Thursday, January 4, 2007 Older Editions

AHS ROUNDUP: Never a dull moment

By Rick Harrison

No one can accuse the Andover High boys and girls hoop teams of playing dull basketball.

Inspired, tenacious and intense are more apt to come to mind when watching both local quintets perform.

Although both were defeated for the first time this season during the holiday break - they placed second and fourth respectively in their versions of the eight-team, week-long Greater Lawrence Christmas Tournaments.

Coach Dave Fazio's surprising boys squad, overlooked and under-appreciated when the season started, battled to their first tourney final in nine years before dropping a 58-51 decision to Lawrence High at host North Andover's Crozier Field House.

The Golden Warriors reached the final with a pair of anxiety-inducing five- and three-point wins over North Andover and Salem, N.H.

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Coach Jim Tildsley's girls crew, automatic tourney champ almost every year including the last seven in a row, had its long reign halted when MVC Division 1 archrival Lowell - a first-year GL entry after playing in the Tyngsboro Coca-Cola Christmas Classic - nipped the locals 62-61 in the semifinals at Methuen High.

Lowell went on to rout Central Catholic in the title game, 58-33, while disappointed AHS dropped a 50-48 decision to Pinkerton Academy of Derry, N.H. in the third-place consolation game.

It marked the first time the Lady Warriors suffered back-to-back losses since the 1999-2000 campaign, when Somerville (57-47) and Braintree (69-59) turned the trick on consecutive days in the mid-season MediaOne Tournament Jan. 15 and 16, 2000.

Those turned out to be the locals' only two regular-season setbacks (18-2 record) that winter.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

The extremely-rare double-tournament loss for the Andover High girls may be a blessing in disguise - if the Lady Warriors can use the impact of those tough setbacks to harden their resolve, fuel their desire and focus their attention on what needs to be done the rest of their season.

The defeat to Lowell snapped Andover's 26-game regular-season win streak, and was the second straight down-to-the-wire nailbiter against the Red Raiders, who knocked AHS out of the Division 1 North Tournament last March with a second-round 44-42 overtime triumph.

The tourney results, which also included a quarterfinal round triumph over Lawrence, left the Lady Warriors at 5-2 overall.

Junior guard Laura Renfro was named to the All-Tournament Team after scoring a team-best 44 points in the three games.

Schedule

AHS doesn't have long to wait to avenge the loss to Lowell, returning to MVC play tomorrow (Friday) with a chomping-at-the-bit rematch against Lowell at the Dunn Gym (7:30 p.m.).

It's an opportunity to get some immediate payback and jump into the driver's seat in Division 1 of the Merrimack Valley Conference.

The locals then play just one more time over a 13-day stretch, traveling to Chelmsford next Thursday, Jan. 11.

Scoring leaders

Laura Renfro has exactly 100 points in seven games (14.3 ave.), while Meghan Thomann boasts 80, Maggie Cosgrove 69, Lauren Hughes 57 and Ilana Cohen 42.

Greater Lawrence Christmas Tournament

Semifinal Round

Lowell 62

Andover 61

"Every time we play Lowell it's going to be a war," said coach Tildsley shortly after this heartbreaking loss. "This was a great high school basketball game. Both teams played well. It was fast-paced and yet there were only 19 turnovers - 8 by us and 11 by Lowell.

"They're huge and that size hurt us at times. It was a game of runs. We'd take a five-point lead - and a couple minutes later they'd be up by four. It just went back and forth like that the whole game.

"We didn't shoot particularly well from the floor (20-for-61, 32 percent)," said Tildsley. "They were much better (23-for-56, 41 percent)."

The locals were sharp at the free-throw line, however, converting 14-of-16 which helped keep them close.

The Lady Warriors came out of the gate fast, racing to an 11-0 lead and threatening to blow Lowell out of the building.

The Red Raiders called two timeouts in the first four minutes in an attempt to regroup.

"They came back very quickly," said Tildsley. "To their credit - they didn't panic."

By halftime the AHS lead had been whittled down to two points, 27-25.

There were several lead changes over the opening eight minutes of the final half.

Junior guard Laura Renfro buried a three-pointer with 7:30 left in the game to give Andover a 47-42 lead.

A subsequent 7-1 Lowell run, capped by a Meaghan Cavanaugh lay-up, put the Red Raiders on top, 49-48, with 5:58 to play.

Buckets by Kelley Rogers and Christine McCall made it 53-48 Lowell with 4:53 remaining.

Meghan Thomann then caught fire for the locals, sandwiching a pair of treys and two free throws around a Lauren Hughes lay-up as AHS battled back with a 10-2 burst to grab a 58-55 advantage.

McCall countered with a trifecta and two free throws to make it 62-58 Lowell with 1:07 on the clock.

The last of Thomann's five three-pointers, with 33 seconds to go, brought it back to 62-61.

Neither team scored again, although the Lady Warriors' full-court press forced a Lowell turnover with 29 seconds left.

Andover missed a short jumper with 27 seconds remaining, and the final gasp came after an AHS rebound of a missed shot with 12 seconds to go.

"Our final setup was not the best - and the only shot we got off just before the buzzer wasn't a good one," said Tildsley.

The desperation heave nicked the rim as Lowell, playing in this tournament for the first time and improving to 5-0, held on for the victory and advanced to the championship final against Central Catholic.

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Thomann led three AHS players into double figures with a game-high 20 points, while Hughes contributed 14, and Renfro 12.

Thomann also had four assists, Hughes nine rebounds, two assists and Renfro two assists.

Maggie Cosgrove finished with nine points, six assists and two steals, while Camille Fantini added six points, eight boards.

Countering for Lowell were Kelley Rogers with 16 points, McCall and Cavanaugh 12 each and Ashley Rivera 11.

McCall, after not taking a shot in the first half, scored all 12 of hers in the final 16 minutes.

"Christine struggled in the first half," said Lowell coach Mike Crowley. "As we were coming out of the locker room to start the second half - I tapped her on the shoulder and told her she was going to end up winning the game for us."

"Andover is such a good team," said McCall. "So hard to beat. We were really nervous at the start and it showed."

This was only the third time in 12 years, spanning 30 games, that Lowell has beaten AHS in girls hoop.

Third-Place Consolation

Pinkerton Academy 50

Andover 48

Relegated to the unfamiliar confines of the anti-climactic, third-place consolation game, AHS fell just short for the second straight night.

The 48 points marked the first time this season the locals scored fewer than 61.

The Lady Warriors were protecting a one-point, 18-17, lead at the end of the low-scoring first half. But Pinkerton slowly built a six-point advantage (46-40) late in the second half before holding on for the victory.

Laura Renfro paced the Lady Warriors with 18 points, sharing game-high honors, while Meghan Thomann also hit twin digits with 12.

Maggie Cosgrove contributed six points, Lauren Hughes four and Ilana Cohen three.

Jordy Shoemaker and Camille Fantini netted a basket each and Amanda Fantini converted a free throw to round out the attack.

Brittni Wilson, who notched four crucial free throws down the stretch, shared game-high point honors with 18 which included 14 in the second half.

A.J. Guidi tossed in 13 points and guard Nicole Corso was a thorn-in-the-side defensive standout for the Astros.

Pinkerton outscored Andover 14-6 at the free throw line.

BOYS BASKETBALL

The Andover High boys varsity basketball team opened a few more eyes - and escorted a few more believers onto the bandwagon - after three entertaining vacation-week performances in the 32nd Greater Lawrence Christmas Tournament.

The locals then returned to Merrimack Valley Conference play Tuesday night with a 72-43 road romp against crossover foe Tewksbury, boosting their record to 6-1 overall and 4-0 in conference play.

The Golden Warriors, with only one returning starter and three seniors on the roster, have been a pleasant revelation thus far.

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Senior guard and team Capt. Ian Dempsey, who scored 57 points in the three GL tourney games, was named to the All-Tournament Team.

Senior guard Jason Perry was the AHS Coaches Award recipient.

Schedule

Tomorrow (Friday) night the Golden Warriors play their fifth straight road game at Central Catholic (7-1, 4-0 league), a key MVC 1 contest, and next Tuesday night Chelmsford is at the Dunn Gym for the first of four consecutive home games (both 7:30 p.m.).

Chelmsford (4-4) stunned Greater Lowell Holiday Tournament champion Lowell High with a 66-64 upset victory Tuesday night.

Scoring leaders

Ian Dempsey boasts 138 points through the first seven games (19.7 ave.), while Tristan Shannon has 75, Derrick Beasley 44 and Greg Cook 42.

Andover 72

Tewksbury 43

It took the locals most of the first half to get in sync, as they trailed host Tewksbury 19-17 with 90 seconds left in the period.

A 9-0 burst over that late stretch gave AHS a 26-19 lead at the half, and the Golden Warriors owned the second half with a wide 46-24 scoring edge.

Ten players contributed to the offense, senior six-foot guard and Capt. Ian Dempsey again leading the way with a game-high 21 points.

Senior guard Jason Perry also reached double digits with 10 points, while juniors Tristan Shannon, Chris Abreu and Zach Burdeau netted nine, eight and eight points respectively.

Derrick Beasley chipped in with six points, Greg Cook four, Sam Hutchins three, Peter White a field goal and Gordon DuBois a free throw.

For TMHS, 2-5 overall and 1-4 in MVC Division 2, junior guard Jim Mazzapica finished with a team-high 15 points, junior guard Mike Ferriero added 12 points and five steals, senior forward Brian Sullivan 10 points and senior 6'5" center Pat Sugrue had 10 rebounds.

The 72 points are a season high, surpassing the previous best of 65 posted Dec. 12 in the opener versus Methuen.

AHS has also held three opponents to 45 points or less.

Greater Lawrence

Christmas Tournament

Semifinal Round

Andover 61

Salem, N.H. 58

Fueled by Ian Dempsey's career-high 29 points, the Golden Warriors battled to the championship game with this tight triumph over former AHS standout guard E.J. Perry's previously-undefeated Salem crew.

Overcoming a so-so defensive performance, the Golden Warriors trailed by two at the half (30-28) and traded leads with the Blue Devils numerous times over the final 16 minutes.

As the clock wound down the quietly effective Dempsey spotted junior forward Zach Burdeau under the hoop for a layup that snapped a 56-56 tie and put the locals ahead to stay.

Junior swingman Greg Cook followed with the winning basket, making it 60-56 with 29 seconds to go.

But the victory wasn't assured until a three-point attempt by Salem at the buzzer rolled off the rim to prevent overtime and preserve the victory.

Dempsey hit on a variety of shots from all over the court, including a trio of treys, to continually frustrate Salem and blunt a couple of Blue Devil runs.

No one else reached double figures for the winners, whose second leading marksman was Cook with seven points.

Derrick Beasley and Burdeau contributed six points each, while junior guard Sam Hutchins added five, junior forwards Tristan Shannon and Chris Abreu three apiece and Gordon DuBois two.

Andover helped Salem stay in contention until the end by converting only seven of 17 free throw attempts.

Leading the way for the Blue Devils were Josh Jones with 24 points, Stephen Savage 12 and Brian White 11.

Championship Game

Lawrence 58

Andover 51

The Golden Warriors treated the opposing Lancers (5-1) and a bipartisan crowd of more than 2,000 fans to another rock-solid effort that fell just short.

It was the latest in a string of tight early-season contests for the locals, who trailed 23-21 at the half and fought an uphill battle after a fast break-fueled 14-2 Lawrence run early in the second half gave the champs a 39-25 lead.

Greg Cook led the comeback, as Andover held a 26-19 scoring edge over the last 10 minutes and cut the deficit to as few as four points several times in the final four minutes.

Leading the offensive charge for the locals were Ian Dempsey, who was hassled and shadowed all night by several quick Lawrence guards, and Cook with 13 points each.

Tristan Shannon contributed eight points, Derrick Beasley six, Zach Burdeau four, and Jason Perry three.

Gordon DuBois and Chris Abreu rounded out the attack with a basket each.

The Lancers, who registered a minor upset over Central Catholic in the semifinals, finished with three players in double figures. Jesus Moore was game-high with 17 points, Mariano Fortunato added 13, and Raphael Candelario 13.

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This week's recipient of the Player of the Fortnight award is Greg Cook. Coach Dave Fazio praised Cook's great overall contributions to the team. "Greg is a junior who is contributing very solidly to our team this year. He is having a strong season both offensively and defensively, and he has shown himself to be selfless in all aspects of his play, and is a great asset to our team."

The next Player of the Fortnight award, this time to a girls team player, will be announced next week.

BOYS HOCKEY

The Andover High boys varsity hockey team picked up a pair of victories in three vacation-week games at the annual Salem, N.H. Blue Devil Christmas Classic.

A 3-1 loss to Pinkerton Academy of Derry, N.H., in the middle contest cost the Golden Warriors a berth in the championship game.

It was sandwiched between a pair of 4-3 wins over New Hampshire schools Timberlane Regional of Plaistow (overtime) and Oyster River of Durham.

AHS emerged from the tourney with a 3-1-1 overall record.

Schedule

The Golden Warriors were back on the ice last night (Wednesday), after Townsman presstime, with a Merrimack Valley/Dual County League Division 2 game against Lincoln-Sudbury at the Valley Sports Arena in West Concord.

This Saturday evening the locals play the fifth of six straight road games versus MV/DCL 2 rival Haverhill High at Veterans Rink in Haverhill (6 p.m.). The Hillies are the reigning division champs.

Scoring leaders

Tucker Mullin is the overall points leader with 12, on four goals and eight assists, while top goalscorer John Hyslip has seven and four assists for 11 points through five games.

Salem, N.H. Blue Devil

Christmas Classic

First Round

Andover 4

Timberlane Regional 3 (OT)

Capts. Colin Brennan and Tucker Mullin scored goals in the double-overtime shootout, while goaltender Dan Abreu made a pair of key pad saves as the Golden Warriors broke a 3-3 tie and posted this hard-fought victory in their tourney opener.

With the teams locked in a 3-3 tie at the end of regulation and a five-minute sudden-death OT, the game was decided with the shootout.

Each team picked three players to skate 1-on-1 against the goalie, penalty-shot style.

The rivals alternated rushes, with AHS going first, and after Brennan pocketed the puck it was Abreu with a left pad save as the locals took a 1-0 shootout lead.

Mullin scored on Andover's second try - but Timberlane also connected to keep its hopes alive.

The Golden Warriors' third shooter did not score, setting the stage for Abreu to flash out his right leg for a pad save that clinched a 2-1 advantage in the shootout and victory in the game.

"We came out flying and played a great first period," said head coach Mario Martiniello.

Andover grabbed a 2-0 lead in the opening seven minutes, Mullin scoring at 3:41 from defenseman Dan Godefroi and P.J. Paonessa following at 6:12 with the assist to Brennan.

Mullin's tally came when his shot beat the Owls' goalie upstairs on the glove side.

"Paonessa's goal was typical P.J. style," said Martiniello. "It involved a lot of digging in the corners and hustle around the net."

Timberlane shifted the momentum when Zack Fox netted an unassisted power play goal with just five seconds left in the period.

"That goal at the end of the first inspired them, for sure," said Martiniello. "They dominated the second period."

Timberlane took a 3-2 lead on a pair of power play goals by Luke Goulet just 70 seconds apart, the equalizer at 9:00 and the go-ahead marker at 10:10.

"It was the first time we fell behind this season," said Martiniello. "But our guys dug down deep to pull out the tie and force the shootout."

Junior center John Hyslip made it 3-3 just 1:53 into the third session, setups to Mullin and junior defenseman Kevin Drew.

The trio worked the puck out of the corner and Hyslip eventually tied it with a snap shot to the short side.

"The third period was a little tilted in our favor," said Martiniello, whose club actually held a wide 13-6 shooting advantage in the final 15 minutes of regulation.

AHS finished with a 30-20 shooting edge. Junior Nick Drew played the first two periods in net and made 11 saves, while Abreu played the third stanza, overtime and shootout and made six stops.

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The overtime and shootout were held to determine a winner for purposes of setting up the remaining tournament pairings.

Since the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) does not recognize overtime periods in regular season games, Andover must officially count this result as a tie on its record.

Second Round

Pinkerton Academy 3

Andover 1

The Golden Warriors had trouble generating goals, outshooting Pinkerton 19-16 at the Icenter but scoring only once while suffering their first defeat of the young season.

The Astros played strong defense - and scored once in each period - with two of the goals netted by Mike Richard who also set up the other tally by Jason Carace.

AHS got on the board with just two seconds left in the middle stanza, sophomore forward Cam Smith emerging from a scramble in front of the net to jam the puck home for his second goal of the season.

Smith's power play connection was assisted by John Hyslip.

Pinkerton did a good job protecting its slim 2-1 advantage until Richard slipped the insurance goal into an empty net during the final minute of the game.

AHS senior goaltender Dan Abreu finished with 13 saves, while Pinkerton netminder Jason Aguiar was a factor with 18 stops.

Consolation Round

Andover 4

Oyster River 3

Four players scored a goal each for the locals, who escaped a wide-open first period with a 3-2 lead before holding their Durham, N.H., rival scoreless in the second, and trading goals in the third.

Contributing the markers for Andover were Kevin Drew, Tucker Mullin, John Hyslip and P.J. Paonessa.

Paonessa's goal with less than final minutes left snapped a 3-3 tie and proved to be the game-winner.

Mullin also passed out a pair of assists for the locals, while Colin Brennan and Dan Godefroi added one each.

Dan Abreu was instrumental in the victory with 27 saves, as OR finished with a 30-26 shooting edge.

For Oyster River, one of the top teams in New Hampshire Division 2, the loss left them at 4-2-1 overall including 3-0-1 in-state.

GIRLS HOCKEY

Sophomore forward Heather Paonessa and Capt. Becky Cairns pumped in two goals each as the undefeated Andover High girls varsity hockey team came off a week-long layoff with a 5-1 victory over visiting Everett in Metro North League play at Phillips Academy's Harrison Rink.

It was the fourth straight win for the Lady Warriors, who improved to 4-0-1 overall and 3-0 in league play.

The locals also continued their outstanding early-season defense, having allowed only five goals in the first five games (1.00 ave.) while scoring 18.

Schedule

The New Year kicked off with a home game last night (Wednesday), after Townsman presstime, against Masconomet Regional of Topsfield.

The Lady Warriors hit the ice again Saturday night versus Waltham at PA's Harrison Rink (8:30).

Scoring leaders

Freshman forward Sarah Oteri continues to top the scoring parade with eight goals, four assists for 12 points.

Becky Cairns has five goals and two assists, Nicole Giroux one goal, four assists and Heather Paonessa four goals.

Andover 5

Everett 1

The locals grabbed a commanding 3-0 first-period lead and scored solo goals in each of the last two stanzas.

Joining two-goal scorers Cairns and Heather Paonessa was Sarah Oteri with one.

Junior blueliner Tricia Martin set up three goals while Capt. Alison Burns, Oteri and 8th-grade forwards Jill Manning and Laura Drew chipped in one assist each.

Christina Cahill and sophomore Rachel Bergan split time in net for Andover, which finished with a wide 37-6 shooting advantage.

Jessica Westgate, whose outstanding work between the pipes last season kept the Crimson Tide competitive against AHS twice, did the job again with 32 stops.

BOYS SWIM & DIVE

The Andover High boys swim and dive team, idle since a Dec. 19 non-league dual meet against B.C. High, returned to the water last night (after Townsman presstime) in the Merrimack Valley Conference opener versus Central Catholic at the Greater Lawrence Vo-Tech pool.

Prior to the holiday vacation layoff, the Golden Warriors (1-1) split a pair of non-league dual meets with a 95-80 victory over Belmont and a streak-breaking 96-90 loss to B.C. High at the UMass Boston pool.

The setback to BCH snapped an undefeated string that stretched over parts of three seasons and 14 meets (13-0-1).

Next up for coach Mark Taffe's AHS crew is another MVC meet next Friday, Jan. 12 against Lowell High at the Red Raiders Riddick Memorial Field House pool (3:30 p.m.).

INDOOR TRACK

The Andover High girls and boys varsity indoor track teams competed yesterday (Wednesday), after Townsman presstime, for the first time since Dec. 19, when the boys had their dual-meet win streak snapped with a 46-40 loss to upstart Dracut.

The girls had been off even longer - since their close, season-opening, 46-40 win over Billerica on Dec. 12.

Yesterday's competition was against visiting Merrimack Valley Conference Division 1 rival Chelmsford. The AHS boys faced the Lions with a 1-1 record while the girls were 1-0.

Next up are the annual Dartmouth College Relays this Saturday in Hanover, N.H., and a Freshman/Sophomore meet at the Reggie Lewis Center in Roxbury on Sunday (9:30 a.m.)

The AHS squads return to the dual-meet wars next Tuesday with MVC 1 duals versus visiting Central Catholic at the Collins Field House (3:30 p.m.).