03/18/201811/15/2018

Mansfield Beats Rival Franklin For First State Title

Mansfield boys basketball players celebrate after winning the D1 State Championship. (Ryan Lanigan/HockomockSports.com)

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Just when it looked like Mansfield would run away the state championship, Franklin stormed back with a big run and had a chance to make it a two-possession game.

And no one was surprised because that’s the never-give-up type of team that Franklin is.

But when Mansfield was able to weather the storm, keep its lead, and break the pressure to pull away in the final minutes, it didn’t come as a big surprise either, because that’s the team the Hornets have been this season.

And with that, Mansfield earned a hard-fought 67-54 win over Franklin to earn the D1 State Championship, the first in program history.

“We’d knew they would press and do whatever they needed to do to get back into the game, that’s who they are,” said Mansfield senior Sam Hyland (17 points, five rebounds, four assists). “We turned it over more than we should have and we didn’t take the best shots. But from there it was just about winning the final three minutes, then winning the final two minutes, and so on. It was just about focusing at the time at hand and outworking them. They hit some deep shots, I have to commend them for those, sometimes you have to live with it. But we did enough at the end.”

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

Mansfield led by as much as 18 points, up 59-41 with five minutes to play in the game after Ryan Otto (four points, four rebounds) hit a deep two just before the shot clock expired.

But true to form, Franklin turned things around. Jalen Samuels (seven points, seven rebounds, four assists) hit a free throw and then took a charge to get some momentum back. Sophomore Chris Edgehill (18 points) hit in the lane and Paul Mahon (14 points) splashed in a three to get the game back to ten, 59-49 with four minutes to play.

Out of a timeout he Panthers’ Matt Elias (eight points) picked off a pass at midcourt, leading to another three from Edgehill and suddenly the Panthers trailed 59-52 with three minutes to go.

Franklin had three chances to close the gap further but Mansfield’s defense wouldn’t allow it. Mansfield forced three straight empty trips, and then in transition, Mansfield junior Damani Scottt (19 points, four rebounds) drew the defense in and dropped a pass off right under the hoop for an easy two from Otto.

The Panthers came up short on the other end again, and Mansfield went on to sink six free throws over the final 90 seconds to secure the win the D1 State Championship.

“I can’t really put it into words,” said Mansfield head coach Mike Vaughan. “I know the last time we were [in the state championship], the stage might have been too big. From the moment we got on the bus on Thursday, the kids were locked in. They’ve been locked in all season long. It’s been a great ride. We did great things in D1 South, we did great things in the EMass game, and we did great things tonight.”

While it looked like it may turn into a blowout in the fourth quarter, Vaughan knew that Franklin would go down swinging to the very end.

“That’s a very good team we just played,” Vaughan said of the Panthers. “We made some shots, we did some things we had to do but [Franklin] wasn’t underprepared, this wasn’t a lack of effort by Franklin. If we play this game 10 times, five go one way and five go the other. It comes down to the fact at some point in the second and third quarters, we made a few extra baskets.

“They weren’t going to go away, they weren’t going to roll over. They play hard, they compete, they do all the little things well. They were going to give us every last breath they have. Paul Mahon is one of the best players our league has seen in terms of his ability to change the game on both ends of the floor, especially defensively. He held Tyler [Boulter] (four points, seven rebounds) in check tonight plus scored points of his own. Edgehill is a special player, we still have to deal with him for two more years as a top player in the league. And Samuels is great too, and then they have great role players who step in a do a lot of things for them.”

Franklin coach CJ Neely had a similar outlook, noting that in the end, the Panthers knew it would come down to the small things. The Panthers finished 10-for-22 from the free throw line compared to 23-for-30 from the Hornets.

“As much as the hype went on all week, we talked about how at the end of the day, it’s going to come down to a couple of loose balls, rebounding and taking care of the ball, and making our free throws,” Neely said. “At the end of the day, that’s what it comes down to and they [made their free throws]. When you play in this rivalry, if you’re not making your free throws and they are, and they can go from four to an eight-point lead instead of keeping it close.

“When it starts to expand, you have to come out of what you want to do a little bit. And both teams have had to do that in all three games, we’ve gotten out of what we wanted to do because the lead extended. Then you’re doing something that you practice but it’s not your go-to or your identity. You’re trying to get back into it and you’re taking a lot of risks. Mansfield did a good job of extending their lead making their free throws, and we didn’t. At the end of the day, we didn’t do what we needed to do.”

While Mansfield had the key runs throughout the second and third quarters, they needed another one in the first quarter just to keep pace with the red-hot Panthers.

Holding a 10-9 advantage late in the first quarter behind a free throw from Samuels, the Panthers got hot from deep. Mahon took a feed from Edgehill and made a deep three, and then repeated the same sequence two plays later for a 16-9 lead with just over a minute to play.

Mansfield was able to answer over the final minute though. Hyland drove hard for two, Scott completed a traditional three-point play on a possession the Hornets had because of a steal from Khristian Conner, and then Scott came up with a late steal and went in alone for a thunderous one-handed slam to tie the game after eight minutes.

Franklin’s offense picked up where it left off as Elias drained a three to open the second quarter and junior Will Harvey joined in on the three-party with a corner trifecta for a 22-16 lead just over a minute into the second.

Hyland hit a three but Edgehill answered with a traditional three-point play to keep the Panther advantage at four. A free throw from Scott cut it to three, and two more from Justin Vine (five points) made it one after he went to the line after hauling in a defensive rebound because Mansfield was in the bonus.

With both Scott and Hockomock League MVP John McCoy (18 points, 11 rebounds) in foul trouble for the Hornets — and Samuels for the Panthers — Mansfield’s Hyland stepped up into the spotlight.

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

Hyland hit another trifecta, this one putting the Hornets up 27-25 with just under three minutes left in the half. Elias hit one free throw to make it a one-point game but Hyland got his layup to fall while fighting through a foul, completing the three-point play at the line. Two possessions later, Hyland once again attacked the basket, draw the foul, and got a kind bounce off the rim for another three-point play, plus a 33-26 lead.

Hyland finished with 12 of Mansfield’s 19 points in the second quarter and tied a career-high with 17 points overall on top of five rebounds and four assists.

“There wasn’t a specific game plan to get me going but we got into some foul trouble early so someone else had to step up and score points, it’s the Mansfield way,” Hyland said. “I had a couple open opportunities early that sometimes I’d pass up and wouldn’t take but fortunately I knocked them down. That gave me the confidence and then I started to get to the rim. I got a couple of bounces to go my way, a couple of calls and had a strong first half that kind of got the momentum back on our side. It ended up working out pretty nice.”

Franklin’s defense came out strong in the second half, holding Mansfield scoreless for nearly the first three minutes of the third. However, Mansfield’s defense was equal to the task and the Panthers only scored once, a layup from Mahon, during that stretch.

McCoy drained a three to give Franklin some life, pushing the lead to 38-28. Mansfield went up as much as 14 points in the frame (44-30) on a traditional three-point play from Scott. But Franklin closed with an 8-4 run with Samuels scoring the first four and Elias and Edgehill each contributing two.

Franklin nearly had a big stop to keep the deficit in single digits at the end of the quarter, but Hyland came flying in to steal an offensive board for an easy putback.

Mansfield opened the fourth with a set play to get two for McCoy, and then ran a set that resulted in a corner three for Vine. McCoy knocked down a pair of technical free throws to stretch it to 55-38.

Mahon answered for Franklin with a triple but two more from McCoy at the line, and a deep two from Otto gave Mansfield a commanding 59-41 lead, only for Franklin to charge back with its 11-0 run to make it a seven-point game.

“The resilience of this team….we’re never going to go away,” Neely said. “We’re not going to be the team that plays for the newspaper and loses by 10 or 11, we’re going to go out there and try and cut back into it as much and possible, and we’ll lose by 50 but we’ll do it trying to get back into it.

“We just couldn’t make a couple of those baskets there to get back into it. When Mansfield builds a lead like that, they do a great job of moving the ball and making you work, getting to the line and making their free throws.”

Vaughan agreed, stressing the importance of getting a big lead because he knew Franklin would continue to push back.

“This was a game we were fortunate to be up 18 so we could weather the storm and let the clock tick away,” Vaughan said. “But it comes down to what we’ve done all year. Otto steps up and has a huge basket, Vine hits the three in the corner. Different guys doing different things makes a huge difference for our team.”

While the Hornets secured their first state title win with a victory over rival Franklin, Vaughan noted his squad focused more on themselves and getting a win than about the rivalry.

“It wasn’t really about the opponent, it was just about winning this game,” Vaughan said. “If anything, there’s a part of me that knows how hard it is to get here, and I know what Franklin basketball is all about, and what CJ is all about and most of those kids I’ve coached at some point. They are great kids, great young men.

“There’s a part of me that has some sympathy. I wish there were times we weren’t in the same division and we didn’t face each other at some point. But we’ve also lost to Franklin back when they were in the South. It wasn’t about who we were playing, but it was about playing in this game and doing everything we can to win it.”

Franklin finishes the season 23-4 and had a second straight appearance in the D1 State Finals.

“The guys should be very proud of themselves,” Neely said of his team. “They are working hard year round, they are sacrificing a lot to put Franklin on the map and be one of the powers in the state. We’ve beaten a lot of good teams this season, we didn’t shy away from challenges. They should be very proud of themselves.

“These guys have brought Franklin to a place they had never been before and did it twice in a row. They have a lot to be proud of. Obviously, both teams wanted to win tonight, it’s two great teams that know a lot about each other. [Mansfield] was the better team tonight.”

Mansfield boys basketball picks up its 27th win of the season, finishing with just two losses.

“This win means a lot, I know a lot of players on [Franklin] and I’m pretty close friends with some of them,” McCoy said. “It’s definitely just amazing to beat Franklin in my last high school game.”

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

03/13/201803/13/2018

Franklin Returning To State Final With Win Over Central

By Joe Clark, HockomockSports.com Student Reporter

WORCESTER, Mass. – When Franklin took on Springfield Central at the DCU Center in Worcester a year ago, Chris Edgehill scored eight points in 20 seconds to tie the game and lead the Panthers to an overtime win to clinch a berth in the state championship.

This year, when the two teams met again on Thursday night, no such heroics were needed.

Franklin played a near-perfect game en route to a 62-43 win over the Golden Eagles, handing Central its first loss of the season.

“This game was a little bit more comfortable than last year, we were watching guys cry as we put ourselves together to come back and win last year, so this game I thought we had a much more complete performance from start to finish, I was pretty confident in what we were doing out there,” said Franklin coach CJ Neely.

Franklin started out the game on a 15-4 run and finished the first quarter up 21-10 behind two threes from Matt Elias (14 points) and a strong start from senior Paul Mahon, who had eight of his ten points in the first frame. Elias hit another just under a minute into the third quarter, putting the Franklin crowd into a frenzy.

“The threes early were great, he’s been big for us all year, and he kind of hit a slump for a couple games and wasn’t spacing the floor the way he has been, and I think that’s what opens things up for Chris [Edgehill], and hitting those early gave him a lot of confidence,” Neely said on the early threes from Elias.

Springfield Central chipped away at the Franklin lead in the second quarter, behind Levi Grady-White (12 points, three rebounds), who came off the bench to give the Golden Eagles a spark with eight points in the second quarter.

With just over three minutes left in the second quarter, Elias, who had already hit three trifectas for Franklin, looked to take an elbow to the head and was removed from the game. He would miss the rest of the quarter, but returned to start the second half. Springfield Central would go on a 7-1 run with Elias out of the game, cutting Franklin’s lead to six at 29-23 heading into the locker room at halftime.

To start the third quarter, Grady-White and Jalen Samuels (13 points, eight rebounds) traded baskets, but after Grady-White cut the lead to four with 5:38 left in the third quarter, Edgehill buried a three from the corner to put Franklin up 34-27.

“The shot looked off honestly, shooter’s bounce is what they call that, but definitely whenever I’m hitting shots I’m always gaining confidence, and my team gains confidence in me,” Edgehill said.

That confidence was on full display, as after being called for a charge, Edgehill (18 points, four rebounds, six assists) had a beautiful spin in the lane and finished with a layup for two points that extended Franklin’s lead to 36-27. A putback by Samuels with just under a minute left in the third quarter put Franklin up 42-30, a lead they held until the fourth quarter.

Springfield Central opened the fourth with a 6-0 run that included a three from Josiah Green (nine points), and a bucket from Anthony Kelley (nine points), who spent most of the game battling foul trouble. With Franklin holding onto a six-point lead, Elias struck again from beyond the arc to put Franklin up 45-36.

The Panthers didn’t look back from there, closing the game on a 17-7 run to finish off a 62-43 win and to clinch a berth to the MIAA Division 1 State Final for the second year in a row.

When they arrive at the MassMutual Center on Saturday night for the state final, it will be a familiar face on the opposite bench, as the Panthers will take on the Mansfield Hornets for the third time this season to renew their rivalry on the biggest stage yet.

“It speaks to the strength of our league, both of us have gone back and forth over the past how many years, splitting games in the regular season, both guys kind of getting things done on some nights and looking much better than the other team, and then going back and having the same thing happen on the other side, so it speaks to the Hockomock and the strength of what we’re bringing to the table every night,” Neely said about playing the Hornets. “It’s kind of like Duke-North Carolina in the National Championship game, you see what you can do, and obviously, we both know each other like the back of our hands, so it will be interesting.”

“It’s a dream come true,” Edgehill said about the state final matchup. “There’s nothing better than in the regular season going then going to that Mansfield gym, and it’s going to be a different atmosphere obviously in that big facility we’re playing in, but it’s the rivalry between Franklin and Mansfield that as a kid you’re just like, ‘I want to be apart of that,’ and it shows how good the Hock is compared to other leagues.”

“That’s going to be a great game, knowing our fans are huge and their fans are huge, it’s going to be a great environment,” Samuels said about facing Mansfield for the third time this season.

Mansfield’s (26-2) road to the state final this year included wins over Newton South, BC High, Newton North, Brockton, and Everett.

Franklin boys basketball (23-3) beat Lincoln-Sudbury, Natick, Algonquin, and Springfield Central on their way to their second straight state final appearance.

03/05/201803/05/2018

Franklin Handles Natick, Advances To Sectional Final

By Joe Clark, HockomockSports.com Student Reporter

WORCESTER, Mass. – All season long, the Franklin boys basketball team has relied on their defense and a balanced scoring attack on their way to the top seed in the D1 Central tournament. On Sunday afternoon at WPI, Franklin stuck to that formula in a 68-54 win over #5 Natick in the D1 Central Semifinals.

The Panther’s defensive effort was in full force throughout the first quarter, as they limited the Red Hawks to just ten points to take an 18-10 lead. Franklin sophomore Chris Edgehill score seven of his team-high 19 points for Franklin, including a three that beat the buzzer to give Franklin an eight-point advantage heading into the second quarter.

After Natick’s Will Bodnitzki (nine points, three rebounds) scored with just over four minutes to go in the first half to cut the Franklin lead to 26-17, the Panthers went on a 10-2 run and didn’t give up a field goal to close out the half. Threes from Paul Mahon (13 points, two steals) and Matt Elias (eleven points) highlighted the run that also included two free throws from Jack Rodgers (six points, eight rebounds, three assists) and a basket from Will Harvey (two steals).

Jalen Samuels (13 points, ten rebounds, four assists), who sat most of the second quarter with foul trouble, scored Franklin’s first five points of the second half as he converted a layup before hitting a three on a nice assist from Rodgers.

“Jalen’s a special player when he’s going,” said Franklin coach CJ Neely about Samuels. “Not having him in the first half, luckily we were able to keep our lead for a while there, and then getting him back obviously, being a guy that can get off you on the dribble and having big guys guarding him, I think it’s hard for them to deal with a guy like Jalen.”

Late in the third quarter after two free throws from Mahon put Franklin up 51-30, Natick came storming back, going on a 9-2 run to close the quarter behind seven points from Jahden Erold (22 points, ten rebounds).

“Not our best performance in the second half, I thought our first half was Franklin basketball, the ball was moving, defense was there, rebounding was there for us, but in the second half we started to get a little careless with the ball and started getting a little whiny about the calls and soft on the glass and on defensive end of the floor,” Neely said about his team’s second half performance. “Fortunately enough for us, we were able to make enough shots to kind of survive there in the second half and get out here with a ‘W.’”

After Alexander Cohen (three points, two rebounds) made a three with 2:15 to play to cut Franklin’s lead to just eight at 60-52, Edgehill erupted for the Panthers, scoring eight points in the last two minutes of the game, including a game-clinching three with 28 seconds to play in what would be the last basket of the game.

“I think he’s certainly never been afraid of a big moment, he’s someone that wants the ball in his hands in crunch time,” Neely said about Edgehill. “He’s a great player, and I think we’re relying on him as a team a lot to get our points.”

Franklin (21-3) will face Algonquin (17-7) Friday night at 6:00 PM at WPI for the D1 Central title. The Tomahawks beat St. John’s Shrewsbury 82-70 on Sunday for the chance to play for their first sectional title since 2001.

03/01/201803/02/2018

Franklin Cruises Past L-S In Postseason Opener

Franklin senior Paul Mahon takes a three-point shot against Lincoln-Sudbury. (Peter Raider/HockomockSports.com)

By Joe Clark, HockomockSports.com Student Reporter

FRANKLIN, Mass. – In last year’s D1 Central Quarterfinals, Franklin survived a major scare from Acton-Boxboro en route to a 59-52 win. This year, Franklin made sure that scare never came, as the top-seeded Panthers played a near-perfect game from start to finish in a 79-49 win over #8 Lincoln-Sudbury.

“This year, we talked about that [the Acton-Boxboro game] at practice and said how you can’t walk in and look at your number one seed and think that’s going to do the job and get you to win games, you have to go out and show why you earned that seed, be the team you have been all season that’s put you in the great position you’re in now, and I thought we did that tonight,” said Franklin coach CJ Neely about his team’s performance.

Franklin started the game out on a 10-2 run that included five points from Matt Elias (seven points), but L-S went on a 5-0 run behind threes from Kahmari Williams (11 points) and Jack Sorbo to cut the Franklin lead to 10-8 midway through the first quarter.

But Franklin dominated the rest of the half, using a 30-9 run, highlighted by 11 points and three steals from Paul Mahon (19 points, four steals) and seven points off the bench from Will Harvey. The run gave the Panthers a 40-17 halftime lead.

Franklin stifled the Warriors defensively throughout the first half, holding them to just 24% shooting in the half and not allowing them to grab an offensive rebound.

“We had a good scout on them, we knew what was going on and the guys did a great job of executing the game plan right from the beginning, we didn’t give them anything easy at all,” Neely added. “I thought every shot they took was difficult, and then Jalen [Samuels] was an animal on the boards, and as a team, I thought the box outs were tremendous.”

In the third quarter, Franklin outscored L-S 20-12 with Paul Rudolph (seven points) scoring five points and Jalen Samuels (eleven points, 13 rebounds) chipping in with six points. A three by Rudolph with just under a minute to go in the quarter gave the Panthers a 30 point lead at 58-28, and a layup by Alex Klowan (four points) with 29 seconds left in the quarter extended the lead to 60-28 heading into the fourth quarter.

Franklin turned to their bench for much of the fourth quarter, with Gavin Farnan chipping in six points and Jack Rudolph going 4-for-4 at the free throw line. Lincoln Sudbury pulled their starters with just over a minute to go where they got a nice ovation from the visiting crowd.

Franklin boys basketball (20-4) advances to the D1 Central Semifinal for the fifth straight season. They will take on #5 Natick at WPI on Sunday at 3:00. The only common opponent Franklin has with the Redhawks is Stoughton. Natick beat the Black Knights, 74-54, in a tournament game on December 30th. Franklin beat Stoughton, 93-58, in a Hockomock League game on January 26th.

“We gotta prepare for Natick the same way we prepared for these guys, we got to stay with the one game at a time mentality, we can’t look any further than Natick, they’re a really good team,” Neely said about Franklin’s upcoming opponent. “I’ve watched them play a couple times and they beat Newton North this year, they’re definitely a high powered team that we’re going to have to be ready for, so I’m not looking any further than Natick.”

02/19/2018

Franklin Takes Down Top Ranked Tech Boston

FRANKLIN, Mass. – Coming off a state finals appearance a year ago, Franklin loaded its schedule with tough opponents in hopes of preparing for another deep playoff run.

After beating D1 South hopeful New Bedford on Sunday, the Panthers matched up with the state’s top-ranked team, Tech Boston, in the championship game of the Harvey Nasuti Winter Classic.

Although the flow of the game was hindered by nearly 50 foul calls, the Panthers made the runs at the right times and limited the Bears in transition, resulting in a 76-67 win.

“We feel like we’re one of the best teams in the state,” said Franklin coach CJ Neely. “We’re not worried about who’s one or two or stuff like that. We talk about our goals and taking it one step at a time. This was our next goal [to win this tournament] and Tech Boston happened to the be the top-ranked team. They’re a very good team. We like that we can compete there and show what we’re made of, especially on the defensive side of the ball I think we did a great job able to slow them down some.”

Franklin sophomore Chris Edgehill scored a career-high 31 points and dished out five assists to garner the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player honor. Edgehill went 17-for-18 from the free throw line.

As a team, Franklin was 31-for-48 from the charity stripe, with 37 of those attempts coming in the second half.

The first quarter went back-and-forth with Tech Boston (16-1) twice building four-point leads (7-3, 11-7) but both times the Panthers came back. The latter comeback — a bucket from Jalen Samuels (13 points, 13 rebounds) on a feed from Paul Rudolph and two free throws from Edgehill — tied the game after eight minutes of play.

With the score knotted 18-18 in the second quarter, the Panthers rattled off a 12-3 run over the final 3:21 of the half.

Senior Paul Mahon (eight points, four assists) bookended the run with a pair of layups, Samuels had five straight points in the middle of the run and Edgehill drained a triple off a nice feed from Jack Rodgers. The run gave Franklin a 31-20 lead at the break.

“We wanted to take care of the ball and didn’t want to have too many live ball turnovers where it’s basically a pick six and they get a layup,” Neely said. “And we wanted to make them play half court and I thought if we could do those things we’d be alright. We can’t defend them in the full court if we turn it over and they are getting out. I think we had only three turnovers in the second quarter and we got some separation.”

Tech Boston upped its pressure to start the second half, using a full court press along with some trapping. The adjustment paid off and the visitors started the third quarter with an 8-0 surge to get within one point.

Franklin, however, had a response of its own. The Panthers went on a 14-0 run over the next four minutes to build the separation it needed to ride the rest of the way.

Matt Elias scored the first four points, Edgehill picked up four points via two technical free throws and a layup on the ensuing possession and then Mahon had four points breaking the press as well as an assist to Edgehill in transition.

By the end of the third quarter, the Panthers had a 55-38 lead on the previously unbeaten Bears.

“We knew they were going to have to adjust and start trapping us a little bit and putting some pressure on,” Neely said. “We didn’t do a good job adjusting right away but once we settled ourselves down and stopped chucking it around the gym, we were alright. Guys wanted the ball, they were flashing and catching and being strong with it. They weren’t just dribbling to nowhere. Once we started breaking the press we were fine. And Edgehill is great with the ball, you can rely on him to break some of those traps. And once you get through the top level we got some easy buckets.”

The Panthers didn’t have much of a chance to run their offense in the fourth quarter. Whether it was being fouled on defensive rebounds or trying to break the press, Franklin went to the line 28 times in the fourth quarter alone, sinking 16 attempts.

Franklin boys basketball (19-2) is back in action on Thursday when it travels to Cambridge Rindge & Latin in a rematch of last year’s D1 State Final. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 PM.

“We wanted to play a really hard schedule after what we did last year,” Neely said. “We hear it all the time about being in the Central [section]. We wanted to challenge ourselves against the best teams. We scrimmaged Needham, Newton North, and Burke earlier in the year, we played CM and New Bedford and [Tech Boston], we played Arlington. We’re ready, we wanted to be tested. The Central has some challenges, contrary to what people believe. So we wanted to be ready.”

01/25/201801/27/2018

Friday’s Schedule & Scoreboard – 01/26/18

Today’s games are listed below.

Boys Basketball
Attleboro, 59 @ Milford, 51 – Final – Click here for a recap of this game.

Franklin, 93 @ Stoughton, 58 – Final – Franklin jumped out to a quick 19-2 lead and never looked back in a road win at Stoughton. The Panthers led 30-11 after one before the Black Knights cut the deficit to nine, 48-39, at halftime. Franklin outscored 45-19 in the second half to earn the win. Senior Paul Mahon led a game-high 21 points while senior Matt Elias and sophomore Chris Edgehill each had 16 points apiece for the Panthers. Stoughton senior Cam Andrews had a team-high 15 points.

King Philip, 57 @ Sharon, 63 – Final (OT) – King Philip raced out to a 13-0 lead, led by as much as 23 in the first half and 31-11 at halftime, but Sharon stormed back with a gigantic second half to stun the Warriors in overtime. Sharon hit one free throw to make it 50-46, then grabbed the offensive rebound to get back to the line. After making the first again, the Eagles came down with the offensive board on the miss. Lester High, who scored a career-high 19 points, drained a three to tie the game with 25 seconds left to send the game into overtime. Malik Lorquet (18 points, 13 rebounds) and Jimmy Fitzhenry (12 points) hit back-to-back baskets, KP answered with a free throw, then High hit his fifth triple of the game to make it 57-53. Tom Madden (12 points) answered in the post to cut it to four, but Fitzhenry drained a three with just under a minute to play to make it 60-53. Pharoah Davis led KP with 14 points.

Girls Basketball
Milford, 46 @ Attleboro, 38 – Final – A night after scoring 33 and reaching the 1,000-point plateau, Kate Irwin scored 17 points to lead the Hawks to a road win at Attleboro to clinch a spot in the postseason for the second season in a row. Jess Tomaso added 15 points for Milford, while Attleboro was led by Sam Pierce with 14 points.

Foxboro, 61 @ Oliver Ames, 39 – Final – Click here for a Recap and Photo Gallery from this game.

Stoughton, 47 @ Franklin, 36 – Final – Stoughton won its fourth straight game (all on the road) with a strong defensive effort against the Panthers. Aliyah Wright led the Black Knights with 17 points and Jordan Motley just missed out on a double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds.

Sharon, 43 @ King Philip, 63 – Final – KP had four players in double digits in a big home win. Faith Roy was the top scorer for the Warriors with 19 points, while Shannon O’Connor scored 14 and Christina Hathaway and freshman Brianna James each scored 10. Emma Eberhardt was Sharon’s top scorer with 11 points.

North Attleboro, 29 @ Mansfield, 59 – Final – Meg Hill scored 15 points and recorded 12 rebounds in another double-double for the senior center. Ann Maher scored nine, while Sydney Mulkern and Alicia Hottleman each added seven for the Hornets. Julia Feid was the high scorer for North with 10 points.

Boys Indoor Track (@ Reggie Lewis)
Attleboro, 58 vs. Taunton, 42 – Final

Canton, 52.5 vs. Foxboro, 47.5 – Final – Marquise Montes, Riley McDonnell, and Cordell Smith all placed first in individual races and teamed together along with freshman Cam Sanchez to win the 4×200 relay to help the Bulldogs edge the Warriors. Montes on the 55M (with Sanchez second), McDonnell took first in the 300M (with Smith second and John Guenthner third) and Smith won the high jump (with Steven Brady second and McDonnell tied for third). Brady also won the long jump, Jack Healey won the 2 Mile and was second in the 1 Mile, and Mike Mazzola took second in the 1000M. Gerry Sullivan added a third-place finish in the 600M.

Franklin, 25 vs. Mansfield, 75 – Final – The Hornets clinched another league title with a win over the Panthers. Jareme DiLorenzo had a great meet for Mansfield, taking first in the 55M hurdles (8.12), first in the long jump (20-05.00) and second in the 55M dash (6.98). Mike Hargadon ran a PR (1:26.52) for a second place finish in the 600M, with Mike Shannon coming in first (1:25.29). In the shot put, Dan Radev had a PR of 41-11.25 to take second (behind teammate Kevin McCree’s 45-05.00) and Kalin Petrov had his best performance in the 2 Mile, finishing in 9:42.00.

King Philip, 36 vs. Oliver Ames, 64 – Final

Milford, 33 vs. North Attleboro, 67 – Final

Sharon, 58 vs. Stoughton, 42 – Final

Girls Indoor Track (@ Reggie Lewis)
Attleboro, 30.5 vs. Taunton, 65.5 – Final

Canton, 36 vs. Foxboro, 60 – Final – Canton’s Jimisha Williams, Leah Murphy and Claire Belisle all won individual events and teamed with Rosana Cho to win the 4×200 relay for the Bulldogs. Williams took first in the 55M, Murphy was on the long jump while Cho took second, and Belisle won the 300M. Ally Chin (2 Mile) and Bronwyn Mahoney (shot put) earned first-place finishes, while Chloe Pennacchio earned points with third-place finishes in both the 1000M and 1 Mile.

Franklin, 59 vs. Mansfield, 41 – Final – Franklin won the division for the third straight year with the victory. For Mansfield, senior Madison Haughey ran a PR in the 55M hurdles and jumped 4’11 in the high jump, qualifying for states in both events. Junior Brynn Anderson knocked off six seconds for a PR in the 1000M, also qualifying for states. Lizzie How also ran a PR in the 300, taking second, with freshman Tessa Lancaster shaved 20 seconds off her 2 Mile run, qualifying for states at 12:14.55.

King Philip, 57 vs. Oliver Ames, 43 – Final

Milford, 43 vs. North Attleboro, 57 – Final

Sharon, 69 vs. Stoughton, 30 – Final

Boys Swimming
Franklin, 86 @ North Attleboro, 74 – Final
Oliver Ames, 99 @ King Philip, 84 – Final

Girls Swimming
Franklin, 90 @ North Attleboro, 75 – Final
Oliver Ames, 90 @ King Philip, 95 – Final

01/12/201801/13/2018

Elias Lifts Franklin To Key Division Win Over Mansfield

FRANKLIN, Mass. – Having three legitimate offensive options has made Franklin one of the top teams in the area. But its now safe to say senior Matt Elias gives the Panthers a fourth.

Senior Paul Mahon, junior Jalen Samuels and sophomore Chris Edgehill have been reliable options for the Panthers over the past year and a half, but Elias has elevated his game this season.

The senior sharpshooter scored a career-high 17 points, connecting on four three-pointers to lead the Panthers to a key 67-52 win over Mansfield, putting the teams into a first-place tie in the Kelley-Rex. It also marked Franklin’s first win in its current gym, which opened in 2014.

“Elias had a huge game,” said Franklin head coach CJ Neely. “He’s a silent assassin. When he’s playing well, we’re playing well. You go right down the line, we have guys that can play but he’s really stepped up for us all season long, he’s had big shot after big shot. He’s shooting with a lot of confidence, he’s playing with a lot of confidence and that’s what we’re going to need if we’re going to win games like tonight.”

It wasn’t Elias’ first big scoring output of the season, but it may have been his most valuable. It seemed almost all 17 of his points either gave Franklin a big boost or halted Mansfield from gaining any momentum of its own.

He drained a three just seconds after Mansfield hit their first triple, and then another just minutes later to erase Mansfield’s second — and final — lead of the game.

In the third quarter, Edgehill (14 points), the team’s leading scorer entering Friday night’s game, was forced to the bench after picking up his fourth foul with four minutes to go in the frame. Although Mansfield closed the gap some, Elias hit his third three of the game to make it 45-33 and the keep the Hornets at bay.

And after Mansfield was called for an offensive foul with under a minute to play, Elias beat the buzzer with a putback on the offensive end — a potential five-point swing — to keep Franklin up 47-36 going into the final period.

“Those five points were huge,” Neely said. “Jalen and Chris were both out so we were trying to survive that stretch as long as we could. Obviously having both those guys out is not ideal, it’s not how you draw it up. But I was saying if we could keep the lead around 10 we’d in in great shape. Matt’s been there for us all season and he was there again tonight for us and I’m proud of them.”

Elias then opened the fourth quarter with his fourth triple of the night, extending the lead to 50-37. And then with five minutes to play, after Mansfield gained some momentum off of an offensive putback, Elias came down the other end and converted a traditional three-point play to make it 54-42.

“Matt Elias went out and has a night for himself, talk about an all-star performance,” said Mansfield head coach Mike Vaughan. “That’s what he’s capable of doing, he’s put in the time. If there was an MVP tonight, it has to go to him. Every time I thought we were on a run or going to close the gap, Matt throws his ceiling shot through the bottom of the night.”

After a frantic first quarter, the Panthers held a 17-13 advantage. Mansfield’s offense shot 50% from the field but had seven turnovers. Things didn’t get any better for the Hornets in the second quarter either.

Franklin continued its solid play on both ends of the court, going 6-for-11 from the field while Mansfield’s turnover woes continued. The Hornets had eight turnovers in the second quarter alone (15 first half total) while shooting just 2-for-13 from the floor, including 0-for-8 from downtown.

“We got some looks in the first quarter and they didn’t fall,” Vaughan said. “We got tight, started to press, we started looking to the officials for calls. I think we tried to win the game in one possession, everyone wanted to be a superhero instead of just chipping away and doing what we do. We just dug ourselves too big of a hole.”

The Panthers outscored Mansfield 14-7 in the quarter and took a 31-20 lead into the halftime break.

“I know CJ praises his team and also criticizes his team when he feels like they were outplayed…tonight they were definitely not outplayed,” Vaughan said. “[Franklin] did an awesome job, they took things away, they were well prepared. Simple things that people in the stands might not notice, they did a really good job taking away. They played with a lot more energy, a lot more passion. They played with a chip on their shoulder and we kind of came in and laid down like things were going to be handed to us.”

While Mansfield made small runs throughout the second half, the Panthers pushed their lead to 18 by opening the second half on a 9-2 run. Samuels (18 points, six rebounds) drove to the basket for two, Mahon (six points, three rebounds) drained a three, Samuels converted at the rim again and Jack Rodgers hit a pair of free throws to make it 40-22.

Mansfield got it back to single digits with a 9-2 run of its own, but Elias’ third triple put an end to that surge.

When the Hornets got it back to single digits later in the fourth quarter on a drive by Sam Hyland (six points, seven rebounds), Elias’ three-point play pushed the lead back to 12.

“We tried to take away some of their best options,” Neely said of his defense. Mansfield finished with a season-high 26 turnovers. “They are a tough team to stop, they are one of the best offensive teams around. The way they move the ball and play together is kind of reminiscent of what we do so it’s always going to be a battle. But I think the guys really bought into the scout. We knew we had to be focused for the entire 32 minutes.”

“It’s been a long time,” Vaughan said of having so many turnovers. “My first couple of years we averaged around 20 a game and that was not fun. I think we had 14 or 15 at the half, which is too many. At the end of the day they were playing man to man, they weren’t pressing, they weren’t doubling, they weren’t doing anything special. Granted our shot percentage deserved to be low because they were good defensively but turnovers…that’s careless. That’s not moving, that’s bad concentration. Turnovers you can control, most of them. Anything beyond 12 or 13, that’s too many.”

John McCoy led Mansfield with 14 points and four rebounds while Tyler Boulter and Ryan Otto (six rebounds) each had 10 points. Damani Scott finished with eight points and 10 rebounds.

Franklin boys basketball (5-1 Hockomock, 8-1 overall) is back in action on Tuesday with a trip to Attleboro. Mansfield boys basketball (5-1, 7-2) will try to bounce back on Sunday against Hanover in an endowment game (won’t count towards tournament record) at 5:30.

01/10/201801/10/2018

Dominant Third Quarter Pushes Panthers Past Tigers

FRANKLIN, Mass. – The Franklin boys basketball team had little trouble finding its defensive identity this season, which is a big reason why the Panthers have won six of their first seven games.

The search for an identity on the offensive end, however, has taken a little bit longer. But the Panthers seemed to find the balance they need in a 72-60 win over Taunton on Tuesday night.

The Panthers exploded for 27 points in the third quarter, turning what was just an eight-point lead into a comfortable 20-point cushion with just eight minutes left.

“I think we were just more aggressive and shared the ball,” said Franklin head coach CJ Neely. “When we play aggressive and guys look to attack the paint, and then when they get in there and make good decisions that can be the difference.

“I think early on in the season we were aggressive in the paint but not making good decisions. And then we started to pass too much. Now we’re finding the balance between driving and scoring and driving and finding a teammate, and I think that was the big difference offensively.”

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

The Panthers nearly doubled their score from the first half with the big quarter. After scoring 28 points on 42% shooting from the floor (10-for-24), Franklin exploded for 11 field goals (3-for-5 from three) in the third on 65% shooting with just one turnover.

Senior captain Paul Mahon scored eight straight points for the Panthers, part of a 14-3 run that Franklin used to open the second half. Mahon splashed a three from the corner and then hit one from a couple steps beyond the line. Franklin got out on a fast break but missed, only for Mahon to come in uncontested for one easy putback and a 36-24 lead just 90 seconds into the second half.

After Mahon got things started, sophomore Chris Edgehill (23 points) and junior Jalen Samuels (16 points, nine rebounds) did the rest for the Panthers in the quarter.

Samuels and Edgehill scored back-to-back baskets and then Samuels followed up his own miss with an easy putback. After Taunton stopped the streak with a free throw, Edgehill drained a three after the Panthers hauled in an offensive rebound.

Taunton’s Naz Kenion, who had a solid game off the bench with 11 points and six rebounds, corralled a three-point miss and scored to cut the deficit to 45-30, but Samuels added to Franklin’s second chance points with an assist from Edgehill. Samuels added two more free throws and Edgehill closed the quarter with four straight points.

“It’s always good to get Paul going,” Neely said. “We didn’t come out with a focus on getting him going specifically but we always want to get him involved offensively. He only took five shots [on Sunday] against Oliver Ames and that’s a problem. We need him to score for us. And we asked Jalen to be more aggressive for us tonight too, and both guys respond. Jalen had 16 and Paul had 13…that’s where we need to be. We need multiple scorers, we can’t just rely on one player.”

Franklin raced out to a 14-7 lead in the first quarter as the Tigers struggled from deep (0-for-10 from beyond the arc). In the second quarter, Taunton cut the deficit to five three separate times but couldn’t get closer.

Back-to-back buckets from Lens Esquil (17 points, nine rebounds) cut it to 16-11, but Matt Elias (13 points) answered for the Panthers with a triple. Lou Vendrell splashed a three to get Taunton within 21-16, but free throws from Jack Rodgers and Elias, followed by a bucket from Samuels stretched Franklin’s lead back to 25-16.

Esquil again rattled off four straight points to bring Taunton within 25-20 in the final minute of the quarter, but Elias drained another triple to give Franklin a 28-20 lead at the break.

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

Taunton’s up-tempo trap defense paid dividends in the final quarter, forcing seven turnovers in the final frame (50% of Franklin’s turnovers). That led to 25 points in the final frame, but the Panthers never let the game get within single digits.

Behind eight points from freshman Diamond Blakely (11 points total) and four points apiece from Kenion, Esquil and Malik Charles, Taunton cut it to 10 with a minute to play but that was as close as they would get.

Taunton finished the game 2-for-17 from beyond the three-point line.

“Obviously [Taunton] can really slash and get to the rim and bother you that way, but they definitely have some guys that can light it up from the outside so it’s difficult to defend,” Neely said. “We put a lot into one on one defending and not helping off guys like Vendrell and [Dante] Law. They got some looks in the first half, and then they also made some tough shots too. If they were going to continue to make those contested shots then we had to live with it.”

Taunton falls to 5-4 overall with its third straight loss and 2-3 in league play. The Tigers will try to bounce back when they return to action on Friday for just their third home game of the year against King Philip. Franklin boys basketball (4-1 Hockomock, 7-1 overall) will host rival Mansfield (5-0, 7-1) in a key Kelley-Rex division showdown.

Mansfield is riding a three-game win streak at Franklin, and are 2-0 in the new gym.

“You don’t have to get the guys fired up for a Mansfield game,” Neely said. “I think they’re already excited for it. I think as soon as we broke the huddle tonight, that was one of the first things the guys talked about it. It’s a big game for both teams. It’s still early in the season so we’re just trying to get better as is but those games are always battles, always tight. Hopefully, we can come out on top this time.”

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

01/08/2018

Franklin Fends Off Oliver Ames’ Late Surge

NORTH EASTON, Mass. – Sunday night was Franklin’s first division game of the season, and likely a preview of what the Panthers will see over the next two weeks, and again later this season.

Although the Panthers led from start to finish and had a double-digit for most of the second half, the win wasn’t secured until the final buzzer. Oliver Ames refused to go away, even cutting the deficit to six with two minutes to play but Franklin was money at the free throw line late, coming away with a 63-50 win over the resilient Tigers.

“Sometimes it doesn’t matter how it looks, as long as you get the win…it wasn’t our prettiest game, it wasn’t our best performance but we grinded out a win in a tough environment,” said Franklin head coach CJ Neely. “The OA kids played hard, I thought they were all over the place rebounding wise and they were first to all the loose balls. I thought out first half defense was excellent…but 31 points is too much in the second half. It was a tough game, ugly game, but we’ll take it.”

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

Sophomore Chris Edgehill led the way offensively, tying a career-high with 28 points while Franklin went 11-for-12 at the free throw line over the final two minutes to secure the victory.

“We were one big play away from getting it to a one-possession game somehow,” said Oliver Ames head coach Don Byron. “But Franklin kept us just enough at arm’s length where they probably didn’t feel like they were getting tested. But on our side, we never really felt like we were out of it, the kids just kept coming and coming. That’s the biggest thing to come out of this one…can we compete with the best the state has to offer? And I think we did.”

Franklin closed the opening quarter with an 8-2 run to seize a 17-10 lead through eight minutes. The Panthers limited OA to just nine points in the second quarter, but the Tigers’ defense also kept Franklin’s offense in check (10 points), heading into half down 27-19.

The Panthers’ 11-point lead in the third quarter was trimmed down to just five behind baskets from OA’s Jake Erlich (13 points) and Jack Spillane (15 points, seven rebounds, four assists). But before the Tigers could get any closer, Edgehill drained a three to spark a 13-4 run.

Edgehill followed his triple with a strong take to the rim, and Paul Mahon (six points, four assists, three rebounds) had an easy take after a nice pass from Matt Elias (eight points, three rebounds). Franklin cashed in on back-to-back OA turnovers with both Edgehill and Paul Rudolph finishing traditional three-point plays.

“I thought [Edgehill] was very good offensively, especially getting inside,” Neely said. “We got the ball moving on offense and he was the recipient of those and hit some threes. He’s an electric creator off the dribble and he was able to get into the paint and draw a lot of contact. I think he found some guys and we missed some layups too. Tonight, I think someone needed to step up and he did.”

Franklin took a 43-31 lead into the final frame.

The Panthers led by as much as 14 early on in the fourth, and then a triple from Edgehill with three minutes to play had Franklin leading comfortably 52-39.

But once again, OA got right back into the game when Spillane hit a three while being fouled, finishing the four-point play a the line, and junior Sean O’Brien hit two free throws to make it 52-45 with two minutes to play.

“We knew this wasn’t going to be a free-flowing, easy going, up-and-down, everyone gets to run their offense type of game,” Byron said. “Our focus was to try and keep the game in the low 50s, high 40s. Not only are they going to do their part to make sure that happens, their games are all that way…but we did the same. We did the things we needed to do to have a shot.”

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

Jalen Samuels (12 points, four rebounds, three blocks) hit a pair of free throws to push the lead back to nine but Spillane splashed a three to make it a two-possession game. OA came up empty on its next trip, missing a pair of three’s, and Franklin iced the game with successful free throw shooting.

OA junior Ethan Eckstrom finished with 13 points for the Tigers while senior guard Matt Muir was the games’ leading rebounder with eight boards.

Franklin boys basketball (3-1 Hockomock, 6-1 overall) is back in action on Tuesday when it hosts Taunton. Mansfield Olver aelxi (2-2, 4-3) resumes action with its fifth straight home game, hosting King Philip at 6:30.

01/03/201801/04/2018

Strong Second Half Lifts Franklin Over CM

By Joe Clark, HockomockSports.com Student Reporter

FRANKLIN, Mass. – When the teams headed into the lockerroom for the halftime break, it looked as if the game was headed to a classic Franklin-Catholic Memorial finish that would come down to the final minutes.

But instead, Franklin came out swinging in the third quarter, outscoring the Knights 28-15 in the frame en route to a 74-60 win for the Panthers.

The third quarter started out similar to the first half as a back and forth affair. CM’s Kani Glover (seven points) opened the scoring up for the Knights, but Franklin sophomore Chris Edgehill (eight points) quickly responded with a three for the Panthers.

Anthony Morales (ten points, eight rebounds) responded back with a layup off a feed from Jarrett Martin (nine points). Jack Rodgers (career-high 18 points, four rebounds, five assists) scored for Franklin down the other end, and Martin hit an athletic layup seconds later to put CM up 37-36 with 6:03 left in the third quarter.

But from the 6:03 mark to the end of the third, Franklin finished with a 23-7 run that included five points apiece from Paul Rudolph (seven points off the bench) and Alex Klowan (eight points and four rebounds off the bench). At the end of the quarter, Edgehill buried a three from just inside half court as time expired to give Franklin a 13-point cushion to end the quarter.

“Chris’ three was huge, you don’t see that coming, it definitely brings a huge momentum into the fourth quarter, the guys were excited in the huddle, so we were ready to go,” said Franklin head coach CJ Neely about Edgehill’s three at the end of the third.

Franklin got off to a fast start as they held a 15-11 edge at the end of the first quarter. Rodgers had eight of his 18 in the first frame, while Jalen Samuels (nine points, ten rebounds) chipped in four points.

Catholic Memorial came back with 20 points in the second quarter, behind six points off two threes from Will McDonnell and seven points from Jarron Flynn (team-high 15 points, five assists, five rebounds). Matt Elias (14 points including four threes, five rebounds) had six points off of two threes for Franklin in the quarter.

One of the keys for Franklin was their senior leadership, as 57 of their 74 points came from seniors, including 18 from Rodgers, 14 from Elias, and ten from Paul Mahon (who also contributed seven rebounds and four assists). In addition, Klowan and Rudolph brought a spark off the bench, as both played big roles in Franklin’s third-quarter run that helped them put the game away.

“They’ve definitely seen CM before, so they know the deal, I think when you don’t play them you don’t get that type of refresher, they’re one of only a few teams than can press you like that and bother you, and when you haven’t seen it you get guys all over you and you can a little nervous throwing the ball around, but they knew it was coming, and we woke up this morning expecting pressure, so now they know it’s coming, they’ve seen it before, so I think it was huge to have them, and then Jalen and Chris have been in a lot of games for us in big moments, so they might as well be seniors at this point,” Neely added about Franklin’s senior leadership.

Since this was an exclusion game for Franklin, it will not count toward their tournament record. The Panthers (2-1 Hockomock, 6-1 overall) are scheduled to take on Oliver Ames (4-2) in their first Kelley-Rex matchup Friday night in Easton.

The Knights (3-3) will face Malden Catholic on the road on Friday Night. Franklin beat Malden Catholic 62-38 in a recent tournament game.