Basketball: Swampscott girls hold off Wakefield

The Swampscott girls basketball team sprinted out of the gates fast against Wakefield at the Golden Tornado Tournament Thursday afternoon. The Big Blue defeated the Warriors 47-42 at Malden.The Big Blue sprinted to a 32-23 lead at the end of the first half. Swampscott was able to hold Wakefield to just 19 points in the second half to seal the victory. Leading the way for Swampscott (2-1) was Ara Talkov (20 points). Swampscott coach Abrom Roberts was happy with his team’s performance.”We were mentally strong today. We made some big baskets at crucial times in the game, which proved to be the difference,” Roberts said.Swampscott will play Danvers in the tourney final today (3:30).Danvers 37, Malden 28At Malden, the Falcons dominated the third quarter (13-4) and saw their lead grow to 18 in the second half. Malden could never threaten Danvers. Leading the way for the Falcons was the duo of Ashley Arnoldy (10 points) and Emily McNulty (13 points). Danvers is now 3-1.Danvers faces Swampscott in the final today (3:30).BOYS BASKETBALLGolden Tornado TournamentMalden 65, Swampscott 57At Malden, the Big Blue were in a dogfight, as the score was tied 44-44 at the end of the third quarter. Swampscott made a few crucial turnovers down the stretch, which proved to be the difference. Swampscott coach Justin Fucile saluted his team for its effort.”This was a terrific game that my boys were on the wrong end of. Malden is a very good team, but I am very proud of how my boys competed today,” Fucile said.Leading the way for Swampscott (2-3) was Danny Trentsch (26 points, 5 assists, 5 steals, 3 rebounds).Peabody 61, North Shore Tech 43At Peabody, Peabody outscored North Shore Tech 20-7 in the second quarter to take a 34-22 lead at the half. The Tanners went on cruise control from that point on. Leading the way for Peabody was a three-headed monster in Ben Martinez (15 points, 7 rebounds), Matt Correale (14 points, 4 assists) and Steve Leavitt (12 points, 6 steals, 5 rebounds). Peabody recorded its first victory of the season (1-3).Marblehead 50, Bedford 48At Marblehead, the Magicians needed to use all their tricks, as they found themselves down 39-18 midway through the third quarter. Marblehead magically went on a 32-9 run to close out the game. The score was 48-47 Bedford, as Marblehead had possession with 10 seconds left. Sophomore Cian Saunders hit the game-winning three-point shot, with three seconds left on the clock. Saunders scored all nine of his points in the final quarter. Matt Millett chipped in with 10 points for the Magicians (2-2).Danvers 71, Billerica 42At Billerica, the Falcons started the game on a 21-2 run and never looked back. Leading the way for the Falcons was the trio of Nick Bates (19 points, 12 rebounds), Nick McKenna (19 points) and Eric Martin (11 points, 7 assists, 6 steals). Danvers improves to 4-0.Beverly Christmas TournamentBeverly 81, Masco 58At Beverly, the Panthers shared the wealth, with four different players scoring in double figures. Nick Cross (13 points, 6 rebounds), Cam Rogers (12 points, 6 rebounds), Josh Cairns (12 points) and Chris Sinclair (11 points) led the way for Beverly. The Panthers are now 3-1.Beverly plays Boston Latin in the title game today (7:30).