RallyNorth.net

Peter Ventola extended his regular-season goal-scoring streak to four games with a hat trick as Salem blitzed Winnacunnet 4-0. The senior striker now has five goals for the 3-0 Blue Devils.

The past 7-8 weeks, Salem probably would have loved to spend an afternoon in Hampton. But this was business.

Cassie Chase had two goals and an assist in the 97-degree heat as the Blue Devils held off Winnacunnet 3-2. Brenna Blakslee turned in a fine effort on defense.

Joseph Morin doubled and tripled, scoring two runs and driving in another as Salem toppled Winnacunnet, 4-1. Darren Brown threw three innings of no-hit ball for the win, getting strong bullpen help from Rob Liberatore and Dan Peters.

Kristen Swanson won the long jump and 400, but Timberlane suffered its first setback of the season, dropping a 79 1/2-64 1/2 verdict to Winnacunnet.

Matt Dionne (long jump, triple jump and high jump) was triumphant in three individual events as Timberlane easily defeated Winnacunnet, 98.5-46.5. Jarret McKallagat was best in the 110 and 300 hurdles while helping both relay quartets prevail.

Derek Bird allowed just a single hit in a five-inning complete game, striking out seven as Pinkerton bested Winnacunnet 11-1.

 Dan Travaglini and John Faia each blasted two-run homers as Timberlane rallied back from an eight-run deficit to down Winnacunnet 13-11. Travaglini also worked five innings of releif to earn the victory.

DURHAM, N.H. — Four quarters of Zach Mathieu weren’t quite enough for Pinkerton yesterday afternoon, but two overtimes did the trick.

Thanks to Mathieu’s record-setting 37 points, the Astros knocked off Winnacunnet to win their first Class L title since 1990, 61-59 in double overtime before 2,400 fans at Lundholm Gym at the University of New Hampshire.

Pinkerton got off to a fast start in the fourth quarter by breaking the Winnacunnet press with a nice outlet pass to AJ Guidi who then passed off to Allie Ucich who scored a layup to tie the game. The Pinkerton crowd went wild and the Astros appeared to have gained some serious momentum. But then Winnacunnet star and Boston College bound Tiffany Ruffin took control of the game. The senior scored on three jump shots over the next 2 minutes, 14 seconds to help lead her team on a 8-0 run. From there, Winnacunnet held on and won 46-41 to claim its fourth straight Class L title. “I think we stayed composed and we didn’t let it get to us but it probably got to us a little bit,” Pinkerton senior Laura Pierce said about the Winnacunnet 8-0 run. “Everything about her (Ruffin makes her difficult to defend). You play her so she doesn’t go to the hoop, then she steps back and hits a 3.” Ruffin scored a game-high 19 points, going 7 of 10 from the field. She also had four assists, four rebounds and two steals. “Tiffany Ruffin is a go-to girl,” Guidi said. “She’s the girl you want to go to for dribble penetration and the quick shot coming off the screen. She’s a great player. Really hard to defend.” Pinkerton shot only 35.3 percent (18 for 51) from the field and just 13.6 percent (3 for 22) from 3-point range. The Astros also struggled from the free throw line, going just 2 for 7. “Three for 22 is a little bit bad from the 3-point line,” Guidi said. “But we’ve had those nights. We had them against Winnacunnet in the first half the first time we played them. We got a little more dribble penetration this time, which helped us stay in the game.” Guidi led Pinkerton with 12 points but went 0 for 7 from 3-point range. Pierce scored 9 points and collected six rebounds. Pinkerton turned the ball over just 12 times but had difficulty bringing it up against the press, especially at the end of the game when it needed to take quick shots to get back in the game.
“They have great pressure,” Katherine Harris said. “I thought we did a good job of maintaining out composure. We didn’t have that many turnovers. We managed to get it up most of the time. But the pressure is difficult, definitely.”

With nine wrestlers out due to a skin ailment making the rounds in the area, Salem couldn't compete with Winnacunnet in a 58-11 defeat. John Rheaume, Zach Hicks and Brett Pittera had the lone Blue Devil victories. The wrestlers affected hope to be cleared to practice tomorrow in preparation for upcoming postseason tournaments.