RallyNorth.net

Central Catholic Raiders Girls Basketball '13-'14

Wed, Mar 05, 2014 07:00 PM @ Central Catholic
Team 1 2 3 4 Final
Masconomet 13 11 13 6 43
Central Catholic 12 4 15 18 49

Central cap off dramatic comeback, stun Masco

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LAWRENCE — Madison Borrelli pumped her fist during a brief and well-earned celebration with 2:54 left in the contest. She had just driven to the basket and made her layup while getting fouled.
The basket put Central Catholic ahead for the first time since early in the second quarter and capped a tremendous comeback after the defending state champion Raiders appeared on the verge of elimination.
If Central Catholic fans didn’t receive enough drama during the boys’ overtime victory over St. John’s Prep on Tuesday, then they bit the remainder of their nails off last night.
Down 12 points with 1:41 remaining in the third quarter, the second-seeded Raiders rallied for a thrilling 49-43 victory over third-seeded Masconomet in the semifinals of the Division 1 North playoffs at Lawrence High.
“I was just so excited because we were finally up in the game,” Borrelli said about her first pump. “And I wasn’t making my shots and it just felt great.”  
Central advanced to the Division 1 North final. It will play Woburn or Lynn English on Saturday at 6 p.m. at the Tsongas Center.  
Borelli scored nine second-half points and completed her three-point play with 2:54 left to put Central ahead 43-40. That came right after Amanda Williams’ completed a three-point play with 3:33 remaining to tie it.
Borrelli, Williams, Courtney Walsh and Caitlin Dell’Orfano all produced in a huge way offensively in the second half.
But the offense came when Central began to full-court press Masconomet.
Masco couldn’t handle the pressure, throwing balls away, traveling and missing baskets. In all, the Chieftains scored just six points in the final 9:40 of the contest.
“We win games by defense so we just had to get one stop at a time,” Borrelli said. “I was doing anything I could to get that defensive stop. And I know we all worked together to get it.”
Masco’s defense was the story for most of the game. The Chieftains used a double-team against Williams down low and caused the high-powered Central offense to score just four points in the second quarter and 16 points through the first 20:04 of the game.
The Raiders didn’t score their first second-half basket until 4:04 into the third period.
But when it mattered most, Central’s defense was better.
“None of us had a doubt in our mind that we were going to win this game coming into it,” Dell’Orfano said. “Our defense creates our offense. That’s our motto. That’s how we get going. That’s how we get our points. Offense should be easy for us.”
Despite being covered pretty well with 1:25 left in the game and Central ahead four points, Dell’Orfano kept calling loudly for her teammates to pass her the ball. Dell’Orfano did receive a quick pass and drove in from the 3-point line for a layup to make it 46-40.
“She’s a senior, she’s so experienced and she wanted it so bad,” Borrelli said. “She wanted to do it before Al (Alex Nagri) because Al had four fouls and we knew we had to get this for her.”
With 7.3 seconds left and her team up four points, Borrelli sealed it with two free throws.
“We all contribute every game: our four seniors especially and especially our sophomore, Madison Borrelli, tonight,” Dell’Orfano said.
Central Catholic 49, Masconomet 43
  Division 1 North Semifinals
Masconomet (43): Nicole Femino 4-0-8, Meghan Collins 2-0-4, Megan Letvinchuk 1-0-3, Hannah Kiernan 8-1-19, Kate Kitsakos 0-3-3, Lexie Nason 0-0-0, Stephanie Mini 2-2-6. Totals 17-6-43
Central Catholic (49):  Courtney Walsh 4-1-10, Alex Nagri 0-4-4 , Amanda Williams 6-3-15, Toni Joy 0-0-0, Madison Borrelli 2-5-9, Colleen Frey 0-0-0, Caitlin Dell’Orfano 4-3-11. Totals 16-16-49
3-pointers: M - Kiernan 2, Letvinchuk; CC — Walsh
Masconomet (21-2):    13 11 13  6 — 43
Central Catholic (21-1):    12  4 15 18 — 49

Game Statistics:

 Division 1 North Semifinals

Masconomet (43): Nicole Femino 4-0-8, Meghan Collins 2-0-4, Megan Letvinchuk 1-0-3, Hannah Kiernan 8-1-19, Kate Kitsakos 0-3-3, Lexie Nason 0-0-0, Stephanie Mini 2-2-6. Totals 17-6-43

Central Catholic (49):  Courtney Walsh 4-1-10, Alex Nagri 0-4-4 , Amanda Williams 6-3-15, Toni Joy 0-0-0, Madison Borrelli 2-5-9, Colleen Frey 0-0-0, Caitlin Dell'Orfano 4-3-11. Totals 16-16-49

3-pointers: M - Kiernan 2, Letvinchuk; CC — Walsh  

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