English girls hoop wins by a point; Classical misses tourney

LYNN – It was a team looking for perfection in the Northeastern Conference meeting a team playing for a spot in the state tournament on Friday when English visited Classical in front of a raucous crowd.The fans who packed the bleachers weren’t disappointed as both teams fought to the bitter end but it was the Bulldogs who completed a 16-0 NEC season with a 42-41 win.”It really was a heck of a game,” English coach Fred Hogan said. “Classical got us to play their style of basketball but to be 16-0 in the NEC is special with this bunch of girls.”The Rams (9-11) were playing as well as anyone in the league coming in and they gave English (19-1) all they could possibly hope to handle with league MVP Catherine Stinson battling the flu.Classical led much of the game but fell victim to missed free throws down the stretch, going 2 of 11 from the charity stripe over the final 5:01 of regulation. Despite that, Rams coach Tom Sawyer was proud of the fight his team showed.”We played outstanding,” Sawyer said. “From the beginning of the year to now, this is a completely different team. We just couldn’t get a couple of shots to fall for us.”Classical’s defense took English out of its rhythm from the start as the Rams jumped out to a 11-6 lead after a quarter. The Bulldogs settled down and turned up the defensive pressure, scoring the first seven points of the second quarter to take the lead for the first time in the game.The Rams rebounded on the back of Kristin Lauria and Monta Connolly, who helped give Classical an 18-17 lead at halftime.”(Friday) was about Lynn Classical and how they played,” Hogan said. “They played great and we knew that it was going to be a battle.”The hammer and tong battle continued in the third quarter as Classical opened up the lead to three (21-18) before the teams traded baskets over the next three minutes.But when Deidra Newson knocked down a wide open three to help spark a 9-2 run that opened the lead ot 32-26, it looked like Classical was on the ropes.A well timed basket from Chelsea Rogers steadied the Rams and they clawed back to within one at 33-32 after three quarters.”This team has been so resilient down the stretch,” Sawyer said. “And they played that way again (Friday).”Connolly gave Classical the lead back early in the fourth period before Stinson, who hadn’t scored since the first quarter, scored on a put back to make it 36-35 English.The teams would trade the lead twice more before Mikayla Everette’s lay-in with 2:09 remaining gave English the lead for good at 42-41.From there on, the defenses took over as neither team could score a point over the final 1:44. Classical would have six chances from the line but missed all of them, including two shots with 12.5 seconds left.”These girls wanted to be 16-0 in the conference,” Hogan said. “And they got it. But I’m also proud of the way that Classical played. (Tom) has done a phenomenal job with them. We just came out on top at the end.”