Mackenzie McDonald tossed up a corner 3-pointer and even if it had gone in, Merrimack Valley still would have needed a little divine intervention to pull off a comeback.
Macy Gordon still dashed for the rebound and tried to throw a shot up at the hoop but as time expired, the buzzer signified an unfortunate truth for the Pride (16-4).
The season is over.
Saturday afternoon in front of a near-capacity crowd, No. 4 MV’s tournament run ended in the quarterfinals at the hands of No. 5 Laconia (17-3) in a 44-40 final – a loss that can be pinpointed to a specific eight-minute stretch.
Holding a four-point lead at the beginning of the second half, the Pride had plenty to feel good about as they prepared for 16 more minutes of basketball. MV went on an 11-2 run to close out the second quarter. It shot 76 percent from the free throw line after ending the first quarter in the bonus. It rebounded and was working its way through a stingy Sachems’ full-court press.
The Pride’s trajectory was upward, but Laconia geared up to reverse course.
Led by Mekhia Burton, the Sachems went on the run of the season by scoring 13 unanswered points to open the second half and securing a lead they never gave up. Burton, a sophomore, had six points in that run and 17 total as Laconia managed to stretch the floor and control the game on both sides of the floor.
MV had struggled to figure out a way to overcome the Sachems’ full-court press for the entirety of the game and with each basket scored by the red and white, just the slightest bit of doubt crept into the No. 4 seed’s body language.
“It was one of those situations where our heads sort of went down,” MV coach Bob McNutt said. “We just had a hard time scoring.”
The Pride had their fair share of chances to score in that third quarter, but missed layups and jump shots followed all attempts until Gordon knocked down a pair of free throws with a few minutes left in the quarter.
MV, down 11 in the fourth quarter, started to find some form of rhythm after McDonald hit a 3-pointer and Gordon cut the lead to eight halfway through the final quarter. With both teams in the bonus, a sequence of one-and-ones ensued and the Pride cut the lead to seven with 40 seconds left.
McDonald managed to score five more points down the stretch, but the Pride ran out of time for one last possession to take the lead and the game.
A disappointing end to an otherwise successful season, McNutt and his squad knew at the beginning of the season they had the talent and the formula to make this year a special one. The Pride’s 15 regular-season wins and quarterfinal finish are the best in recent memory.
And while the goal was to make it to at least the semifinals, MV managed to see the season’s end with some form of optimism.
“We had a good season,” McNutt said. “In our three losses, they were competitive. We didn’t get blown out and very happy with the girls (performance).”
It’ll be an interesting start to the season in a long 10 months from now. MV loses five players to graduation in McDonald, Gordon, Rylee Boucher, Alyssa Woodman and Kristen Therrien. Where the optimism lies, however, is in junior Hadleigh Sargent and freshman Kayla Smith. Both of them saw extensive time against Laconia, throughout the season and will be instrumental in replacing a tight-knit senior class.
Another season come and gone for the blue and white, and another long 10 months awaits until new goals are set and a chance to right Saturday’s mistakes is available.