RallyNorth.net

Knights rally to advance

Friday, December, 28 By Jeff Hamrick

NORTH ANDOVER — It wasn't the best of nights for Morgan Lumb, who had trouble finding her range.

But being a true shooter, she didn't give up.

The North Andover senior connected on a couple of huge treys in an 80-second span, as the Scarlet Knights rallied from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit for a 52-49 victory over Salem in a Greater Lawrence Christmas Tournament semifinal. North Andover (5-0) advances to play Central Catholic in Sunday's 7:15 p.m. championship. Salem will play Andover for third at 5:30.

"You have highs and lows when you shoot," said Lumb, who finished with a game-high 16 points despite not scoring in the first half. "So you have to shoot out of a slump. That's what I had to do, and I knew my teammates had my back. Every shot I missed they kept telling me I'd get the next one."

None of the Knights had much success hitting the bottom of the net as Salem's zone held North Andover to 24.4 percent shooting (10 of 41) through the first three quarters.

"I thought that was one of our best defensive efforts," Salem coach Anne Alosa said. "We forced some bad decisions, and we worked together as a unit."

The Blue Devils (3-4) appeared to have control after Emily Hickey and Brenna Blakeslee combined for three free throws to open the fourth quarter for a 38-28 lead.
Senior Michaela Mello helped turn momentum with four consecutive points. A pair of free throws by Leah Chittick and a three from the wing by Christina Castaldo cut Salem's lead to three.

That's when Lumb took over, connecting on a three from the top of the key followed by a free throw and another three from the top. chittick provided the assist on both field goals, the second of which tied the score at 44 with 2:15 left.

The Knights took their first lead 7-6, on a lay up by Mello off a nice feed from Lumb. After a pair of free throws by Blakeslee, Mello made a pair of free throws and Megan Collins hit a layup to secure the victory. Mello helped the Knight cause with eight of her 12 in the fourth, during which North Andover scored exactly half of its 52 points.

"That was a dog fight," North Andover coach Sue Breen said. "We were down and you could tell the kids were deflated. But I give a lot of credit to the kids for not getting too down."

Now with Central Catholic on the horizon, the Scarlet Knights have a chance to give notice to the Merrimack Valley Conference that the Knights are serious contenders.

"I want to tell them to get ready because here we come," said Lumb, who is committed to Division 1 Hartford. "Just looking at it coming from the Cape Ann League, we'll be the underdogs. But winning this tournament would mean everything. Not only are we hosting it, but we haven't been to the finals in a long time."
Blakeslee (13 points) was the only Blue Devil in double digits.