Road to the C-Mass Girls Basketball Division 2 Final
In a quarterfinal match-up, No.6 seed Groton-Dunstable defeated No.3 Auburn , 63-46, then moved on to the semifinal where they clawed out a come-from-behind 59-57 win over No.2 Notre Dame of Worcester to advance to the Division 2 Central Mass. Championship game. It will be played at12:45p.m., Saturday, March 7 against No. 4 Medfield at Worcester Polytech.
The Crusaders trailed 33-26 at the half against Notre Dame (18-3) and never took the lead until Captain Lindsay Werner drove the lane and scored, putting her team ahead, 56-55 with 2:31 to play in the contest. Sophomore Hannah Van Pelt (15 pts.) followed, draining 3-pointer, to give GD a 59-55 lead with 1:40 to go.
"I felt comfortable and just let it fly," said Van Pelt.
You have to understand the scope of the win against Notre Dame. The Rebels Allie Smiley (24 pts) and Molly Terry (23 pts.) were providing plenty of offense for Notre Dame.
"We were down going into the fourth quarter. Lindsay Werner (15 pts.) was in foul trouble all night and that could have been the end right there," said Coach Mark Hennelly.
"I told them, we're not out of it. We can win this game. By the looks on their faces, I knew they still believed," he continued.
Coach Hennelly and assistant coach Kasey Pelletier discussed sitting Werner to prevent her from picking up her fifth foul. Despite the four fouls, Hennelly wanted her back in the game.
"Are you crazy?" said Pelletier. "We need her for the end of the game."
"There won't be the end we want if she doesn't get back in the game," replied Hennelly.
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She (Pelletier) is perfect. Kasey tells me things I don't want to hear but should. She is knowledgeable, communicates well with the girls and keeps me on track," commented Hennelly.
GD spread the scoring with Nicole Eggimann (10 pts.), Eli Eisenklam (9 pts.), Jenna Plause (4 pts.), Jordan Wynn (4pts.) andMelyssa Langell (2 pts.) all contributing.
In the quarter-final game against Auburn (16-5), Lindsay Werner and Hannah Van Pelt had scored 24 and 12 points respectively to lead GD past the Rockets, 60-46. Auburn's last win over Groton-Dunstable was in 2011 in a quarterfinal matchup.
Last week, I had been pestering Mr. Hennelly prior to the game against Auburn. He told me, "Quite frankly, I feel pretty good. We look really good. The embarrassing loss at Oakmont (47-38 loss) a couple of weeks ago was a great wake up call for all involved. Practice has been fantastic and winning the North Middlesex (61-57) game was one of my favorite moments in coaching. The defensive effort was beyond special and I don't recall a team ever turning things around so quickly."
No.4 seed Medfield (17-5) dispatched undefeated No.1 Nashoba (21-1), 60-34, and will be a formidable opponent for the Lady C's.Payton Ouimette (17 pts.), Lauren Casieri (16 pts.) and Maggie McCarthy (14 pts.) led the Warrior scoring. Medfield is for real!
Before the semi-final game against Notre Dame, I had told Coach Hennelly that I was available to cover the big game on March 7.
"I'll do my best," he stated.
