Tag: Inter-Lakes

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

Inter-Lakes defeats Newfound

Inter-Lakes went on the road and defeated Newfound, 47-38 on Tuesday night.

The Lakers were led by a trio of double-digit scorers: Ben Beaudoin (13), Rafe Bean (11) and Addie Kernen (10). The Bears were paced by Calvin Colby and Jayden Belyea with 12 and 10 points, respectively.

With the win, Inter-Lakes improves to 6-8 on the season, while Newfound falls to 2-12.

Check out the full gallery of the action by John Scott Sherburne…

Berlin defense stymies Inter-Lakes

Playing on the road, the Berlin defense held Inter-Lakes scoreless for the first 12 minutes of the game and rolled to a 51-18 victory on Saturday.

Nine Mountaineers scored in the contest and were led by Emily Smith’s 12 points.

With the win Berlin improves to 5-8 on the season, while the Lakers fall to 0-11.

Check out the full gallery of the action by John Scott Sherburne…

Golden Eagles move to 4-0 with win over Inter-Lakes

Gilford held visiting Inter-Lakes to just two first-quarter points en route to a 57-40 victory on Tuesday night.

The Golden Eagles were led by 14 points from Henry Sleeper, 13 from Grant and 11 from Gelo, while the Lakers were paced by Addie Kernen’s game-high 21 points.

With the win, Gilford improves to 4-0 on the season, while Inter-Lakes falls to 1-3.

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

[Gilford coverage is sponsored by H. Salon]

Standefer leads Hopkinton past Inter-Lakes

Behind a game-high 25 points from Abram Standefer, #4 Hopkinton defeated #49 Inter-Lakes, 65-49, in first round action of the NHIAA Boys Basketball Division III State Tournament on Tuesday night. 

Will Tanuvasa (13), Gavin Davies (12) and Noah Aframe (10) also made double-digit contributions for the Hawks in the win. 

The Lakers were paced by 15 points from Owen Brown and 14 from Addie Kernen. Inter-Lakes season comes to a close with a 6-11 record.

The Hawks improve to 13-4 and will take on #5 Campbell on Friday in the quarterfinals.

Check out the highlights by our own Tim Lee…

Check out the full gallery by Dave Beliveau…

D-III Boys First Round Preview

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).

Somersworth tops Inter-Lakes

Somersworth snapped a five-game skid as the Hilltoppers led wire-to-wire against visiting Inter-Lakes to come away with the 81-75 victory on Thursday night.

Aiden Heffron led all scorers with a game-high 23 points, while Dominic Starr added 14 and Dante Guillory netted 13. The Lakers were paced by 21 points from Owen Brown and got double-digit contributions from Joey Doda (15) and Addie Kernen (12).

The Hilltoppers improve to 6-7 on the season, while Inter-Lakes falls to 4-8.

Check out the full gallery of the action by Heidi Green of Heidi Green Photography…

[Inter-Lakes coverage is brought to you by Speare Memorial Hospital]

St. Thomas topples Inter-Lakes

The St. Thomas girls used a balanced scoring attack to defeat visiting Inter-Lakes, 55-41, on Wednesday night. The Saints were paced by a trio of double-figure scorers: Emma Torriello (15), Abby Rayder (12) and Genna Bolduc. Estelle Good (16) led the Lakers.

St. Thomas snapped a three-game losing streak to improve to even its record at 3-3 on the season, while Inter-Lakes falls to 0-5.

Check out the full photo gallery by Dave O’Brien of Your Athletes in Action…

Plymouth State hosts UMass Dartmouth

Plymouth State hosted UMass-Dartmouth on Saturday and John-Scott Sherburne was on-hand to send us some photos of the Panther rosters that are littered with New Hampshire grown talent. Check out the full photo gallery below…