Tag: Gilford

NHIAA preseason heats up

By: KJ Cardinal

Just like the unseasonably warm weather, the 2024-25 NHIAA season is beginning to heat up as well.

Yesterday marked the first practice date for Division IV squads with many holding tryouts around the state. D-III follows suit next week (Nov. 25) with D-I & D-II just seven days later as well (Dec. 2).

The D-IV season official tips off with 2024-25 opening night being held on Friday, Dec. 6, while Divisions I, II & III throw it up on Dec. 13.

Before we get to the regular-season slate, however, there are six official NHIAA sanctioned preseason jamborees on the docket. Check out the events below as this will be your first chance to see these squads in action…

DATEGENDEREVENTHOSTPARTICIPANTS
December 1GirlsPreseason Basketball JamboreeLin-WoodHoly Family, Concord Christian, Franklin, Lin-Wood
December 3BoysNewfound InvitationalNewfoundInter-Lakes, Winnisquam, Laconia, Plymouth, White Mountains, Newfound
December 7BoysBelmont Boys Basketball Preseason JamboreeBelmontMascoma, Monadnock, Newport, Belmont
December 7BoysPinkerton Basketball JamboreePinkertonCentral Catholic, Malden Catholic, Salem, Greater Lawrence Tech, Pinkerton
December 7GirlsPreseason JamboreeKennettWhite Mountains, Inter-Lakes, Berlin, Fryeburg, Kingswood, Plymouth, Gilford, Laconia, Prospect Mountain, Moultonborough, Littleton, Kennett
December 7BoysNH Sports Page Basketball JamboreeLondonderryNashua South, Kearsarge, Pelham, St. Thomas, Pinkerton, Windham, Trinity, Bow, Portsmouth, Pembroke, Londonderry

Plymouth State blazes past Elms in season opener

By KJ Cardinal

PLYMOUTH, N.H. – The Plymouth State men’s basketball team opened the 2024-25 season with a convincing 81-58 victory over visiting Elms College on Monday afternoon at Foley Gymnasium.

The host Panthers raced out to a 15-4 lead with 9:44 left in the first half. The Blazers then scored seven unanswered points in just under 2 minutes to cut the lead to four, 15-11.

PSU poured it on with 14-straight points to blow the game open with a 31-13 lead with 3:32 left in the half. The Panthers never looked back.

Senior Kevin Henry (Exeter) led the way for Plymouth with a game-high 25 points. Sophomore Eli Pockette connected on 5-of-8 triples en route to 15 points and sophomore Ivan Yen (Concord/Busche Academy) added 12 of his own.

As a team, the Panthers pumped in 40 points in the paint, compared to just 14 by the Blazers, to shoot 50% from the field (34-68). PSU also connected on 11-of-30 from beyond the arc (36.7%).

The Panthers played 14 players, including a slew from the Granite State. Seniors Eli Swanson (Inter-Lakes/Holderness School) and Kevin Newton-Delgado (Hopkinton/NHTI), juniors Riley Marsh (Gilford) and Maxwell Galbraith (Hanover), sophomores Jayden Montgomery (Nashua North) and Caden Brown (Bedford), and freshman Jaden Pena (Nashua North) all saw action.

Check out the massive 240+ image photo gallery by our KJ Cardinal…

Elms Men at Plymouth State (11.11.24)
Elms Men at Plymouth State (11.11.24)
242 photos

Stifling defense lifts Kearsarge past Gilford to semis

No. 4 Kearsarge allowed just two 1st-quarter points and raced to a 52-25 victory over #5 Gilford on Saturday night in North Sutton.

With the win, the Cougars advance to the semifinals of the NHIAA Division III Girls Basketball State Tournament and will take on top-seeded St. Thomas on Wednesday at 7:30 pm at Bow High School.

Ava Shapiro and Tessa Marinello netted 17 points apiece to pace Kearsarge, while Gilford was led by 10 points from Megan Hughes.

Check out the full photo gallery by Chris Laclair of Chris Clicks Photography…

Top-seeded Conant dethrones Gilford

There will be a new champion in Division III. Four-time defending champion Gilford, the #9 seed, lost a low-scoring affair, 39-32, to top seeded Conant on Friday night in quarterfinal action of the NHIAA state tournament.

Conant advances to the semifinals and will take on #4 Kearsarge on Tuesday. The site is still to be determined.

The host Orioles held the Golden Eagles to just seven points in three different quarters to come away with the victory. Conant was led by 13 points from Manny Hodgson and 11 from Ben Sawyer, while Gilford was paced by a game-high 17 from Cooper Perkins.

Check out the massive photo gallery as Danielle Cook of DC Sports Photos and Jill Stevens were both on site to capture the big game…

Gilford downs Berlin, advances to quarterfinals

Fifth-seeded Gilford defeated #12 Berlin in a grind-out affair, 32-23, on Wednesday night in first-round action of the NHIAA Division III Girls Basketball State Tournament.

The Golden Eagles advance to the quarterfinals where they will take on #4 Kearsarge on Saturday.

Gilford was led by 9 points apiece from Olivia Keenan and Megan Hughes, while the Mountaineers were paced by 8 points from McKenna Kelley.

Check out the full photo gallery by Danielle Cook of DC Sports Photos…

Baldi’s game-winner sends Gilford to quarterfinals

It wouldn’t be the Division III boys tournament without a little Golden Eagle magic, right? Four-time defending state champion Gilford kept its playoff hopes alive as Brendan Baldi connected on the go-ahead three-point with three seconds on the clock to give #9 Gilford a 53-50 upset win at #8 Campbell on Tuesday night.

The two squads were close throughout as Gilford took a one-point lead to halftime, 25-24. The Golden Eagles pushed their lead to 10 after three quarters and looked poised to close the game out, but the host Cougars clawed their way back to tie the game at 50-50, setting up Baldi’s dramatics.

Gilford was paced by a game-high 16 points from Mark Uicker, while Baldi and Logan Grant netted 11 and 10, respectively. Hunter Henderson led Campbell with 15 points.

The Golden Eagles advance to the quarterfinal round to take on top seeded Conant on Friday. The Cougars’ season comes to a close at 10-8.

Check out the full photo gallery by Dave Beliveau…

Belmont finishes strong, downs Gilford

Belmont let up 16 1st-quarter points, but then put the clamps on Gilford, allowing just 18 points the rest of the way, to come away with a 50-34 victory on Friday night.

The win gives the Red Raiders the season sweep over the Golden Eagles as Belmont finishes the regular-season 11-7. Gilford falls to 10-8.

Keegan Martinez poured in a game-high 21 points for Belmont to lead all scorers, while Anakin Underhill chipped in with 10. Logan Grant led Gilford with 11.

Check out photos of the action by Danielle Cook of DC Sports Photos…

Conant remains perfect with one-point win at Gilford

The Conant Orioles went on the road and squeezed out a one-point win, 45-44, at Gilford on Friday.

Conant was led by a game-high 19 points from Jared Nagle, while Jordan Nagle added 14. Gilford was paced by 12 points from Mark Ucker and 10 from Henry Sleeper.

With the win, the Orioles improve to a perfect 11-0 on the season, while the Golden Eagles fall to 6-4.

Check out the full photo gallery by Danielle Cook of DC Sports Photos…

[Gilford coverage is sponsored by H Salon]

While we were away…

This week, we completed a complete overhaul and upgrade of our server to better serve our growing coverage. During our outage, we provided photo coverage of 17 games! These were all still viewable on our social media outlets, but we wanted to make sure they made it to the website.

Below is a list of the games we covered with links to the photo galleries. Enjoy the show!

Conant rains down threes on Gilford

Eleven of Conant’s 18 field goals on Friday night came from beyond the arc as the Orioles went on the road and defeated Gilford, 48-42.

Conant connected on seven first-half three pointers, which accounted for all 21 of their points at the break.

A trio of scorers led the way for the Orioles. Hannah Manley pumped in a game-high 18 points, all coming from beyond the arc. Bella Hart added 14 points with four triples of her own. Amriel Lucier netted 11 points and did not make a three, but had five of Conant’s six two-point field goals.

Gilford was paced by 12 points from Ryan Guyer, 11 from Olivia Keenan and 11 from Megan Hughes.

With the win, Conant stretches its win streak to six games and improves to 8-3 on the season and. The Golden Eagles fall to 6-4 in defeat.

Check out photos of the action by Danielle Cook of DC Sports Photos…