RallyNorth.net

No one said repeating as the Division 3 North sectional champs was going to be easy.

Pentucket watched its 10-point lead over Swampscott shrink to one inside the final two minutes of play during last night's Division 3 North semifinal. But, thanks to some clutch free-throw shooting, the Sachems were able to hold on for a 60-53 victory.

SWAMPSCOTT | Call it rust. Call it nerves. You can even call it playoff inexperience if you'd like.

But whatever it was, Tara Nimkar, Allie Beaulieu and the rest of the Swampscott girls basketball team shook it off in time to run away from Wilmington, 69-55, in a Division 3 North quarterfinal matchup.

The Swampscott girls basketball coach, Jack Hughes, couldn't call it heart-breaking, even if the NEC south champs nearly pulled off the upset of the year against a Lowell opponent that literally and figuratively had an all star at all five positions.

All it takes for Olivia Lufkin to succeed in a pressure-packed situation is a few words of encouragement.

At least that's all it took last night.

With Lufkin and her Gloucester girls basketball team trailing Northeastern Conference front-runner Swampscott 51-50 with 12.7 seconds left on the clock, the sophomore guard stepped up to the free-throw line with a chance give the Fishermen the lead.

Jenna Mazzaferro cut baseline, posted on the left block and made a spinning layup to tie the score with just 34 seconds to play.

The Swampscott senior captain converted the hoop with such confidence that it appeared to be a designed play out of the timeout Big Blue coach Jack Hughes had just called.

Swampscott has the opportunity to get a real tight grip on the Northeastern Conference Small race when it travels to Winthrop Tuesday. The once-beaten Vikings lost at Swampscott (50-41) early in the season.

In addition to cramming for school exams all week the Swampscott girls basketball team was also preparing for a huge test on the court.

The classroom grades may not have been handed out yet, but the Big Blue can breath a little easier knowing they passed their on-court exam last night with a 75-67 defeat of Peabody.

Masconomet's Jamie White and Swampscott's Marissa Gambale may have different styles on the defensive end of a basketball court, but they strike a similar type of fear in opposing guards.

It's not unusual for point guards to pick up their dribble just over halfcourt to locate either White or Gambale's position on the court | or even to get rid of the ball before facing the heavy pressure that both players can bring.

There is a huge NEC matchup between Peabody and Swampscott next Friday night.

The Tanners will come into the game at 10-1 while Swampscott will likely be 11-1.

This game will be a great measuring stick for both teams. Peabody hasn't lost in the NEC, but some would argue that the Tanners are playing an easier schedule in the Large division. Swampscott, meanwhile, is a Small division team that has to play powerful Winthrop twice. It is widely believed that the Big Blue and Vikings are the two best teams in either NEC division.

HAVERHILL | The Pentucket girls basketball team may need to adopt a new motto.

"The bigger the game, the better we play."

Similar to its run in the Division 3 state tournament last season, that again seemed to be the case last night in the championship game of the Haverhill Coca-Cola Christmas Hoop Classic as the Sachems smothered previously unbeaten Swampscott, 51-35.