s final. Newburyport had a win over Danvers (59-34) to get to the championship game.

Katie Robie had four three-pointers for the Knights.

Newburyport 9 15 21 23 = 68

North Andover 10 13 7 18 = 48

(The pictures will enlarge.)

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Tagged as Coach Jess Deveny, Deirdre McElhinney, Emma Foley, Hannah Martin, Jackie Rogers, Katie Robie, MaKenna Ward, Olivia McDonald

February 11, 2022 · 1:08 am

Pentucket wins CAL title 63-45 over Newburyport

(Newburyport MA) “Everyone did their job, and it was fun to watch,” said Pentucket coach John McNamara afterwards.

Fun for the team from West Newbury for sure, as they defeated Newburyport, 63-45, in a big-stakes Cape Ann League game on Thursday night.

The win gave the Sachems (13-2) the CAL Kinney Division title.

“They won by ten last time,” said Abby Dube (19 points), “and we’ve been working so hard to beat them.”

The Clippers (14-2) started well. Olivia McDonald’s three put them up, 11-5. Later, two baskets by Makenna Ward (19 points) in the last minute extended the NHS lead to, 18-10, at the end of the quarter.

The Clippers were making shots and gathering offensive rebounds when they didn’t.

It took a backup defense and some life off the bench to turn things around for Pentucket.

“We don’t use that zone defense a lot, but we did tonight and I think it got them out of their rhythm,” said Coach McNamara.

The offensive rebounds decreased for the Clippers and their top scorer (Emma Foley) had to deal with multiple defenders on each possession.

“We put the first quarter behind us and played to win the next three quarters,” said Abby Dube.

The pleasant surprises off the bench were Bethany Cloutier and Ava DiBurro.

Bethany gave Pentucket its first lead of the game (22-21) with an old-fashioned three-point play with two minutes left in the second quarter.

Ava (11 points) was the biggest surprise of all. In the most important game of the season, she came in, fit in, and produced points.

“Ava’s a talented kid,” said Coach McNamara. “We’ve been waiting for this to happen. Ava sure picked a great night to have a breakout game. She has good finishing skills.”

Pentucket led by four, 26-22, at the half.

The Clippers got a terrific start to the second half. They regained the lead (27-26) after just a minute.

But an Abby Dube layup put Pentucket back in front (28-27) thirty seconds later and they would build on that lead the rest of the way.

A big problem for the home team in the third quarter was foul trouble. Both Makenna Ward and Emma Foley (10 points) picked up their 4^th fouls and lost time on the floor. Both girls can score and defend, and the Clippers lost a lot in both categories with them on the bench.

Pentucket pushed their advantage to six (33-27) in the third quarter on two Alyssa Thompson (10 points) free throws.

With Makenna on the bench for the final two minutes of the quarter, the Sachems turned that six-point lead into a twelve-point lead (46-34) by the end of the quarter. Lana Mickelson contributed two layups and Abby Dube nailed a jump shot just before the quarter-ending buzzer.

Early in the final quarter, Makenna Ward and Deirdre McElhinney (10 points) hit consecutive three’s to cut the Pentucket lead to nine (50-41) with 6 ½ minutes left. A quick timeout by Coach McNamara was followed by eleven straight points by the Sachems. Ava DiBurro finished the run with two straight inside scores giving Pentucket a twenty-point lead (61-41).

Newburyport was undefeated at home (7-0) before tonight’s loss.

Emma Lopata: “We had really good energy from start to finish. The team is always supportive of each other.”

Abby Dube: “It felt amazing to win this one. We knew we could do it.”

Audrey Conover: “It was definitely a high-energy game. I think that our defense was the key tonight. Abby (Dube) really pulled through on offense. She was making everything.”

Alyssa Thompson: “We started off slow. We talked at halftime about working together as a team. We then passed the ball more.”

Ava DiBurro: “We really wanted to beat them. I just tried to do what the team needed me to do. I’m playing better, but there are things I need to work on.”

Coach McNamara: “Newburyport is a good team. They should make a deep run in the tournament. From the second quarter on we played really good basketball. We took care of the ball, and we minimized our turnovers.”

Great crowd from both schools. The crowd was mostly adults. Absent, but not missed by me, was the chanting that goes on when the crowd is dominated by students.

Both teams are in Division 2. Back in the day, only one of them could have made it out of the North sectionals. That changes now with the MIAA state-wide power rankings determining the seeding. Pentucket is currently listed behind Newburyport in those rankings but that will change after tonight’s game.

Pentucket 10 16 20 17 = 63

Newburyport 18 4 12 11 = 45

(The pictures will enlarge.)

Audrey Conover guarded by Olivia McDonald

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Tagged as Alyssa Thompson, Audrey Conover, Ava DiBurro, Coach John McNamara, Emma Foley, Emma Lopata, MaKenna Ward

January 25, 2022 · 12:13 am

Undefeated Newburyport defeats Masco 58-40

Olivia McDonald (9 points) provided a spark for the Clippers

(Boxford MA) “You have to come to their level and compete,” said Masconomet coach Shannon Kirwan Monday night, “or you lose by eighteen.”

The Lady Chieftains did lose by eighteen (58-40) to Newburyport but for a quarter plus they more than held their own.

But the undefeated Clippers (10-0) were game-long persistent on defense. They forced twenty-six turnovers that led to twenty-seven points.

“I thought we played them tough,” said NHS coach Karen Grutchfield post-game. “I’m proud of them.”

The Lady Chieftains did a nice job defensively on Newburyport high-scorer Emma Foley in the early going. Emma faced two defenders as she positioned herself in close. For a time, her teammates forced passes inside (some led to turnovers) and struggled to score without Emma getting involved.

Kylie Dumont, Taylor Bovardi, and Kaleigh Monagle keyed Masco’s 15-12 first quarter advantage.

Things turned Newburyport’s way in the second quarter sparked by the appearance of reserve sophomore Olivia McDonald.

“Coach (Grutchfield) encouraged me to take the shot if I have it,” said Olivia afterwards.

Olivia started the second quarter with a layup and then hit a three to tie the score at 17-17.

With Masco keen on protecting the inside, Olivia found yet another long-range opening and nailed it to put the Clippers in front to stay, 22-19, with 4 ½ minutes left.

Newburyport was able to add eight more points before half-time. The Lady Chieftains, meanwhile, were held scoreless for nearly four minutes. Krystal Zepaj ended the scoring drought with a 3-pointer in the last minute.

Another three by Krystal, in the third quarter, had the home team within nine points (36-27) but the rest of the quarter saw Newburyport put a 12-3 run together.

Makenna Ward had eight of her twelve points in the third quarter while teammate Sydney Turner had six of her eight points in that same quarter. The Clippers led by eighteen (48-30) after three periods and would finish the game with the same margin.

“We kept our composure,” added Coach Grutchfield. “They came at us pretty hard.”

When Masco was forced to play man-to-man, Emma Foley (14 points) had clearer opportunities in close and took advantage.

“Masco is definitely a good team,” explained Deirdre McElhinney (10 points) afterwards. “They forced us to set up our offense a little more than we have had to in the past.”

The closest game the Clippers have had this season was a ten-point win over Pentucket.

“We keep pushing,” added Deirdre talking about the winning streak. “We’re trying to keep the momentum going.”

Coach Kirwan: “Newburyport is a very good team. Every part of their game they do well. They play basketball the way it is supposed to be played; tough, hard-nosed, and aggressive.”

Coach Grutchfield: “Olivia (McDonald) was a really good spark off the bench. She also did a nice job defending their best player.”

Masco made six 3’s including three by Krystal Zepaj.

The Clippers are now on a stretch of seven straight away games. They’ve won the first two including tonight’s game.

Thanks to Andy Tapparo for several of the stats I used. Andy produces stats for every Masco game and runs a terrific online site featuring the Lady Chieftains. It’s the best I’ve seen.

Newburyport 12 18 18 10 = 58

Masconomet 15 7 8 10 = 40

(The pictures will enlarge.)

Kylie Dumont guarded by Deirdre McElhinney

Olivia McDonald and Ava Caron chase a loose ball

Deirdre McElhinney guarded by Kaleigh Monagle

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Tagged as Deirdre McElhinney, Emma Foley, Kaleigh Monagle, Krystal Zepaj, MaKenna Ward, Olivia McDonald, Sydney Turner, Taylor Bovardi

December 15, 2021 · 1:07 am

Newburyport defeats Manchester-Essex 53-26

(Click on the pictures below and they will enlarge.)

Plenty of pressure applied by the Clippers

(Newburyport MA) Don’t let the final score fool you.

The final was Newburyport 53, Manchester-Essex 26.

But the Hornets were more than holding their own into the second half.

In fact, the visitors were ahead, 22-21, 2 ½ minutes into the second half.

But the one constant was the Newburyport pressure defense. In the second half, that defense created points in bunches and ME couldn’t keep up.

“We had a great first half,” said ME coach Lauren Dubois afterwards, “and we handled their pressure better.”

“We struggled, however, against it in the second half,” she added. “Newburyport picked up the intensity and we ran out of gas a little bit.”

MaKenna Ward stole the ball and went the full length of the court to give the Clippers the lead for good, 23-22, in the second half.

After that the non-stop pressure set up a steady flow of productive possessions for Newburyport.

“When we play our defense,” said MaKenna Ward, “we get steals and we run.”

Olivia Foley and MaKenna Ward turn up the defensive pressure

“We work on a lot of different defenses,” added MaKenna.

In the first half, the Clippers were primarily man-to-man and while they created twenty turnovers (by my count) those turnovers weren’t leading to a flow of points.

In the second half, the double-teams started. Makenna Ward, Deirdre McElhinney, and Olivia McDonald swarmed the Hornets’ ballhandlers into miscues. In the second half, the takeaways often turned into points.

“Our team is fast,” said MaKenna. “When we push, we score the most.”

Newburyport’s Emma Foley (14 points) had all of those points in the second half.

“We held them to six points in the second half,” said Clippers coach Karen Grutchfield post-game. “That was the difference.”

Coach Grutchfield couldn’t help but reflect on her team’s first half: “It was frustrating. We missed a lot of layups and free throws.”

“But,” she added, “we overcame the first-half adversity and I think we can enjoy our play in the second half.”

One thing that both coaches could agree on was the impressive game that ME’s Emma Fitzgerald had.

Coach Dubois: “Emma brings intensity. She’s a great leader. She battles hard on every possession.”

Coach Grutchfield: “We had trouble with #3 (Emma Fitzgerald). She’s a very good player.”

Emma led all scorers with sixteen points. She tallied all of ME’s second-half points.

MaKenna Ward and Deirdre McElhinney both had thirteen points for Newburyport.

This was a game played almost entirely on the inside. No three’s were made and very few were attempted.

When Newburyport went into organized offense, they were intent on getting the ball inside to Emma Foley. That strategy was the key to Emma’s productive second half.

This was the season opener for both squads.