WEARE – Riley Bennett rarely struggles when it comes to offense.
But over the first quarter and a half of Tuesday night’s bout with John Stark, the Bishop Brady girls’ basketball team’s leading score was anything but hot.
The senior guard headed into the contest just six points shy of 1,000 for her high-school career, but missed the first three field goals she attempted before finally settling into a rhythm. Once she found that rhythm, though, Bennett simply couldn’t be stopped, posting a game-high 19 points to help lead the Green Giants to a 58-42 victory.
Bishop Brady improved to 15-2 with its fifth straight win, while John Stark fell to 6-11.
“I definitely struggled a little with the first couple of baskets, but it was a relief for me when it happened,” Bennett said of finally reaching the milestone midway through the second quarter. “It’s pretty exciting, but as much as it’s a personal accolade, I think overall it’s a huge team accomplishment to get a player to 1,000 points.”
Bennett’s offensive turnaround couldn’t have come at a better time for Bishop Brady, either, as two quick Stark buckets to begin the second quarter cut the home team’s deficit to just four. But a rebound and put back from Bennett near the 5-minute mark, followed by a pair of free throws moments later, struck new confidence in both the player and her team.
The 5-foot-7 guard made it six straight points less than a minute later, sinking a nifty jumper from the free throw line after a John Stark turnover to reach the 1,000-point plateau, put her team ahead by 10 and send Brady fans in attendance into a frenzy. Bennett was quickly embraced by her teammates on the court, and was presented a game ball and balloons during a brief stoppage in play.
“Basketball has been Riley’s entire life,” Bishop Brady Coach Annie Alosa said. “She’s set a lot of goals for this team this year and this individual goal was just something else for her to achieve. They always say the last points are the toughest when you get to 1,000, but she stayed with it and obviously the ball fell a couple times.”
The Green Giants didn’t let up after the emotional milestone, either, closing the half out with eight-straight points – including Samantha Will’s second of four 3-pointers – to cap off a 14-0 run with an 18-point halftime advantage.
But John Stark – in the midst of an emotional game of their own with Senior Night celebrations – didn’t quit, cutting the deficit to as few as 14 midway through the third quarter with help from a steal and layup from Emily Patten (six points) and a timely 3-pointer from Laura Martin (6 points). Unfortunately for the Generals, however, back-to-back 3-pointers from Will (18 points) to close out the quarter, followed by a trey from Bennett early in the fourth, ended any hope of a comeback.
Despite the loss, John Stark Coach Don Poitras was quick point out how far his team has come in recent years, and credited his two seniors – MacKenzie Nase and Sarah Clark (nine points) – for making that possible. After all, the Generals head into Friday’s regular season finale at Lebanon (17-0) with one more win than they had all of last season.
“It’s easy and cliche to say they did all the right things, they led by example, they were role models, all that stuff. But they were all those things, and more, because of the situation we were in three years ago,” Poitras said. “There was no interest in basketball here and those two kids changed all that. They took it upon themselves at that junction to take the team under their wings.”
Bishop Brady, on the other hand, heads into its season finale Friday against Hollis-Brookline (13-4) with plenty to play for.
Alosa’s team is currently tied with Pelham (15-2) for the third spot in the Division II standings, and has high hopes of keeping that standing heading into the tournament.
“We take it one game at a time so we’re only talking about the next play right now” Alosa said. “Our story is every day and we’re continuing to tell it.”
As for Bennett, the senior said she was excited to accomplish an individual goal she set for herself long before the start of her final high school season. And while she stopped short of saying what her ultimate team goal is, she admitted there’s one big goal still remaining.
“My freshman year I made a list of goals I wanted to accomplish by my senior year, so I was happy to check off another box,” she said. “But there’s one more left.”