LITCHFIELD – Kearsarge came out firing on Friday night as they connected on five first-quarter three pointers and went on to defeat host Campbell, 49-41.
Tessa Marinello and Jada Kendrigan both pumped in a game-high 12 points for Kearsarge, while Campbell was led by 9 points from LeAnn Ramos.
Check out the full gallery of the action by Dave Beliveau…
Fifth-seeded Campbell pumped in 25 points in the second quarter and 23 in the third to roll to a 79-62 victory over #12 Newport in first round action of the NHIAA Boys Basketball Division III State Tournament on Tuesday night.
The Cougars were led by Colton Martel’s 25 points and 15 apiece from Austin McHugh and Jackson Kanaley.
Kayden LaClair netted a team-high 25 points for the Tigers, while Aaron Fellows (17) and Kyle Ashley (12) both had double-digit performances as well. Newport’s season ends at 7-10.
Campbell (13-4) will take on #4 Hopkinton on Friday in quarterfinal play.
Check out the full gallery by Todd Grzywacz of Stonewall Photography…
By: KJ Cardinal
The 2023 NHIAA Boys Basketball Division III State Tournament gets underway tonight with a six-pack of first round games around the state. Let’s take a look at all six match-ups as we get ready for the action…
#9 Belmont at #8 Conant
The ninth-seeded Belmont Red Raiders hit the road to take on #8 Conant at 6:00 pm. The Orioles defeated the Red Raiders, 48-32, back on January 24th in the only meeting between the two this season.
Conant’s Jared Nagle leads the way for Eric Saucier’s squad with 12.8 ppg. The Red Raiders, under first-year head coach Tony Martinez, are paced by Keegan Martinez’s 15.7 ppg.
Belmont’s looking to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2021, while Conant last made a trip to the quarters in 2020.
#13 Inter-Lakes at #4 Hopkinton
Inter-Lakes and Hopkinton will meet for the first time this season tonight as the #13 Lakers hit the road to take on the #4 Hawks at 7:00 pm.
Hopkinton, the 2021 Division III runner-up, started off the season with eight straight wins, but has dropped three of their final four games and enter the tournament with a 12-4 mark. The Hawks are paced by Marek Joppa (14.8 ppg) and Will Tanuvasa (12.8).
The Lakers come into the tourney with a 6-10 mark and are led Owen Brown’s 14.1 ppg.
#12 Newport at #5 Campbell
The 12th-ranked Tigers make the trip to Litchfield to take on #5 Campbell tonight at 6:30 pm in the first meeting between the two this season.
The Cougars enter the tourney with a 12-4 mark and are riding a six-game win streak. With wins over #4 Hopkinton and at #8 Conant during that stretch, head coach Justin DiBenedetto’s squad appears to be playing their best basketball at the right time.
With seven wins on the season, Newport has equaled their win total from the previous five seasons combined. Do-it-all senior Kayden LaClair is the straw that stirs the drink for Rob Clark’s squad as he averages 19.8 ppg and can change the game on the defensive end of the floor.
#10 Monadnock at #7 Winnisquam
The seventh-ranked Winnisquam Bears welcome #10 Monadnock to Tilton tonight at 7:00 pm. The two have not met yet this season.
The Bears, led by the divisions top scorer Anthony Boomer (21.5 ppg), dropped their season finale at Stevens, but have won 10 of their last 13 games and enter the tourney with an 11-5 mark.
The Huskies are riding a season-long, four-game win streak as they enter the tourney with a 8-10 record. Evan Dumaine leads the way for Monadnock with 19.6 ppg.
#14 Berlin at #3 Mascoma
While the scheduling snafu that disqualified White Mountains from tournament play was unfortunate, it made way for #14 Berlin to sneak into the tourney’s final spot and will head to third-ranked Mascoma Valley at 7:00 pm.
The Royals are currently on a nine-game win streak with big wins during that stretch over #4 Hopkinton and #6 Stevens. Silas Ayres’ squad is led by Zach Thompson (18.6 ppg) and looks to get the quarterfinal round for the fourth-straight season. Just five days ago, the Royals cruised to a 68-35 win at Berlin.
The Mountaineers (5-12) started the season with two victories and ended the season with a win over #11 Somersworth, but in between they were just 2-12. Jeremiah Dow (15.2) and Haden Poulin (11.7) both average double digits for head coach Jesse Arsenault’s team.
#11 Somersworth at #6 Stevens
Sixth-ranked Stevens plays host to #11 Somersworth tonight at 7:00 pm.
The Cardinals enter the tourney with a 12-4 record and have won six of their last seven, including three straight. Hunter LaRocque paces Stevens with 14.3 ppg.
The Hilltoppers are currently on a four-game skid and have dropped seven of their last nine. But, head coach Leon Shaw’s squad has some weapons in the backcourt with Aiden Heffron (15.7 ppg) and Dominic Starr (13.0).
In a meeting between two of the top teams in Division III, St. Thomas went on the road and defeated Campbell, 76-62, on Thursday night.
A.J. Reinertson netted 26 points and Brady Rogers added 21 to pace the Saints to the victory. Will Mollica chipped in with 14.
The Cougars were led by a game-high 31 points from Colton Martel, while Austin McHugh tallied 12.
St. Thomas improves to 6-1 on the season, while Campbell falls to 6-3.
Check out the highlights by our own Tim Lee…
The 5-2 Campbell Cougars and the 5-2 Conant Orioles met up on Monday night and the Cougars earned a come-from-behind 44-35 victory over the visiting Orioles.
It was somewhat of a slugfest in Litchfield as both teams combined for just 10 first quarter points and Campbell took a 21-18 lead at the half. Conant later took a one-point lead to the fourth quarter, 30-29, but the final stanza belonged to the host Orioles as they came back to secure the victory.
J Breton pumped in eight points, including two threes, to close out the win for Conant as they held Campbell to just six fourth-quarter points.
The Cougars were paced by a trio of double-figure scorers in Jack Breton (14), Austin McHugh (10) and Jayshawn Hawkins (10), while the Orioles were led by Jared Nagle’s 10 points.
Check out the full photo gallery of the action from Cindy Lavigne of Lavigne’s Live Shots…
The Somersworth Hilltoppers avenged an 8-point loss to Campbell last week by recording their third-straight win with a 71-61 victory over the visiting Cougars. Somersworth improves to 3-2 on the season, while the Orioles fall to 3-2. Check out a photo gallery of the action by Heidi Green…
Ball 603 hits full throttle in the second full week of the season as we bring you coverage of an impressive 20 games… on a short holiday week! We’ve got eight girls games and 12 boys games on the docket. It’s all basketball, all the time and we couldn’t be more excited.
Check out where we’ll be…
Monday, December 20th
Mount Royal at Farmington, 5:30 pm
Mount Royal at Farmington, 5:30 pm (GIRLS)
Timberlane at Pinkerton, 6:30 pm
Tuesday, December 21st
Kearsarge at Campbell, 6:00 PM
Wednesday, December 22nd
Londonderry at Spaulding, 6:30 pm (GIRLS)
Exeter at Bedford, 7:00 pm
Thursday, December 23rd
Merrimack at Windham, 6:30 pm
Sunday, December 26th at The Bash
St. Thomas vs. Nute, 9:30 am
Inter-Lakes vs. Holy Family, 10:00 am (GIRLS)
Littleton vs. Inter-Lakes, 10:30 am (GIRLS)
Littleton vs. Holy Family, 11:00 am (GIRLS)
Holy Family vs. Profile, 10:45 am
Epping vs. Newmarket, 11:45 am
Kennett vs. Derryfield, 12:00 pm
Kennett vs. Epping, 1:15 pm (GIRLS)
Franklin vs. Raymond, 2:30 pm
Concord Christian vs. Franklin, 3:45 pm (GIRLS)
Concord Christian vs. Portsmouth Christian, 5:00 pm
Coe-Brown vs. Farmington, 6:15 pm (GIRLS)
Coe-Brown vs. Farmington, 7:30 pm
*Schedule subject to change*
The wait is almost over. On Friday, December 10th, 84 of the 88 NHIAA boys varsity basketball teams will be in action with 42 games around the state as the 2021-22 season gets underway.
St. Thomas Aquinas hits the road to take on Hillsboro-Deering at 5:30 pm to mark the first official tilt of the new campaign. The Saints and Hillcats last squared off on February 28, 2020 in the regular-season finale as St. Thomas came away with an easy 72-46 victory at home.
Eight other contests tipoff at 6:00 pm, with 24 match-ups at 6:30 pm and nine more at 7:00 pm. It’s the most games on a single day all season long, so there’s no good reason to not get out and catch some local action on Friday night.
See you at the gym.
