SWAMPSCOTT — All season long, Swampscott’s girls basketball team has been letting it fly. But in Wednesday’s preliminary round of the Division 3 state tournament, the No. 31 Big Blue went cold and lost to No. 34 Tantasqua Regional Senior (Fiskdale) 37-33.
Swampscott led 5-3 after the first quarter, but trailed 13-11 by halftime.
“Our gameplan was to use our press and turn our turnovers into transition baskets. We charted the first quarter and had seven turnovers, two boards, and just didn’t convert into points,” said Swampscott coach Katelyn Leonard. “I think by not getting that quick lead that we were looking for, we were kind of playing from behind the whole time.”
In the third quarter, Swampscott’s offense continued to struggle, while Tantasqua found its rhythm from downtown, as well as in the paint.
The bright spot for the Big Blue was Cecilia Tripp, who netted 11 points and scored timely baskets.
“She’s such a fun kid to coach and has such a great attitude. She works hard all game. Whether we’re up by 10 or down by 10, I can always count on her to work hard,” Leonard said. “We keep telling her to use her speed and get to the basket and she does it. I’m excited for her and I think she’s going to have a great senior year.”
Tantasqua made it difficult for Swampscott’s Anna Kanders (17 points), but you could say she just needed to see one 3-pointer go in. In the fourth quarter, she connected from downtown before scoring 12 consecutive points.
Unfortunately, her efforts fell short as Tantasqua made its free throws down the stretch to advance to the Round of 32, where it will face No. 2 Pittsfield.
“They were face-guarding Anna and what helps alleviate that is other kids scoring, and we were getting great looks, but the ball just wasn’t falling,” Leonard said.
Looking back on the season, Leonard said there were plenty of positives.
“We won our division in our conference, we had a six-game winning streak, and we beat Masco for the first time in eight or nine years — all those are positive things,” she said. “I think we can learn from this and I’m excited to take this loss and feel it. It will give us motivation for next year.”
The Big Blue (12-9) move forward without seniors Sam Ward and Maddie Lilley, but the rest of the roster is expected to return next winter.
“Sam and Maddie have been anchors for this team for four years. They’ve both had great careers here and they’re great people. I’m really proud of how they played and how they set the bar,” Leonard said. “We’re still a young team and I think they’re hungry and we really want to do some damage in the tournament. The past two years, we qualified, now we want to win some games. That’s motivating for me as a coach and I know it’s the same for these young players.”
Photo: Spenser Hasak | Purchase this photo
Photo: Spenser Hasak | Purchase this photo
Photo: Spenser Hasak | Purchase this photo
Photo: Spenser Hasak | Purchase this photo
Photo: Spenser Hasak | Purchase this photo
Photo: Spenser Hasak | Purchase this photo
