Category: Playoffs

Farmington wins OT thriller, punches ticket to semis

Fourth-seeded Farmington is headed back to the state semifinals for the first time since 1989 and the third time in program history as the Tigers survived an overtime thriller versus #5 Woodsville, 55-47, on Friday night in quarterfinal action of the Division IV state tournament.

Farmington advances to the semifinals to take on undefeated top seed Littleton on Tuesday night at 7:30 pm at Bedford High School.

The Tigers came ready to play as they jumped out to a 12-7 lead after one quarter of action and later led 22-16 at the half. Sophomore Anna Cardinal poured in eight points in the 3rd quarter alone, including 2 threes, for Farmington as the home team took a 34-29 lead to the 4th.

The Engineers weren’t done, however. Woodsville would erase an 8-point deficit, 39-31, to force overtime at 45-45.

The four-minute overtime frame to determine a trip to the final four belonged to the Tigers. Farmington outscored the Engineers, 10-2, in the extra session to come away with the big win in front of a packed crowd. The Tigers were just 10-22 (45.5%) from the free throw line in regulation, but went 4-6 in OT to help secure the win.

Madi Ricker led the Tigers with 15 points, while Cardinal (14), Shaylee DiPrizio (13) and Zoey Johnson (9) were all key contributors as well. Woodsville was paced by a game-high 17 points from Makayla Walker and 14 from Paige Royer.

Check out the photo gallery by Jill Stevens…

Woodsville upsets Derryfield, advances to semifinals

No. 6 Woodsville went on the road and defeated No. 3 Derryfield, 61-52, on Thursday night in quarterfinal action of the NHIAA Division IV Boys Basketball State Tournament in Manchester.

The three-time defending champion Engineers advance to the semifinals where they will take on No. 2 Littleton on Monday at Bedford High School at 5:30 pm.

Connor Newcomb led Woodsville with 22 points, while Ryan Walker added 19. The Cougars were paced by a game-high 23 points from Jack Krasnof and 13 from Alex Drake.

Check out the full photo gallery of the action by Todd Grzywacz of Stonewall Photography…

Robie nets 2,000th point, leads Profile to semis

Josh Robie became just the 12th player in New Hampshire boys basketball history to reach the 2,000-point plateau, and the first boy to do so in 25 years, as he poured in 21 points in Profile’s 58-33 win over Portsmouth Christian in quarterfinal action on Thursday night.

The Patriots advance to the NHIAA Division IV semifinals where they will take on #4 Farmington on Monday at Bedford High School at 7:30 pm.

Robie entered the game needing 16 points to reach 2,000 and he finally did in the fourth quarter on a lay up that helped salt away the victory for Profile.

The Patriots were led by 22 points from Cayden Wakeham and Alex Leslie added 10. The Eagles were paced by 14 points from Cai Summers.

Check out the full photo gallery by Jill Stevens…

Farmington advances to first semifinal in 23 years

For the first time since 2001, Farmington is headed back to the semifinals of the NHIAA state tournament. The #4 Tigers defeated #5 Holy Family, 61-53, in the quarterfinal round on Thursday night in Farmington.

The Tigers advance to the semifinals and will take on undefeated top-seed Profile on Monday night at Bedford High School at 7:30 pm.

Farmington came out firing as the Tigers poured in 20 1st-quarter points and held a seven-point lead after one. Holy Family battled back to cut the lead to three at the half, 32-29.

It was a tightly contested 3rd quarter and Farmington took a four-point lead to the final frame. In the 4th, the Tigers pumped in 19 points to come away with the eight-point victory.

FHS was led by a balanced offensive attack. Demery Hadges (16 points), Cody Brazee (11) and Preston Berko (10) all had double-digits, while Shawn Murphy and Aiden Place added 9. Dylan Zappala rounded out the scoring with 6. The Griffins were led by 23 points apiece from Gabe Lacasse and Enzo Yonkeu.

Check out the full photo gallery by KJ Cardinal…

Hopkinton soars past Winnisquam to D-III final

Behind a game-high 23 points from Junior Shaylee Murdough, No. 2 Hopkinton soared to a 51-33 victory over No. 3 Winnisquam on Wednesday night in semifinal action of the NHIAA Division III Girls Basketball State Tournament.

With the win, the Hawks advance to the finals where they will take on No. 4 Kearsarge on Saturday at Keene State College at 5:00 pm.

Hopkinton led by just three, 14-11, after one quarter of play and then allowed just 22 points the rest of the way and rolled to the 18-point victory.

Winnisquam was paced by 20 points from Lauren MacDonald.

The Hawks advance to their first state title game since 2018, when Hopkinton lost in the D-III finals to Conant, 36-30. On Saturday, the Hawks will be making their fourth state championship game appearance in school history and will be in search of their fourth title in school history, the first since 2003.

Check out the full photo gallery of the action by Jill Stevens…

Kearsarge upsets St. Thomas, advances to D-III final

Fourth-seeded Kearsarge upset top-ranked St. Thomas, 52-44, in the semifinal round of the NHIAA Division III Girls Basketball State Tournament on Wednesday night at Bow High School.

With the win, the Cougars advance to Saturday’s championship game versus No. 2 Hopkinton at Keene State College at 5:00 pm.

Kearsarge held the Saints to just six 1st-quarter points and took a 4-point lead to the 2nd quarter. The two squads played to a 14-14 draw in the second frame, giving the Cougars a 24-20 lead at the break. Kearsarge outscored the Saints 12-7 in the 3rd to push their lead to nine, 36-27, and they held on for the eight-point win.

Tessa Marinello led all scorers with 19 points for Kearsarge, while Ava Shapiro and Adara Boucher added 13 and 12, respectively. St. Thomas was paced by 12 points from Emma Toriello, 11 from Genevieve Bolduc and 10 from Emilie Von Der Linden.

The Cougars advance to their first state title game since 2012, when Kearsarge lost in the D-II finals to Souhegan, 53-27. On Saturday, the Cougars will be making their sixth state championship game appearance in school history and will be in search of their third title in school history, the first since 2002 when they took home the Class I crown.

Check out the full photo gallery of the action by Jill Stevens…

Profile upsets Hinsdale, advances to quarterfinals

No. 10 Profile went on the road and upset No. 7 Hinsdale, 50-42, on Tuesday night in first round action of the 2024 NHIAA Division IV Girls Basketball State Tournament.

The Patriots advance to the quarterfinals where they will take on to seed Groveton on Friday.

Check out the full photo gallery of the action by our newest contributor Jess Bonnette of Jess Marie Photography…

Wilton-Lyndeborough closes out Franklin in first round

Sixth-seeded Wilton-Lyndeborough led by just three points entering the final frame in Tuesday night’s first round game versus #11 Franklin, but the Warriors outscored the Golden Tornadoes 18-11 over the final eight minutes to advance to the quarterfinals of the NHIAA Division IV state tournament, 55-45.

Wilton will take on #3 Newmarket in quarterfinal play on Friday night.

Adri Bausha poured in a game-high 28 points for the Warriors to lead all scorers, while Franklin was led by 16 points from Kourtney Kaplan and 14 from Lilly Cornell.

Check out the full photo gallery by Betsy Hansen…