Tech girls hoop team wins state vocational tourney

The Lynn Tech girls basketball team defeated Monty Tech, 56-45, over the weekend to win the state vocational tournament at Fitchburg. It is Tech’s second vocational title in a row.”It’s pretty good for the girls,” Tech coach John Crowley said. “They put in a very good effort. It was a very good overall game.”Tech (14-5) received balanced scoring, getting 18 points from Katrina Freeman, 16 from Jessica Underwood, and 12 from Shena Mitchell. The Tigers also got a boost off the bench from Octavia Harper, who tallied four points and eight rebounds in relief of Fanice Baptiste, who twisted her knee in the third quarter and took most of the fourth quarter off.”(Baptiste) just wasn’t running right,” Crowley said.In addition to Harper’s offensive statistics, Crowley said, she “did a nice job defensively.”Monty Tech entered the game with a 20-1 record.”They’re a quality team,” Crowley said. “It was a nice win for us.”The game was tied at 19 at halftime before Tech outscored Monty Tech, 37-26, in the second half.Tech next plays in the first round of the Division 4 North tournament, when the eighth-seeded Tigers host Manchester-Essex.”They play a very, very competitive schedule,” Crowley said. “Division 3 teams, some Division 2 programs. They’re very well prepared.”Manchester-Essex ousted Tech in the North semifinals last year at Classical. The Tigers were one win away from the North final at the TD BankNorth Garden.