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Andover girls' valiant comeback falls short in overtime

Friday, December, 29 By Kyle Gaudette
Staff writer

LAWRENCE - Andover was not going to give up its Commonwealth Motors Christmas Classic championship without a fight.

The No. 4 Warriors calmly chipped away at a 12-point halftime deficit, and thanks to a massive performance from junior Gia Bramanti (28 points) sent their semifinal matchup with top-seeded Bishop Guertin into overtime.

But the two-time defending New Hampshire champion Cardinals converted in the extra frame, and came away with the 56-53 victory to advance to its second tournament championship in a row.

"Credit to Bishop Guertin, they came out really well in that first half," said Andover coach Alan Hibino. "What we said at the half is that you can't make up a 12-point deficit in one possession. So it starts one possession at a time. Next thing you know the Warriors are fighting right back in it."

Andover (1-3) trailed 54-50 with nine seconds left in OT when Bramanti nailed her fourth 3-pointer of the game with 0.7 seconds left. The Warriors were able to get the foul, but after two made BG free throws they didn't have the time to put up a last-second shot.

Bramanti's 28 points were a career-high, and she also hauled in 11 rebounds for the double-double. She hit big shot after big shot, including a clutch 3-pointer while trailing 48-43 with under 30 seconds left in regulation.

"She carried us offensively today," said Hibino. "It felt like every big bucket for us came from her."

Andover struggled to deal with Guertin's height in the first half, primarily 6-2 forward Liza Field. The sophomore had 10 points with 10 rebounds and a handful of blocks. Bri Wilcox had 17 points, and Pelham's Ava Owens had 13 points and six boards for an undermanned BG team, who were without injured senior captain Caroline Hoffer.

"They're just long, big and athletic," said Hibino. "They'll probably be the favorite in New Hampshire again this year."

Taylor Landry added 13 points for Andover, and Caroline McDonald, Megan Zalanskas and Brooke Hardock each had four to round out the scoring. The Warriors will play No. 6 Pentucket in the third-place game Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

Bishop Guertin will play No. 2 Westford in the final (Saturday, 5 p.m.). It will be a rematch of one of last year's semifinals, won by BG.

Bishop Guertin 56, Andover 53

Commonwealth Motors Christmas Classic Semifinals

Andover (53): Shea Krekorian 0 0-1 0, Taylor Landry 3 6-7 13, Caroline McDonald 2 0-0 4, Gia Bramanti 9 6-11 28, Megan Zalanskas 2 0-0 4, Sarah Sullivan 0 0-0 0, Tatum Shaw 0 0-0 0, Alexa Pacy 0 0-0 0, Brooke Hardock 2 0-0 4. Totals 18 12-19 53

Bishop Guertin (56): Liza Field 5 0-0 10, Erin Carney 5 1-1 12, Elizabeth Croke 0 0-0 0, Ava Owens 5 3-9 13, Bri Wilcox 6 4-7 17, Emily Folton 0 0-0 0, Aria O'Connell 0 0-0 0, Gabrielle Souza 0 0-0 0, Hannah Muchemore 0 4-4 4. Totals 21 12-21 56

3-pointers: BG - Carney, Wilcox; A - Bramanti 4, Landry

Bishop Guertin (4-1): 19 15  7  7 8 - 56

Andover (1-3): 14  8 13 13 5 - 53