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Danvers girls shine on Senior Night with win over Gloucester

Friday, February, 15 By Greg Zagarella
Staff writer

It was Senior Night at Danvers High School. It proved to be an excellent motivator for the Falcons girls basketball team.

"I'm glad we got to have it at home," Coach Pat Veilleux said. "We had a good crowd come out for it and it really got the girls going."

Veilleux's Falcons were able to cap it off with a solid 64-58 win over Gloucester.

Senior Night is always a night to remember, both for the players and their friends and family. It was only fitting that the all-senior starting lineup of Ashley Burnham, Danielle Sherry, Stephanie Costas, Cate DiNitto and Casey King was the team's spark.

"We wanted to have fun," said tri-captain Sherry, who had a game-high 25 points. "I've played with a few of these girls since fifth grade. It was a special game for all of us."

The five seniors took advantage of the spotlight. The Falcons, who improved to 11-7 with the win, jumped out to a 9-0 run in the first 2:03. The seniors would go on to score all 20 of the Falcons' first quarter points.

It was one of the best quarters Danvers has played all year, according to Veilleux. Gloucester struggled out of the gate and only managed six points in the quarter.

Fisherman head coach Jon Flanagan knows it has been a problem for his team.

"We came out flat. We have been having trouble getting started all season," Flanagan said.

The strong man-to-man defense of the Falcons in the opening frame had Gloucester battling uphill for the rest of the way.

Danvers got away from the game plan in the second with some sloppy play as the Fishermen, now 12-6 after the loss, closed the gap to only seven headed into halftime. The Fishermen got some help from ill-timed fouls committed by Danvers. The Fishermen were at the line 18 times in the first half, 34 times in the game.

"Giving up all those foul shots was a little upsetting, but we can fix that," said Veilleux.

Gloucester made 24 of its 34 free throws.

The bad fouls, coupled with turnovers, had Veilleux making a few adjustments at halftime.

It was a back-and-forth game from the start of the third quarter on. Small runs were made by both teams, keeping the game close into the fourth quarter.

However, Sherry hit a huge 3-pointer to extend her team's lead to eight at 58-50 with only 4:42 to play. The bucket all but put the final rush by Gloucester to a halt. Sherry would finish with five assists and five steals to go with the 25 points.

The other senior tri-captains, DiNitto and Burnham, tallied eight and five points, respectively. Freshman Kellie Macdonald also had a big night with 11 points, 11 rebounds and three blocked shots.

The victory made Senior Night all the more special to Sherry.

"I had a lot of fun. This means so much to me," Sherry said while holding a bouquet of roses. "I'll remember it forever."