MARBLEHEAD — The Bishop Fenwick girls basketball team had a big game on both ends of the floor Monday evening, picking up a 65-40 win over Peabody to take home the Larry McIntire IAABO Board 130 Classic title.
Fenwick sophomore Cecilia Kay paved the way for the Crusaders’ victory, scoring 18 of her team’s 60 points to earn Tournament MVP honors. Senior Nasha Arnold came in close behind with 15 points.
Early in the first quarter, the Crusaders and Tanners came out evenly matched. The aggressive defense for the Crusaders forced the Tanners into some bad shot selections which then turned into turnovers, but ultimately the Tanners were able to regain their composure and brought the initial six-point lead down to three to end the frame.
Just as quickly as the first quarter had come and gone, the second arrived and neither team was giving the other an inch. However, the Tanners did begin to show signs of life and they were able to shrink the lead to one point by halftime — still trailing 26-25. The Crusaders were able to hang on to their shrinking lead due to early foul trouble by the Tanners.
“We got into foul trouble,” said Peabody head coach Stan McKeen. “Our main person Logan (Lomasney) got into foul trouble. A few other kids had two and three fouls, which hurt us.”
In the opening minutes of the third quarter, the Crusaders took charge and never looked back. Going on a 12-0 run to begin the period, the Crusaders were able to start controlling the game at the pace they wanted. The suddenly explosive offense for the Crusaders gave them newfound momentum, which allowed the team to turn a one-point lead to end the second half into a double-digit lead by the end of the third.
“This was just one of those halftimes where it was about energy and effort,” said Fenwick head coach Adam DeBaggis. “We made small adjustments, but we just weren’t playing with the same energy they were.”
The fourth quarter picked up where the third left off, with the Crusaders building upon an already impressive lead while the Tanners struggled to keep up. An ironclad defense that forced their opponent’s hand and a spectacular offensive attack allowed for the Crusaders to lead by as many as 26 in the final minutes of the game, and ultimately granted them a 25-point victory over the Tanners.
Bishop Fenwick (16-6) closes out the season Thursday (1) on the road at Nauset.
Peabody finishes up the regular season at 17-3 and now awaits its seeding in the upcoming state tournament.
