Year: 2024

Keene State men, RIC women ousted from NCAA tourney

By Mike Whaley

It was Black Friday for the Keene State College men and the Rhode Island College women in their respective Sweet 16 rounds of the NCAA Division III basketball tournament.

No. 5 KSC fell apart in the second half to lose at No. 7 Guilford, 84-60, while the No. 3 RIC saw its undefeated season come to an end with an unusually bad shooting night to Washington & Lee, 61-55.

Keene led 29-24 in the first half, but an uncharacteristic season-high 21 turnovers led to a six-point halftime deficit (40-34). The Owls were outscored in the second half, 42-26. They end their season with a 26-3 record.

Octavio Brito and Jeff Hunter led KSC with 12 points apiece, Mason Jean Baptiste added 11 points.

The RIC women (29-1) played from behind most of the night against Washington & Lee, making just 28 percent of their shots, which included 3 of 23 from 3-point land. The Anchorwomen made only 4 of their 16 foul shots.

RIC trailed 45-33 after three quarters and was down 56-48 with 53 seconds to play, but was able to cut the lead to three (58-55) and had a chance to tie it in the waning seconds, but a 3-pointer was off the mark. Hinsdale junior Angelina Nardolillo was one of the few bright spots for the Anchorwomen. She led the team in scoring with 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting.

Washington & Lee (29-2) was led by sophomore forward Mary Schleusner, who scored a game-high 34 points and pulled down a tournament record 33 rebounds, breaking her own record of 29 set earlier in the tournament.

Third quarter propels Pinkerton to title game

Top-seeded Pinkerton used a 26 point third-quarter to defeat No. 5 Trinity, 82-71, in semifinal round action of the NHIAA Division I Boys Basketball State Tournament on Wednesday night at Exeter High School.

The Astros advance to the title game and will face No. 3 Nashua North on Sunday at UNH. The game time is still to be determined.

Pinkerton’s Jackson Marshall was held to 13 points in the first half, but unloaded with 26 in the second half to lead all scorers with 39 points. Andrew Brander (22 points) and Charles Ludden (15) both netted double-digits for the Astros as well.

The Pioneers were paced by 22 points from Shawn O’Neil and 17 from Devohn Ellis.

Check out the full photo gallery by Jeff Criss of Perfect Photos…

Pembroke upsets Laconia, moves on to title game

No. 3 Pembroke held No. 2 Laconia to just 10 first-half points en route to a 44-35 victory in semifinal round action of the NHIAA Division II Girls Basketball State Tournament on Wednesday night at Salem High School

The Spartans advance to the title game where they will take on top-seeded Concord Christian on Sunday at UNH. The game time is still to be determined.

Pembroke poured in 18 points in the opening quarter to take a commanding 18-6 lead and the Spartans never looked back.

Annelise Dexter (14 points) and Anne Phillips (11) led Pembroke, while Laconia was paced by a game-high 27 points from Macy Swormstedt. The Sachems were without Mekhia Burton.

Check out the full photo gallery by Jill Stevens…

North knocks off Bedford, advances to title game

Third-seeded Nashua North upset No. 2 Bedford, 84-68, in the semifinal round of the NHIAA Division I Boys Basketball State Tournament on Wednesday night at Exeter High School.

With the win, the Titans advance to the title game where they will take on No. 1 Pinkerton on Sunday at UNH. The game time is still to be determined.

North jumped out to a quick 9-2 lead in a fast-paced first quarter before Bedford rallied to take a one-point lead, 21-20, after one. The Titans kept the pedal to the metal in the 2nd quarter with 20 points again, while holding the Bulldogs to 12 points. North led 40-33 at the break.

The second-half was once again a frantic pace. The Titans balanced offense outscored Bedford, 25-20 in the quarter. North closed things out in the 4th to come away with the convincing 16-point win.

A quartet of Titans netted double-digits: Robinson Rodriguez (26 points), Parth Miglani (24), Jaden Pena (18) and Luke Peters (10).

The Bulldogs struggled to put the ball in the basket all night, but were led by 14 points apiece from Niko Badoian and Austin Kasyjanski. Leading scorer Luke Soden (26 PPG) managed just 13 points for Bedford.

Check out the full photo gallery by Jeff Criss of Perfect Photos…

CCA tops John Stark, headed back to title game

Top-seeded Concord Christian Academy is headed back to the state championship game for the third-straight season as the Kingsmen defeated No. 4 John Stark, 68-50, in semifinal action of the NHIAA Division II Girls Basketball State Tournament on Wednesday night at Salem High School.

CCA will take on No. 3 Pembroke in the title game on Sunday at UNH. The game time is still to be determined.

Emma Smith poured in 21 first-half points to propel the Kingsmen to a commanding 17-point halftime lead, 43-26.

For the game, Smith led all scorers with 27 points, while Lilli Carlile added 19 for CCA. The Generals were led by 11 points from Avery Geaumont.

Last season, Concord Christian won the D-III title and the season before the D-IV crown. The Kingsmen will be looking for their third-straight championship on Sunday, this. time in Division II.

Check out the full photo gallery by Betsy Hansen…

Pinkerton tops Londonderry, advances to final

Behind a combined 47 points from Sydney Gerossie (25) and Kaylee Dupuis (22), No. 2 Pinkerton defeated No. 3 Londonderry, 78-54, in semifinal action of the NHIAA Division I Girls Basketball State Tournament on Tuesday night at Exeter High School.

The Astros advance to the title game to take on No. 1 Bedford on Saturday at UNH. The game time is still to be determined.

Pinkerton jumped out to a 22-13 lead after the 1st quarter and took a 32-26 lead to halftime. They pushed their lead to 12 after the 3rd quarter, 53-41 and poured it on in the final frame to roll to the 24-point lead.

Sammie Sullivan pumped in a game-high 26 points to lead Londonderry, while Kate Sloper added 11.

Check out the full photo gallery of the action by Betsy Hansen…

Pelham downs Coe-Brown in a semifinal overtime thriller

By: KJ Cardinal

DURHAM – In a game you didn’t want to see end and one that you hated to see either team lose, top-seeded Pelham needed overtime to defeat No. 4 Coe-Brown, 59-56, in semifinal action of the NHIAA Division II Boys Basketball State Tournament on Tuesday night at Oyster River High School in Durham.

The Pythons advance to the title game where they will take on No. 2 Hanover on Sunday at UNH. The game time is still to be determined.

The Bears were ready to play as head coach Dave Smith saw his squad come out the gates quickly with 17 1st-quarter points and take a two-point lead after the opening eight minutes of action. The Pythons responded in the 2nd and took a one-point lead to the break.

Neither team could get separation from the other throughout this one as the largest lead either team held was a mere six points.

CBNA won the 3rd quarter by two points to take one-point lead to the final frame, 41-40.

The 4th wasn’t for the faint of heart. Pelham’s Zach James connected on a three-pointer with 2:48 left to give the Pythons a 51-47 lead. Coe-Brown wasted no time in responding as James McKane’s only basket of the game came just 26 seconds later to cut the lead to two, 51-49, with 2:22 left in regulation.

CBNA’s Connor Bagnell stole an inbounds pass with 38 seconds to go to give the Bears the ball with a chance to tie the game. After nearly turning the ball over to start the possession and getting an offensive rebound off a Quinn Salter miss, Coe-Brown called a timeout with 10 ticks remaining.

The Bears’ Ryan Kouchoukos drove the lane, beating James off the dribble, and was fouled from behind as his layup banked in to tie the game at 51-51 with 4.7 seconds left to play. Kouchoukos would miss the ensuing free throw and a Peter Hemmerdinger’s desperation three at the buzzer came up short for Pelham and this game was headed to overtime.

The extra session belonged to Hemmerdinger as he netted six points in overtime and opened up the scoring with a three-pointer in front of the Pelham bench with 3:09 left to play. He connected on a floater on the following possession to push Pelham’s lead to four, 56-52.

A pair of Bagnell free throws with just over two minutes to play cut the Pelham lead to two, 56-54. The Python offense would kill more than a minute off the clock before Adrian Villanueva was fouled with 50.7 seconds remaining. Villanueva made the first of two free throws to push Pelham’s lead to three, 57-54.

James and Hemmerdinger would each make a free throw down the stretch to put the game out of reach for the Bears.

The Pythons were paced by 17 points from James, while Hemmerdinger (14), Dom Herrling (13) and Connor Travis (10) all tallied double-digits as well. The Bears were led by 17 points apiece from Salter and Jack Matson and 16 from Bagnell.

Check out the full highlights by Tim Lee…

Oyster River was painted red and black last night as Coe-Brown showed up and showed out to support the Bears down the road in Durham. CBNA may not have come away with the victory, but it certainly wasn’t because of a lack of support or school spirit…

Check out the full photo gallery of the action by Jeff Criss of Perfect Photos…

Bedford finishes strong to down Portsmouth

Top-seeded Bedford trailed by as many as nine points in the 1st quarter before putting the clamps on Portsmouth and rolling to a 62-35 win in semifinal round action of the NHIAA Division I Girls Basketball State Tournament on Tuesday night at Exeter High School

The Bulldogs advance to the title game where they will they will take on No. 2 Pinkerton on Sunday at UNH. The game time is still to be determined.

The Clippers scored 16 points in the 1st quarter and took a 16-9 lead, but Bedford held Portsmouth to just 19 points the rest of the way to roll to the win.

Lana McCarthy led all scorers with 18 points for the Bulldogs, while Lyla Stein and Sarah Muir added 12 points apiece. Portsmouth was paced by 13 points from Avery Romps and 11 from Margaret Montplaisir.

Check out the full photo gallery by Betsy Hansen…

Hanover wins defensive battle versus Pembroke in semifinals

By: KJ Cardinal

DURHAM – No. 2 Hanover held No. 3 Pembroke to just 24 points through three quarters of play and went on to win a defensive battle, 49-43, in the semifinals of the NHIAA Division II Boys Basketball State Tournament on Tuesday night at Oyster River High School in Durham.

The Bears advance to the title game where they will take on top-seeded Pelham on Sunday at UNH. The game time is still to be determined.

Hanover set the tone early on the defensive end of the floor, limited the Spartans to just four 1st-quarter points. The Bears led 11-4 at the end of one.

Pembroke found its groove a little in the 2nd quarter, behind seven points from Evan Berkley, and cut the Hanover lead to three at the half, 21-18.

The Bears defense was once again stifling in the 3rd quarter, giving up just 6 points to take a 31-24 lead to the final frame.

In the 4th, the tempo picked up, but the two played nearly even as Hanover went on to win by six, 49-43.

Pembroke had no answer all night long for Hanover big man Jaysen Oriel who finished with a game-high 18 points, while Roy Lucas added 12. Pembroke was paced by 16 points from Joe Fitzgerald and 12 from Berkley.

Check out the full game highlights by Tim Lee…

Check out the full photo gallery by Jeff Criss of Perfect Photos…

UNH men set to host America East quarterfinals

The UNH men (15-13, 7-8 AE) have clinched the No. 4 seed for the upcoming America East Playoffs and will host a quarterfinal contest on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. at Lundholm Gymnasium.

The Wildcats opponent for that quarterfinal is still to-be-determined as tonight marks the final night of America East regular season action. UNH hosts league-leading Vermont (24-6, 14-1 AE) tonight at 7:00 p.m.

It’s been an up-and-down season for the Wildcats. Under first-year head coach Nate Ford, UNH boasts some quality non-conference victories over Rhode Island Marist, but have dropped three-straight and four of their last five.

The Wildcats are led by senior forward Clarence Daniels who currently leads America East in scoring at 19.5 PPG and ranks second in rebounding (9.3 RPG).