Junior guard Eli Whipple played with a chip on his shoulder and a goal on his mind.
Whipple, the No. 9 Kearsarge Cougars’ (14-6) top scorer this season, erupted for 39 points in the Division III boys’ basketball quarterfinal away from home against Belmont (18-1).
His performance, alongside an all-around strong night by his teammates, was enough to topple the undefeated, top-seeded Red Raiders, 71-62, in a rematch of last year’s state championship.
Whipple watched his brother, Noah, fall in the championship to Belmont last season and he did not let his moment to avenge him pass.
“I was coming in here with a chip on my shoulder, and I was like we gotta beat these guys, do-or-die,” he said. “So we came in here, and we did.”
Kearsarge junior Eli Whipple (15) found lanes to score all game, leading to a 39-point performance against Belmont in the D-III quarterfinal. Credit: ALEXANDER RAPP / Monitor 
Junior guard Eli Whipple (15) scores over Belmont junior Brody Ennis from the mid-range in the D-III quarterfinal. Credit: ALEXANDER RAPP / Monitor 
Belmont junior Brody Ennis traded blows with Kearsarge’s Eli Whipple, and was the second top scorer for the Raiders with 22 points. Credit: ALEXANDER RAPP / Monitor
Whipple’s performance was praised, not just by his coach Nate Camp, but also by Belmont Head Coach Tony Martinez.
“They had good stuff and put the ball in, what I feel is the player of the year in D-3’s [hands], he did what he should do and hit free throws and pulled away,” Martinez said.
He thought the difference in the game came down to execution. His team was prepared for the moment, but the Cougars had an edge when it came to making the clutch shots.
It wasn’t a season lost, though, in Martinez’s eyes. The Red Raiders only returned two players from last year’s championship team, senior guard Wyatt Carroll and junior forward Brody Ennis.
The big three from last year, Keegan Martinez, Anakin Underhill and Treshawn Ray were all gone.
To be able to construct another team in such a short time that earned a one-seed was almost too good to be true. Except this team was blowing the competition out of the water.
Freshman Evan Martinez followed in his brother’s footsteps and was the team’s top scorer this year. He scored 25 in the quarterfinal against Kearsarge but couldn’t push his team over the edge.
Junior forward Brody Ennis backed him up with a strong presence and 22 points. Kearsarge eliminated most other threats and picked up the rebounds they needed to go the other way and score.
Carroll got into foul trouble early while guarding Whipple and had to be subbed out with four fouls before half. The dynamic of Belmont’s game plan had to change after that. He came back in and scored, but by then the game was running away. Junior forward Owen Viar also got into foul trouble, and both were done for the night prematurely.
“To lose Carroll, who’s been a floor general for us all year and Owen, the kid is a warrior in the trenches every game,” Martinez said.
The Raiders came close. With two minutes remaining in the third, the score was 44-41 in Kearsarge’s favor and far from over. Yet, the Raiders couldn’t find the tie.
“What they did this season is very special. This season wasn’t a failure by no means. It was just a bump in the road, something we can learn from and get better on for next year,” Martinez added.
Whipple wasn’t the only one scoring for Kearsarge, and taking down giants like Belmont was no easy task.
Senior guards Blake Grieco, Carter Wheeler and junior forward Blake LaMothe each scored ten. Their ball movement was efficient and careful, limiting Belmont’s fast breaks.
Camp said they constantly drilled situations that came up in game, up four with X amount of minutes left, and so on. He liked how aggressive they were because it paid off in the foul deficit Belmont got stuck in.
He also credited the strength of the schedule his team had. Learning from the close losses and the grind prepared his team best.
“You could see how the guys were rallying around tonight, because we were all locked in,” Camp said. “And to get the performance that you got out of Blake LaMothe, Blake Grieco, Carter Wheeler and even Bragen Kinzer, those guys they really stepped up.”
The underdog Cougars surpassed the only undefeated team in the division with a true team effort. Next, they’ll play No. 4 Gilford (17-3), coming off a 48-35 win over Stevens.
The semifinal match will be played at 7:30 Tuesday, Feb. 24, at Bedford High School.