Everything seemed to be in order for the Merrimack Valley High School girls’ basketball team entering the final quarter at home on Friday night. Their leading scorer, Abby Grandmaison, was enjoying a standout 23-point, eight-rebound performance, the defense was forcing turnovers to feed their fast break and the Pride was cruising with a 17-point lead.
Then, the fourth quarter hit.
The turnovers that were benefiting the Pride were now going against it. All the easy points were now becoming tough buckets, and what was once a 17-point lead had dwindled down to five.
“We went into the fourth quarter with a 17-point lead, next thing we know, it’s a five- or six-point game,” MV’s Kevin O’Brien said after a nail-biting 54-49 win over John Stark. “Credit to them. They came back hard at us. We made a lot of errors, a lot of errors in the fourth quarter and down the stretch.”
Despite all the mistakes in the final eight minutes, Merrimack Valley (2-0) still emerged with its second straight victory to open the season, but O’Brien knows the execution has to be better.
“Up 17 points, you have to be able to handle the ball and secure things,” O’Brien said. “We have to be able to respond to them coming at you.”
Behind the trio of Jillian Douzanis (12 points), Autumn Nelson (11 points) and Sarah Clark, the Generals never checked out and played with more poise down the stretch to slow the game’s pace.
Stark could do nothing against MV’s offense in the first quarter, constantly turning the ball over and fueling the Pride’s fast-break attack. Stark surrendered 18 points in the first quarter before trailing, 34-21, at halftime. But the Generals found an approach that worked in the fourth to slowly chip away at the double-digit deficit.
“In the fourth, it was five, six, seven, eight passes and a good look, so that really slowed them down” Stark Coach Don Poitras said. “We cut it to five, and that was great for the kids to see that. In the past, I think we would have folded our tents and gave up or let it get worse. So tonight was good to see that they kept playing hard … It was a big confidence builder.”
Grandmaison’s scoring output was the big story for the Pride and Poitras called her “fun to watch,” but she wasn’t the only one to contribute. Carly Huckins netted 15 points and Sara Osborne delivered eight for the Pride, which will take on Windham on Tuesday.
Douzanis paced the Generals, but they had two freshmen step into larger roles as Chelsea Woodsum and Ari Maxwell combined for six points. The Generals host Milford on Tuesday and Poitras said the loss to MV could be a big turning point for the program this season.
“They’re going to go into games now thinking they have just as much of an opportunity to win as their opponent,” Poitras said.
Bedford 62, Concord 27
Key players: Concord – Ashley Kelley (10 points), Gabby Evans (6 rebounds, 4 blocks), Caitlyn Kelley (3 steals)
Highlights/key moments: Bedford outscored Concord, 24-8, in the first quarter. The Tide picked up the defensive intensity in the second quarter, holding the Bulldogs to just 10 points in that frame but went into the break trailing, 34-15.
Coach’s quote: “Bedford is the best team in our division and they showed why tonight. They play hard defense, go to the boards well and capitalize on any lapses on defense. … They highlighted the areas we need to work on to become a better team and hopefully we can learn from it and improve.” – Concord’s Mike Achilles
Records: Concord 1-1; Bedford 3-0
Bishop Brady 64, Pembroke 32
Key players: Brady – Sam Will (19 points, 4 blocks), Riley Bennett (15 points, solid defense), Sofia Riccio (11 points), Sarah Doherty (10 points, 6 assists); Pembroke – Olivia Langevin (12 points)
Highlights/key moments: In a solid team effort, the Green Giants opened things up right after halftime.
Coach’s quote: “Great team effort from start to finish. Our defense was strong and we moved well. Played well overall as a team. The story continues and we are excited for the next chapter.” – Brady’s Annie Alosa
Records: Brady 1-1; Pembroke 1-2
Hanover 52, Bow 29
Key players: Bow – Lea Crompton (11 points), Megan Remick (9 points)
Records: Bow 1-1
Kearsarge 45, Newport 27
Key players: Kearsarge – Madi Brayshaw (21 points), Meg Roy (9 points), Devi Kraushaar (eight points)
Highlights/key moments: The Cougars used pressure defense that turned into transition offense to pull away in the second quarter and open up a 30-15 halftime lead. Keasarge has now won five straight to open the season.
Coach’s quote: “If you had told us before the season we’d start like this, we’d be ecstatic. We’ve come together quickly as a team and the girls seem to be playing for each other and not themselves.” – Keasrarge’s Keith Roberts
Records: Kearsarge 5-0; Newport 2-3
Newfound 66, Inter-Lakes 26
Key players: Newfound – Ashlee Dukette (21 points, 17 rebounds, 4 steals), Savanna Bony (10 points), Molly Schilling (10 points); Inter-Lakes – Julia Gintoff (15 points)
Highlights/key moments: Newfound poured in 23 points in the first quarter with all five starters contributing and was able to hold the Lakers to eight points in the second half.
Coach’s quote: “We are coming along and the key is to improve each game. As long as we keep moving forward we will get to where we want to be.” – Newfound’s Karri Peterson
Records: Newfound 4-0
Hopkinton 42, St. Thomas 24
Key players: Hopkinton – Amelia Thomas (8 points, 5 assists, 6 rebounds), Katie Meserve (9 points, 11 rebounds), Abby Houston (7 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists); St. Thomas – Morgan Atwell (8 points), Maddie Freese (5 points)
Highlights/key moments: Houston’s back-to-back steals keyed a 15-4 Hopkinton run in the third quarter and helped the Hawks pick up their first win of the season. Freshman Meserve had six of her team-high nine points in the final frame.
Coach’s quote: “This was a great team win. The girls worked hard and played together very well.” – Hopkinton’s Patrick Roye
Records: Hopkinton 1-3; St. Thomas 1-3
Berlin 36, Belmont 30
Key players: Belmont – Sarah Chase (11 points), Makenzie Donovan (8 points), Julianna Estremera (6 points)
Highlights/key moments: The Raiders led throughout, including a nine-point advantage at the halftime, but couldn’t finish the job as they scored just two points in the final frame.
Coach’s quote: “We missed on a couple looks that could have extended our lead, but credit to them, they made shots down the stretch.” – Belmont’s Mark Dawalga
Records: Belmont 2-3
Bedford 89, Concord 57
Key players: Concord – Tyler Blodgett (17 points), Teddy Blodgett (13 points), Matt Giroux (10 points)
Highlights/key moments: The Tide fell into an early 12-0 hole, but fought all the way back to take a two-point lead in the first minute of the second quarter. Concord, though, went 3-for-17 from the floor for the rest of the period and trailed by 19 at halftime.
Coach’s quote: “We took a knife to a gun fight tonight.” – Concord’s Dave Chase
Records: Concord 0-1; Bedford 1-0
John Stark 58,
Merrimack Valley 43
Key players: Stark – Cooper Gorski (18 points), Drew McQuarrie (14 points, 16 rebounds, 6 assists), Isaiah Lovering (6 points, 7 assists); MV – James Shattuck (17 points)
Highlights/key moments: Battling in a close contest, it wasn’t until the Generals rattled off a 20-8 third-quarter run that they were able to pull away. MV did a solid job drawing fouls early on, and blanked Stark 19-0 in points at the free-throw line.
Coach’s quote: “In the second half, their physical play was too much, they came out with more intensity.” – MV’s Tim Mucher
“We need to find that balance of being aggressive without fouling.” – Stark’s Mike Smith
Records: Stark 1-0; MV 0-1
Bow 54, Hanover 45
Key players: Bow – Ryan Andrews (23 points), Ben Guertin (11 points), Matt Scanlon (7 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 6 blocks), Nate Alford (6 points), Brendan Winch (6 points)
Highlights/key moments: Bow held a slim 23-20 lead at halftime before dropping 21 points in the third quarter. Andrews, who had five 3-pointers on the night, scored nine in the third
Coach’s quote: “In the third quarter we did a better job containing their guards and then we hit some shots on the other end. Hanover is always solid, so this is a good one to get.” – Bow’s Chris Gaudreau
Records: Bow 1-0; Hanover 0-1
Hollis-Brookline 70,
Coe-Brown 49
Key players: Coe-Brown – Scott Spenard (20 points), Sam Lupinacci (12 points, 5 steals), Brody Ashley (8 points), Shawn Spenard (6 points)
Highlights/key moments: The Bears trailed by 19 at halftime and had a hard time making up the ground in the second half as they dropped their season-opener.
Records: Coe-Brown 0-1; Hollis-Brookline 1-0
Kearsarge 70, Newport 25
Key players: Kearsarge – Tayler Mattos (19 points, 17 rebounds, 5 blocks), Tom Johnson (16 ponts, 5 assists), Noah Tremblay (11 points, 3 rebounds), Joe Storozuk (6 points), Ray Critch (6 points, 7 rebounds), Kyle Hernon (8 rebounds), Jordan Bryk (6 rebounds), Sam Kulacz (first varsity minutes)
Highlights/key moments: After losing its season opener on Tuesday at Stevens, 71-66, Kearsarge responded with a dominating performance on the road. The Cougars open the season with seven straight away games.
Coach’s quote: “The kids bounced back in a big way. They had a little something to prove after Tuesday got away from us. We’ve got some talent, but we’ve also got kids that are buying in and working hard.” – Kearsarge’s Nate Camp
Records: Kearsarge 1-1; Newport 1-2
Winnisquam 75,
White Mountains 67
Key players: Winnisquam – Thomas Marchese (28 points), Logan Morrison (22 points, 10 rebounds), Kyle Mann (14 points), Isaiah Singleton (7 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists)
Highlights/key moments: The Bears led by four at the half before outscoring White Mountains, 23-10, in the third quarter. Despite the Spartans turning around and scoring 30 points in the fourth, Winnisquam managed to hold off the rally.
Coach’s quote: “Not very intelligent defense in the fourth quarter, but we’re 3-0, so I’m proud of the effort of the team.” – Winnisquam’s Kevin Dame
Records: Winnisquam 3-0
Franklin 59, Fall Mountain 52
Key players: Franklin – Jayden Torres (27 points), Matt Hennessey (15 points), Corey Nelson (12 points)
Highlights/key moments: Franklin led, 14-8, after one quarter and 28-27 at the half. The fourth quarter opened in a 37-37 tie. Torres took the game into his own hands in the fourth quarter, scoring 17 points in the frame.
Coach’s quote: “Very proud and happy for the boys to get that first win. In the first game, we ran out of gas. In this one, we went the distance.” – Franklin’s Michael Donnell
Records: Franklin 1-1; Fall Mountain 0-2
Belmont 51, Berlin 48
Key players: Belmont – Doug Price (17 points), Trevor Hunt (14 points, 11 rebounds)
Highlights/key moments: Belmont’s defense was stifling in the first half, holding Berlin to one field goal and six points. The Raiders held off a late charge from the Mountaineers in the second half to win their third straight.
Coach’s quote: “It was a good team win. Everyone contributed and Doug (Price) was special in the fourth quarter.” – Belmont’s Jim Cilley
Records:
Hopkinton 72,
St. Thomas Aquinas 36
Key players: Hopkinton – Kevin McGrath (14 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists), Henry Yianakopolos (11 points, 8 rebounds), Cam Cyr (11 points), Jacob Rockwood (9 points), Liam Flanagan (defense), Zachary Signor (defense); St. Thomas – Andrew Cavanaugh (10 points), Zac Barberry (7 points)
Highlights/key moments: St. Thomas came out with a lot of pressure, but Hopkinton quickly settled in and took command by the end of the first quarter. Hopkinton’s ability to break through the press resulted in many easy layups.
Coach’s quote: “(We) played true team basketball tonight, not caring who got the basket. They are starting to believe in one another and trust each other, which showed on the defensive end.” – Hopkinton’s Stephen Signor
Records: Hopkinton 3-0; St. Thomas 0-2
Mascenic 75,
Hillsboro-Deering 35
Key players: H-D – Elijah Winters (8 points)
Highlights/key moments: Undersized against a larger Mascenic team, the Hillcats made protecting the paint their priority, but allowed the Vikings to hit double-digit 3-pointers.
Coach’s quote: “We couldn’t defend and we couldn’t score, which isn’t a good combination, but as cold it was outside, Mascenic had 16 3’s.” – H-D’s Kevin Fowler
Records: H-D 0-2
Pittsfield 65, Mount Royal 38
Key players: Pittsfield – Josh Whittier (19 points, 14 rebounds), Cam Darrah (18 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists); Mount Royal – Alex Normandin (18 points)
Highlights/key moments: After a sluggish first half, the Panthers outscored Mount Royal 22-7 in the third to put the game out of reach.
Coach’s quote: “Not sure if it was back-to-back nights or the excitement of playing on a collegiate floor at NHTI, but we couldn’t seem to get into any type of flow. Luckily for us, Whittier came focused and dominated the paint, scoring 17 of his 19 in the first half.” – Pittsfield’s Jay Darrah
Records: Pittsfield 3-0; Mount Royal 2-1