RallyNorth.net

WEST NEWBURY — Triton coach Dan Boyle summed it up as well as it could have been when he said "Anytime you play a team for the third time in a season, it's hard to win those games."

That lesson hit Pentucket hard last night as Boyle's 13th-seeded Vikings earned a hard-fought Division 2 North Section upset of the fourth-seeded and defending section-runnersup Sachems 36-32.

"For the first time, we put together four good quarters against them," said Boyle, who's squad had dropped two earlier decisions to Pentucket by a combined 23 points and had closed the regular season losing five of the final seven.

The Sachems (16-6) showed up ready, holding the visitors to a mere four first-quarter points. But they were unable to take advantage of the stingy defense, held back by the kind of shoddy shooting that would be a plague the entire night.

Triton (11-10) bounced back in the second period on 7-of-12 shooting to force a 19-19 tie at intermission.

"At tournament time it's tough to beat anybody," McNamara said. "It doesn't matter if it's the team from the town next to you or the other side of the state. Triton played a great game and I give them all the credit in the world."

The break didn't provide any spark as both teams struggled in a third period that saw a combined nine points and 11 turnovers.

Pentucket, which closed Cape Ann play by winning eight of their final nine league outings, twice opened four-point lead early in the fourth on a three by Maddi Doyle and a pair of Carolyn Modlish free throws that provided a 29-27 lead with 6:48 remaining.

From that point on, however, Triton outscored the Sachems 11-3 down the stretch, allowing only a Colleen Jameson three that gave Pentucket a 32-29 lead with 4:17 left.

Tessa Lafrance paced Triton down the stretch as she did the entire game, scoring six of her game-high 16 in the final 6 minutes. The junior, who also had 14 rebounds, made a big steal on an inbound pass under the Pentucket basket with 22.2 seconds left and the Vikings holding a 33-32 lead. Morgan Snow and Lafrence combined to make three of four free throws for the final margin.

"At the time, we had our best free throw shooters on the line, so we were feeling pretty good about where we were at," Boyle said. "These girls worked real hard tonight. We played a great Pentucket team that tied for the league title. They're a heck of a team to come in and beat them on their floor. It's a great accomplishment for us ... For the first time, we put together four good quarters."

Pentucket, which made only nine of 49 shots (18.4 percent) overall and four of its 23 attempts from inside the arc. Modlish led the Sachems with nine points while Taylor Moore and Jameson chipped in with six each.

"We didn't shoot the ball well the whole game," McNamara said. "But our senior group has won three Cape Ann League championships, and they have nothing to be ashamed of. They've had a fantastic career."

North Reading's girls basketball team defeated Triton 41-31 to earn a share of the Cape Ann League title — its first championship since 1993. Jess Lezon led the way for the Hornets (18-2) with 19 points and 20 rebounds and freshman Casey McLaughlin came off the bench to score seven of North Reading's 13 points in the second half. 

Freshman Jess Galvin came off the bench for big career highs with 21 points and five 3-pointers as Pentucket came back from an early 9-0 deficit to beat Triton 44-37.