RallyNorth.net

Big three for Pentucket, Daamen, Viselli, and McNamara, too much

Friday, February, 29 By John Shimer
Staff writer

Beating an opponent three times in one season is never easy, and Newburyport gave Pentucket all it could handle in the second round of the Div. 3 North state tournament.

But, once again the Sachem defense proved to be too tough to crack for the Clippers, as Pentucket moved on to face Swampscott in the North sectional semifinals with the win, 46-32.

Locked in a defensive struggle, the game looked as if it was going to be a matchup of Kirstens | Pentucket's Kirsten Daamen (game-high 14 points, 6 blocks, 7 rebounds) and Newburyport Kirsten Hadwen (6 first half rebounds).

Although undersized Hadwen controlled the glass for the Clippers, who surprisingly finished with an advantage over the Sachems for the game on the boards, 25-18. But, Daamen's ability to get the ball inside got Hadwen into foul trouble and the Clipper senior captain fouled out with 6:37 remaining in the third quarter.

With Hadwen out of the game Daamen and Andrea Attenasio (8 points) took advantage on the inside slowly building on their 25-14 halftime lead.

While Erin McNamara (5 assists and 5 steals) was struggling to find her own offense, the sophomore all-leaguer was able to get her teammates going, especially the Sachem's other sophomore all-leaguer Ashley Viselli 13 points, 4 steals). With Viselli as Pentucket's only outside threat the Sachems struggled to find their offensive rhythm at times, and the Clippers were able to stay in the game with some tremendous free-throw shooting, going 15-18 for the game.

But, after Pentucket scored the opening point of the half, only once were the Clippers to get within a single-digit lead the rest of the game.

For Pentucket coach John McNamara, the Sachems' win was all about surviving and moving on.

"I told the girls after the game that this time of year you don't have to worry about how good you look as long as you keep advancing," McNamara said. "Give Newburyport all the credit in the world | they were scrappy and playing confident after their first round win | and we looked like a team coming off a 15 day layoff.

"Defense was the key though again for us," said McNamara point blank. "They had a lot of possessions where they had to throw the ball for a shot at the buzzer and Kirsten (Daamen) really controlled the middle for us."

On the other side the ball Clipper coach Neil Reardon could not have been more proud of the way his team ended the season.

"I thought my girls played their hearts out," said Reardon, who gave credit the Pentucket defense for stymying the Clipper offense. "We gave one of the top five teams in the state a battle, and I think the kids can hold their heads high.

"I was really happy for my seniors | Taylor Hickman, Kirsten (Hadwen), Hannah Chase, Olivia Campbell, and Emily Vartabedian," continued Reardon. "They really dug in, played tough, and I think it was a great way to end their careers."

Taylor Bresnahan finished as the top Clipper scorer with nine points, and Lindsey Tomasz also had a solid performance for Newburyport scoring eight points to go with nine rebounds.