Peabody girls win opener

LYNN — The Peabody High girls’ basketball team defeated Lynn English, 50-40, in the season opener for both clubs.
“It wasn’t pretty, but we’ll take it,” said Peabody coach Stan McKeen. “The first one is always the hardest.”
Peabody (1-0) controlled the game from the tip, never trailing against a very young English squad. The Tanners jumped ahead to an early 10-2 advantage and forced English (0-1) to play catch-up. Peabody received contributions from senior captain Courtney Bua (10 points, 10 rebounds), Danielle Sullivan (10 points, 14 rebounds), and Katie Wallace (seven points, three steals). The Tanners led, 22-13, at the half and extended the lead to 13 points (48-35) with under two minutes to play in the game.
“I can’t question our heart,” said English coach Rachael Bradley. “I’m proud of the effort, and even though we aren’t happy with the loss, the girls played to the very last possession.”English was led by junior point guard Waleska Muriel, who is a transfer from KIPP Academy. The diminutive guard finished with 26 points, seven rebounds, and six steals, refusing to let the game fall out of reach. Devinya Robinson (six points, five rebounds) also made an impact for the Bulldogs.”That was a stressful game, no question,” said McKeen. “But we played great defense and did a great job off the boards.”
The game was unique as both teams featured a new head coach. McKeen, who coached the Tanners’ freshmen team for the past 16 years, made his varsity debut for Peabody, and the game also served as Bradley’s first game as head coach for the Bulldogs.