The Concord Christian Academy Lady Kingsmen’s hopes of winning all four basketball divisions in a five-year span came crashing down on Saturday with a loss to Londonderry.
The hot streak for No. 1 CCA (20-2) came to an end against a formidable defense that forced the lowest scoring game of the season for the small Concord private school in the Division I championship held at UNH.
The No. 3 Lancers (20-3) finished out ahead, 56-38, to win it all. The score was tied 17-17 late in the second quarter, but Londonderry went ahead by five going into the half with two quick baskets.
The real run for the championship started with a three-pointer by Londonderry’s Brooke Eacrett and strong defense in the third quarter.
Possession after possession, Londonderry generated turnovers and was able to find shots on the perimeter to build the gap. In the third, they scored 18 points on 50% shooting and held the Kingsmen to just four points.
“We had some things that we had talked about at halftime that we wanted to do, and we didn’t execute them,” Concord Christian Head Coach Matt Smith said.
Smith and his squad were aware of the firepower at Londonderry’s disposal. He had coached multiple Londonderry players in AAU basketball.
CCA got into foul trouble late in the game trying to stop the Lancers’ aggressiveness and physicality.
Eacrett led the way with 20 points and Samantha Sullivan scored 16. The third piece of their big three, Brooke Wilson, only scored five but hauled in 10 rebounds, had a block and two steals.
Samantha Sullivan, the D-I player of the year, shot efficiently everywhere on the court was hard to stop her driving to the basket. She added nine rebounds, four assists and four blocks on the night.
The Kingsmen played from behind for a total of 26 minutes and could not seem to get close after the second quarter. It was a tough shooting night for a CCA team that buried most of its competition throughout the season.
The team’s three all-state players, Emma Smith, Kate Smith and Sophia Capsalis combined for 18 points, 13 of which came from Emma Smith. Abby Lash was second in scoring with 11 points.
In addition to winning the turnover battle, Londonderry was able to corral rebounds on both ends and eat away at the clock with longer possessions.
Londonderry built its largest lead of 23 points in the fourth, which proved insurmountable.
Smith was proud of his seniors for evolving their leadership styles as they grew.
They wouldn’t have had as much success, especially with multiple first and second-year varsity players in the rotation, if it weren’t for their maturity on the court, he said.
“I think this year, they took an even better approach, where they had kind of a motherly approach to it, because we had a lot of young players, so they tried to be very encouraging,” he said.
The team will look to build toward next season and plans to remain at the Division I level for years to come. Juniors Abby Lash, Brooklyn Robbins and Emmy Laboe will step in as seniors to lead the team alongside this year’s breakout freshman, Brynn Valiant, in hopes of getting back to the final game.
“The most important thing was that we wanted to build a good culture and a legacy, because part of having a good program is leaving it in good shape for the next crew,” Smith said.
