RallyNorth.net

Pentucket relied on strength in numbers in the Division 3 North championship game at the Tsongas Arena yesterday morning.

As a result, the Sachems (21-2), after a 51-42 victory over Winthrop, are returning to the Division 3 state semifinals Tuesday at 4:15 p.m. at the TD BankNorth Garden against defending state champion Archbishop Williams, which knocked out Pentucket at the same site last year and captured the South championship yesterday.

Last night can be treated as a measuring stick for how much the Gloucester girls basketball team has improved over the past few weeks.

On Feb. 1, the Fishermen suffered their worst loss of the season against Winthrop, a 26-point defeat to the mighty Vikings. However, in last night's rematch, Gloucester proved once again that it can indeed play with a premier team, as the Fishermen took host Winthrop to overtime before falling 58-51.

Riding a five-game winning streak coming into last night, the Gloucester girls basketball team had a chance to see how they stacked up against one of the premier teams in Eastern Mass.

By the end of the night the Fishermen found out that Winthrop is every bit as good as their 12-1 record would suggest, as Gloucester fell to the Vikings, 73-47, on its home court.

The Swampscott girls basketball team may have graduated a very talented senior class last spring, but the Big Blue sent a message last night.

Showing that they remain a serious threat to win the Northeastern Conference South, the Big Blue picked up an impressive 50-41 win over a strong Winthrop team at home.