RallyNorth.net

Hornets celebrate senior night in style by beating Georgetown

Thursday, February, 14 By Richard Slate
Staff writer

With just one game remaining in the regular season, the Manchester Essex girls basketball team is playing its best when it really matters.

The Hornets are trying to get the highest possible seed in the Division 4 North tournament which will begin in two weeks. After losing on the road to Georgetown, 56-35, in its season-opener, the Hornets exacted revenge on the Royals by taking a 60-47 win on senior night in Manchester. Centers Allison Hogan and Dani Ciccone are the only Hornet seniors and they were honored before the game.

"We were hitting our free throws in the fourth quarter," said Manchester Essex head coach Lauren Dubois. "It was a very rough game but we kept our heads in it and played smart. We've showed how far we've come since the beginning of the year by beating them."

The Hornets (11-8, 6-6) have now won five of their last six games and six of their last eight overall. Their regular season wraps up tonight at Rockport (which they've already beaten 47-31 on Dec. 18).

Tied at 15 after one quarter, Manchester Essex held Georgetown to just four second quarter points but only scored nine of its own. As a result, the Hornets took a 24-19 lead into the break.

Manchester Essex won the last two quarters as well, 13-10 in the third and 23-18. The 23-point explosion in the fourth represented the most that the Hornets scored in a quarter all season. Hornets freshman guard Lizzy Ball hit all eight of her free throws in the final frame.

In total, eight players scored for the winners, led by Ball (17 points) and Ciccone (12 points). Junior forward Jordan Biggar added 10 points (including two 3-pointers) while junior forward Hannah Dumont notched six points.

Manchester Essex junior point guard Lee Stroman got hurt in the first quarter, forcing a couple of her teammates to take over her vital role. The combination of Ball, junior forward Jen Bishop, sophomore guard Samantha Christopher and Dumont collectively got the job done for Manchester Essex.

"Lizzy, Jen, Samantha and Hannah all did a nice job," Dubois said. "Dani was good in the post, she kept battling. Jordan made those big shots (two 3-pointers in a row in the third quarter). Everyone did their part."

Georgetown junior forward Taryn O'Connell had a game-high 25 points but none of her teammates scored more than four points.

"In terms of positioning in the tournament, this was important," Dubois noted. "We also clinched second-place in the Cape Ann Small (behind Ipswich). This was a big win because of the rivalry, we hadn't beaten them in the three years I've been coaching."