02/26/2020

KP Struggles to Find the Range In Loss at Feehan

King Philip girls basketball — King Philip struggled to find its shooting touch against Bishop Feehan in a playoff loss. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)

ATTLEBORO, Mass. – All season long, King Philip (12-9) has been a team of runs, turning one basket into two or three or four, grabbing momentum, and being able to turn a deficit into a lead in the blink of an eye. On Wednesday night in the opening round of the Div. 1 playoffs, Bishop Feehan never blinked.

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

Feehan demonstrated its familiarity with the Warriors press, took advantage of a tough shooting night, and made sure that KP never went on one of its runs, pulling out a 58-46 victory that gave the Shamrocks a place in the sectional quarterfinal and a win in the season series.

“Our biggest thing tonight was that even when we could get a make, we could never string two together or get a stop and then another basket,” said KP coach Dan Nagle. “We could never gain ground. We’d get it to nine and then we’d give up a layup or we’d miss a layup and instead of cutting it to seven they hit a three on the other end.

“The ability to string things together and connect the dots a little bit was missing tonight. “

It felt like the Warriors were running uphill right from the opening tip. Two weeks ago, when the teams last met, KP made 11 threes as a team. On Wednesday, KP made 11 shots total.

Faye Veilleux (game-high 19 points and 12 rebounds) scored four points in the first, but all at the line. Emma Glaser (five points) drilled a three for KP’s first made basket of the night and cut the Feehan lead down to 9-7. After the Shamrocks scored four straight, Faith Roy (10 points) got the basket for two but an Amanda Folan three made it 16-9 after one.

Things didn’t get any better offensively for KP in the second. Roy drove and set up Taylor Butler for a layup that cut the lead to 18-11 and then Roy got a bucket of her own off a nice pass from Brianna James.

Feehan responded with a 7-1 run to extend the lead out to double digits. KP managed to cut the lead down to eight after free throws from James and Veilleux. It was 25-17 at the break and it was hard not to feel that KP was fortunate to be still in the game and that the Warriors would have to improve in the second half.

Roy drilled a three from the corner that made it 27-21 and got the KP bench and fan section fired up and James followed a Feehan basket by grabbing an offensive rebound and turning it into two at the line. It was only a six-point game and it felt like maybe the Warriors were poised to click into gear.

Lydia Moradarski (16 points) had other ideas. She got a steal and layup and then buried a big three that pushed the hosts back in front by 12. Veilleux knocked down a pull-up jumper (her first made field goal in the game) but Feehan was able to beat the press and get a layup for Kyla Cunningham at the buzzer and went into the fourth quarter ahead 39-26.

“They’ve got good, young guards and they handled the pressure well,” Nagle explained. “They were ready. I mean, this is the third time they’ve seen us. They knew what was coming. We don’t really sneak up on anyone with what we do.”

With its high-octane style of play, even a 13-point deficit is not insurmountable for KP and the Warriors had opportunities in the final eight minutes to make it a much closer game, but still the shots just wouldn’t fall.

The Warriors scored 20 points in the fourth, but allowed Feehan to score 19 and never got closer than nine.

“I thought our kids played really hard,” said Nagle, “it just wasn’t our night shooting the ball. It was tough sledding.”

Roy again started the quarter with a big three that gave the Warriors a lift, but the Shamrocks always seemed to have an answer. Veilleux drove and made a tough layup and, after Feehan scored on the other end, freshman Claire Keswick hit a corner three to cut the lead down to 47-38 with 4:21 to go.

The teams were trading points. Veilleux, who scored 10 in the fourth quarter, got a put-back for two but Feehan got two at the line and went on a 9-3 run that essentially killed off the game. Veilleux added a long three in the closing seconds to win the quarter for KP and make the final deficit 12 points.

Nagle said, “We were just kind of waiting for the run to happen because that’s who we’ve been all year but tonight it just didn’t happen. It doesn’t take away what we’ve been able to accomplish this year. I’m really proud of everyone on the team and I’m really looking forward to this team’s future.”

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

01/16/202001/18/2020

Friday’s Schedule & Scoreboard – 01/17/20

Today’s games are listed below.

Boys Basketball
Taunton, 46 @ Attleboro, 52 – Final – Click here for a recap and photo gallery of this game.

Canton, 39 @ North Attleboro, 54 – Final – North Attleboro’s defense limited the visiting Bulldogs to single digits in each of the first two quarters and finished strong in the fourth to pick up a win. The Rocketeers had their best offensive quarter to start the game as four players found the scoring column to build a 17-5 lead. North junior George Ladd scored 15 of his team-high 17 points in the first half while Edan Kelley added seven of his 10 points in the first two quarters. Josh Porter, Tommy Whalen, Brody Rosenberg, Jared Vacher, and Ethan Friberg (eight points) all scored in the fourth to help the Rocketeers secure the win. Matt Giglio and Eric Mischler each scored eight points for Canton.

Foxboro, 70 @ Sharon, 50 – Final – Foxboro scored 18 or more points in three quarters on its way to a big win on the road over Sharon. The Warriors exploded for 23 points in the opening eight minutes and responded well when the Eagles closed the deficit to five points early in the third quarter. Foxboro led 34-24 at halftime and extended that advantage to 52-40 after three quarters. Senior Brandon Borde scored all of his team-high 20 points in the first three quarters while senior Ryan Hughes closed the game strong with nine of his 17 points in the fourth quarter. Donald Rogers added 14 points and Kevin Gallagher chipped in with nine for Foxboro. Caleb Gayle paced Sharon with 16 points.

Oliver Ames, 54 @ Franklin, 57 – Final – Senior Chris Edgehill scored a season-high 26 points and the Panthers held off a late rally from Oliver Ames to get the win. Oliver Ames held a 17-11 lead after a quarter of play and took a 24-23 advantage into halftime but Franklin used a big third quarter to take the lead for good. The Panthers poured in 23 points in the third with senior Brayden Sullivan scoring nine of his 11 points in the frame and both Edgehill and Steven Karayan hit from three to give Franklin a 46-37 lead heading into the fourth. OA had a shot to tie it at the buzzer but it was off the mark. Evan Craig scored a team-high 13 points for OA, Owen Friel added 12 points, Jay Spillane chipped in with 11 points, and Ryan Burkett added 10 points for the Tigers.

Mansfield, 71 @ King Philip, 66 – Final – Mansfield closed the third quarter on a 12-5 run to turn a deficit into a lead and held on for a close win on the road at KP. The Warriors took a 45-40 lead in the third quarter but the Hornets got three-pointers from Sam Stevens (30 points), Jason See (eight points), and freshman Chris Hill to seize a 52-50 lead after three quarters. Stevens added two more threes in the fourth quarter and TJ Guy scored half of his 12 points in the final frame to help the Hornets close the door. KP senior Robert Jarest scored a career-high 22 points, including 13 in the first quarter. Chris Roy added a career-high 16 points for KP while Alex Fritz finished with 13 points.

Stoughton, 67 @ Milford, 60 – Final – Stoughton led at the end of each quarter and five Black Knights scored in the fourth to help secure a key division win on the road. Stoughton led 19-16 after a quarter, took a 33-31 edge into halftime, and held a 49-43 advantage through 24 minutes of action. In the fourth, senior Obinna Ugwuakazi scored six of his team-high 22 points in the fourth, Myles Grigalunas-Powell added three points in the fourth, Tahkwan Gates Brown added half of his eight points in the fourth, Tommy Sanda (eight points) drained a three, and Brett Pendenza scored a basket. Pendenza scored a career-high 15 points to give Stoughton a big boost, including three three-pointers between the second and third quarters. Jordan Darling led Milford with 17 points, Ben Blanchard added 16 points, and Colby Pires finished with 11 points.

Girls Basketball
Attleboro, 66 @ Taunton, 62 – Final (OT) – Meghan Gordon scored a career-high 20 points to power the Bombardiers to an overtime win at Taunton. In a game that went back-and-forth right to the final whistle, Nyah Thomas scored 19 and Liv McCall scored 10 for the visitors. Attleboro shot 7-of-9 from the line in the extra period to pull out the win. Kameron St. Pierre scored a game-high 22 points for the Tigers and Jaelyn Fernandez added 20, but Taunton wasn’t able to make enough plays down the stretch of regulation or OT to pull out the victory.

North Attleboro, 53 @ Canton, 48 – Final – North used a big third quarter to grab control of the game heading into the fourth and then held off Canton to pull out a big road win. The Bulldogs led 20-15 at the break, but North won the third quarter 25-12 to take a 40-32 lead into the final eight minutes. Amanda Kaiser was the star for the North offense. Kaiser wasn’t feeling well coming into the game and had only two points at halftime, but she exploded for 19 of her team’s 25 points in the third, burying five threes in a row. She scored 24 of her game-high 26 in the second half. “She was in a zone and we just let her go with it,” said North coach Nikki Correia. “When a shooter gets that hot you just create space for them and give them the green light.” Summer Doherty was clutch at the line in the final quarter, hitting 7-of-7 down the stretch to help North hold on.

Sharon, 24 @ Foxboro, 66 – Final – Foxboro made it three straight wins with another strong defensive performance and four players scoring in double digits. Lizzy Davis paced the offense with 14 points and Katelyn Mollica scored 12. Forwards Yara Fawaz and Abby Hassman each scored 10 points in the win.

Franklin, 71 @ Oliver Ames, 41 – Final – Click here for a Recap and Photo Gallery from this game.

King Philip, 55 @ Mansfield, 59 – Final – Neither team led by more than four points at any point in a game that was back-and-forth throughout. Becca Hottleman knocked down a free throw that put the Hornets up by two with less than a minute to play and then a Mansfield steal turned into a Kayla Vine layup for a four-point edge with 20 seconds to play. Vine led the way for the Hornets with another 20-point night. Ashley Santos added nine and Brooke Berube scored eight. Claire Keswick was the top scorer for KP with 12 points. Faith Roy and Emma Glaser each scored eight for the Warriors. Mansfield led by a single point after one quarter and at halftime, extended it two by the end of the third quarter and then scored 19 points in the fourth to pull out the win.

Milford, 31 @ Stoughton, 57 – Final – Stoughton used a balanced attack to pick up a key win over a division foe in visiting Milford. Shyanne Trinh had 14 points, Aliyah Wright added 13 points, and Jess Maddalena finished with 11 points. Kyla Sheedy-Goff was a force defensively with six blocks for the Black Knights.

Boys Swimming
Attleboro, 35 @ Taunton, 59 – Final
Stoughton @ Canton, 7:00
Milford @ Foxboro, 7:00
King Philip @ Franklin, 7:00
North Attleboro, 49 @ Sharon, 74 – Final

Girls Swimming
Attleboro, 53 @ Taunton, 41 – Final – Attleboro’s Ella Lynch-Bartek and Brenna O’Connell finished first and second, respectively, in both the 50 free and 100 free to help the Bombardiers pick up a win over Taunton. Lynch-Bartek qualified for sectionals with her time in the 100 free. Faith Morrison added a win in the 500 free and Jackie Lynch-Bartek took first int he 100 breaststroke. Attleboro’s 200 free relay team of Jackie Lynch-Bartek, Ella Lynch-Bartek, Brenna O’Connell, and Rachel Priestley placed first.

Stoughton @ Canton, 7:00

Milford @ Foxboro, 7:00

King Philip @ Franklin, 7:00

North Attleboro, 73 @ Sharon, 85 – Final

Girls Gymnastics
Attleboro @ King Philip, 7:30
Canton @ Taunton, 8:00
North Attleboro @ Mansfield, 7:00

Boys Gymnastics
Attleboro vs. Burlington, 7:00

01/10/202001/11/2020

Friday’s Schedule & Scoreboard – 01/10/20

Today’s games are listed below.

Boys Basketball
King Philip, 54 @ Attleboro, 62 – Final – Attleboro senior Bryant Ciccio connected on a key three-pointer in the final minutes of the game and went 5-for-6 from the free throw line in the final quarter to help the Bombardiers pull out a win over visiting King Philip. With the game tied 42-42 through 24 minutes of action, Ciccio netted eight of his team-high 15 points in the final quarter while classmate Qualeem Charles (12 rebounds) netted half of his 12 points in the fourth. Nick McMahon (nine points) and Jason Weir (six rebounds) also had key buckets in the fourth for Attleboro. King Philip, which led by three after a quarter (19-16) and outscored the hosts in the third to bring the game even heading into the fourth, got 25 points from senior Alex Fritz while classmate Andrew McKinney added 10 points.

Sharon, 43 @ Canton, 60 – Final – Canton won each quarter but it was its lopsided second quarter that created the necessary separation to secure a win over visiting Sharon. The Dogs held a 14-11 lead through eight minutes but limited the Eagles to just five points in the second while its offense produced its best frame of the game with 17 points, creating a 31-16 advantage at halftime. Junior Eric Mischler drained three of his five triples in the second quarter, totaling 11 of his career-high 25 points in the frame to help Canton create its big lead. Nick Cushman gave the Bulldogs a big boost, scoring nine second half points while senior Kyle Fitzgerald scored all seven of his points after the break. Andrew Burton scored a team-high 12 points for the Eagles, who were limited to just one three-pointer in the second half and three total for the game. Caleb Gayle added 10 points for Sharon.

Stoughton, 46 @ Foxboro, 64 – Final – Foxboro had one of its best offensive quarters of the season, exploding for 26 points in the third quarter to turn a close game into a runaway win over visiting Stoughton. The Warriors built a 16-10 lead through eight minutes and took a 26-19 advantage into the locker room at halftime. A 7-0 run to start the third sparked the big quarter as Foxboro held a 52-35 advantage with one quarter to play. Senior Brandon Borde scored seven of his team-high 21 points in the third, Ryan Hughes had six of his nine points, Will Morrison (10 points) drained a pair of three-pointers, and Kevin Gallagher added a trifecta of his own. Senior Tahkwan Gates Brown netted a team-high 16 points and grabbed nine rebounds to pace the Black Knights. Ahmad Jahed and Myles Grigalunas-Powell each chipped in with eight points.

Franklin, 52 @ Taunton, 83 – Final – Click here for a recap and photo gallery of this game.

Milford, 56 @ North Attleboro, 46 – Final – Milford built its lead over the first two quarters and got key contributions up and down the lineup to stay in front the rest of the way. The Scarlet Hawks jumped ahead 19-12 after a quarter and pushed the advantage to 29-20 at halftime. Milford senior Colby Pires scored 13 of his career-high 23 points in the first quarter whole Ralph Franklin Jr. (eight points) and Matty Varteresian (six points) combined to score all 10 of Milford’s second quarter points. Pires went back to work in the third, hitting two more threes while Jordan Darling and Dom Schofield also scored to keep Milford up 43-33 going into the fourth. Junior Ben Blanchard helped put the game away with an early three, scoring eight of his 10 points in the fourth. Junior Edan Kelley scored a career-high 17 points to pace the Rocketeers, who were without leading scorer George Ladd (illness). Ethan Friberg added 13 points for North.

Mansfield, 71 @ Oliver Ames, 59 – Final – Trailing at halftime and holding just a one-point lead after three quarters of action, the Hornets used a strong start to the fourth quarter to pull away from the win. Five Hornets factored into the fourth quarter scoring with senior Sam Stevens scoring seven of his 19 points, junior TJ Guy adding six of his 20 points, and Cincere Gill giving the visitors a boost with five of his seven points. Drew Rooney (seven points) and Matt Boen (16 points) also scored in the fourth, a period in which the Hornets won 22-11. Oliver Ames had a 24-point second quarter to take a halftime lead. Junior Amari Brown scored seven of his game-high 24 points in the second while Jay Spillane had seven of his 12 points and Ryan Burkett netted six of his 11 points.

Girls Basketball
Attleboro, 44 @ King Philip, 62 – Final – KP broke the game open by winning the third quarter 18-6 and pushing the lead out to double digits. Emma Glaser was the top scorer for the Warriors with 14 points. Faye Veilleux and Claire Keswick each scored 11 in the win.

Canton, 44 @ Sharon, 20 – Final – Canton locked down on the defensive end in the fourth quarter, holding the Eagles to just two points and running away with a road win. The Bulldogs led by only two points after one quarter (8-6) and extended that to six (17-11) low-scoring first half. Canton held Sharon to single digits in all four quarters and extended the lead to 28-18 heading into the final eight minutes. Fay Gallery paced the visitors with 15 points and Kiara Cerruti scored 10. Lilah Milton added eight points and freshman Erin Beatty made her varsity debut and added to the team’s strong defense in the fourth.

Foxboro, 79 @ Stoughton, 39 – Final – Click here for a Photo Gallery from this game. For the second time this season, Foxboro shutout an opponent in the first quarter, while scoring more than 20 points of their own. The Warriors raced out to a 23-0 lead after the opening eight minutes, extending the lead to 31-0 before Stoughton got on the board. Foxboro led 49-11 at halftime. The second half was just about even, with the Black Knights continuing to battle despite the deficit. Katelyn Mollica scored 27 points through three quarters, burying seven three-pointers in the process, but Foxboro had a number of players step up. Jamie DeVellis came off the bench and scored 11 points, Lizzy Davis scored 10 points, and Hannah Blake scored nine. Abby Hassman (nine rebounds and five assists), Shakirah Ketant (eight rebounds) and Yara Fawaz (11 rebounds and six assists) each scored six points. Shyanne Trinh scored 22 points over the final three quarters and Aliyah Wright added seven points (six in the fourth quarter).

Taunton, 18 @ Franklin, 66 – Final – Ali Brigham scored 17 points and Olivia Quinn added 12 to help the Panthers continue their unbeaten start to the season.

Oliver Ames, 58 @ Mansfield, 38 – Final – The Tigers took control from the start, leading 18-4 after the first quarter and 33-12 at the half to earn a road win and extend their win streak to four. Caroline Peper scored 13 to lead the way for OA, while Tate Hadges and Jess Erlich each scored nine. For the second straight game, Kayla Vine scored 20 points to lead Mansfield. Ashley Santos chipped in with eight in the loss.

North Attleboro, 53 @ Milford, 23 – Final – North Attleboro tossed a shutout in the second quarter, outscoring the Hawks 15-0 in the frame, and allowed only two points in the first half. Big Red led 24-2 at the break, but Milford won the third quarter 11-10. North pulled away with 19 points in the fourth. Amanda Kaiser caught fire from three-point range, knocking down five shots from beyond the arc, on her way to a game-high 19 points. Regan Fein scored 15 and Summer Doherty scored 11 in the win. North coach Nikki Correia praised her team’s full-court defense and the control that the Rocketeers played with on the other end.

Boys Swimming
Canton @ North Attleboro, 7:00
Sharon @ Foxboro, 7:00
Mansfield, 73 @ Franklin, 92 – Final
Milford @ Stoughton, 6:00

Girls Swimming
Canton @ North Attleboro, 7:00
Sharon @ Foxboro, 7:00
Mansfield, 56 @ Franklin, 107 – Final
Milford @ Stoughton, 6:00

12/28/2019

KP Sets Frenetic Pace to Outlast North Attleboro

NORTH ATTLEBORO, Mass. – Even on nights when the shots aren’t falling, playing with the type of frenetic style that King Philip imposed on Friday night’s game at North Attleboro’s Pickering Gym means that even with a low shooting percentage teams can put up plenty of points.

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.

KP put that theory into practice on Friday, pulling out a 65-56 non-league victory against North despite both teams struggling to hold onto the ball or knock down shots from the floor or from the line (combined 30-of-59 on free throws).

“I thought we missed a lot of shots that we usually make but to still score 65 and get up and down like we did is a testament to our pace,” KP coach Dan Nagle explained. “I thought we just played hard and battled through some adversity.”

Both teams like to run, but this was not just about getting out in transition. KP pressured, trapped, and harassed the Rocketeers the length of the court, taking advantage of its depth to maintain the pace throughout the 32 minutes.

While it was a game played to KP’s strengths, North hung around, falling behind by as many as 16 points in the third quarter but then getting as close as seven in the fourth.

“They’re fast and under control,” said North coach Nikki Correia. “We’re fast and a little out of control right now. I kept having to remind them we’re in this game guys, settle down. Too much hanging our heads. I’m trying to get them used to the running so they can play through it.”

The hosts jumped out to an early 6-0 lead by breaking the KP press. Olivia Forbes (six points and five assists) set up Regan Fein for a jumper, Amanda Kaiser hit a pull-up jumper in transition and Eliza Dion got an easy basket on the break.

North couldn’t sustain the momentum and the Warriors started to turn the screw defensively, finishing the first on a 12-1 run. Seven different players scored in the first. Freshman Claire Keswick put KP in front for good with an offensive rebound that made it 9-7. Another putback, this time by Emma Glaser (nine points and six boards) closed out the quarter.

KP continued to build the lead in the second. Brianna James (team-high 15 points) hit a pair of threes and Faye Veilleux (seven points and eight rebounds) got a layup on the break to put the Warriors up 22-9 and seemingly on the brink of breaking the game wide open.

The Rocketeers battled back, cutting the lead to as few as six. Kaiser (16 points and seven rebounds) got a pair of baskets in transition, first on a Dion assist and then one off a steal. Dion added six of her game-high 19 points in the quarter, including four points at the line.

James closed the half with a swooping layup that made it 31-21 at the break. The teams had combined for 24 fouls in the first half alone and went a combined 14-for-32 at the charity stripe. If either team could’ve made their foul shots, then the game may have turned out differently.

“At half we were down 10 and we had missed 10 free throws,” Correia said. “That’s the difference right there. A lot of them were short because their legs were shot.”

The second half had a similar pattern, as KP extended its lead to as many as 16 points on two occasions. Kaiser buried a pair of threes in the third to make it 40-30, but then KP answered back with threes from Courtney Keswick and Elizabeth Molla to push the lead out.

“I’ve asked her to play their best offensive girl, so on offense she’s tired,” Correia said of Kaiser. “She’s running and she’s working, so we have to try and figure out ways to take some of that off her on the defensive end so we can get her going on the offensive end.”

North made another run to close the gap before the end of the quarter. Dion continued to be a force in the paint for the hosts, scoring nine points in the third. Correia said, “Very proud of Eliza, how hard she fought inside and the finishing, which is what we need. The little things I’m starting to see like that is what we need going forward.”

After a pair of offensive rebounds by Fein kept a possession alive for the Rocketeers, Forbes nailed a three that made it just 49-41. Keswick was there to answer back with another three of her own to make it an 11-point game heading to the fourth.

A pair of free throws by Fein and a putback by Kaiser had North within seven early in the fourth, but Glaser got free in the corner on a Veilleux kick out to make the lead double digits and Liv Lafond added three more with an offensive rebound and the foul. Rebounding was a big edge for the Warriors, with Taylor Butler and Emily Sawyer each grabbing 11 on the night.

“We pride ourselves of getting after it on the offensive glass and I thought we did a great job 1-14 of getting to the glass,” said Nagle, who referenced the team’s poor shooting night when he added, “You’ve got to go rebound it if you miss it.”

Freshman Ava McKeon went behind her back to slice through the KP press for a layup. Fein knocked down a jumper on an inbound play, and Summer Doherty got free for a layup, as North was proving hard to put away. But time ran out on the comeback attempt, as Faith Roy’s (seven points) late drive to the rim sealed the win for the Warriors.

“Her kids never quit and they kept coming back,” Nagle said. “Every time I thought we were going to put them away, I’d look up and it’s an eight-point game again. It was punch, counterpunch.”

King Philip (3-1) will travel to Bishop Feehan for another non-league game on Monday, while North Attleboro (1-3) is off until after the New Year when it travels to division rival Sharon.

Click here for a photo gallery from this game.