BROOKLINE — Even with the twelfth seed and a protracted layoff, defending state champion Springfield Central remains to be making noise within the Div. 1 bracket.
In a loud and packed Schluntz Gymnasium, the Golden Eagles used a robust full courtroom press and their measurement to take down No. 5 Brookline on the street 65-52 within the Division 1 second-round matchup.
“Part of our scheme is that we want to play good defense,” mentioned Springfield Central coach James Gee. “Open up the full-court defense and make teams make some bad decisions. We got in some foul trouble, so we had to pull back a little bit in the second half to play a little wiser.”
Sophomore Angela Hector was a giant a part of keeping off Brookline (17-5) within the fourth as she netted 10 of her team-high 24 factors within the body. She additionally gathered 17 rebounds, with 12 of these approaching the offensive finish.
“(Hector) is our best kept secret down low on the blocks,” Gee mentioned concerning the sophomore. “She is going to make some noise. She gives us a big presence down there.”
Hector scored eight within the opening body in addition to Springfield Central (19-2) led 19-11 after one.
Then it was senior Heaven Morris’ flip as she hit a pair of threes within the second to push the Golden Eagles’ benefit to 32-18. She completed with 19 factors and 10 rebounds.
“Morris is a really versatile player,” mentioned Gee about one of many seven seniors on the squad. “She’s a senior and has played in a lot of big games. She’s able to really balance us on the floor with her quickness and her ability to shoot from the outside and get to the rim really helps us a lot during games.”
The Warriors didn’t go away on the finish of the second as an 8-2 run with 5 coming within the last 13 seconds of the body made it a 34-26 deficit on the half. This was in a giant half to the 18 factors for senior captain Margo Mattes.
Mattes completed the competition with a game-high 32 factors, with 9 of these coming from the free throw line.
In the third, Brookline bought as shut as six early within the quarter earlier than Springfield Central pushed it again out to 14.
Next up, the Golden Eagles head to No. 4 Wachusett on Friday at 6 p.m. within the Div. 1 quarterfinals.
Source: www.bostonherald.com