Thursday, March 8, 2007 Older Editions

GIRLS BASKETBALL: Disappointment derails girls' hoop dreams

By Rick Harrison

Andover High girls head varsity basketball coach Jim Tildsley admitted he was at a loss for words.

"I didn't know what to say to our kids after the game. Everyone was disappointed - and nothing was going to make it better right away. Me? It'll probably take me at least two weeks before I get over this," said Tildsley.

"No, it's not the end of the world - and you let them know that. But you also know how they feel. It hurts."

Tildsley's comments came in the aftermath of a season-ending loss earlier this week.

For the second straight year the Lady Warriors were ousted from the MIAA Division 1 North Tournament by top seed Lowell in the semifinal round, dropping a 46-38 decision on the neutral North Andover High court.

In spite of the loss, the legacy of AHS girls basketball lives on - the tradition remains untarnished.

"It's a tough situation. But what can you do? That's basketball," said Tildsley.

Andover, seeded No. 5 in a 13-team field, finished at 18-5 overall including a pair of earlier tournament wins over Salem, 87-30, and Cambridge Rindge & Latin, 60-50.

The third loss of the season to Lowell snapped an eight-game win streak and was only the second in the last 12 games.

AHS finished 10-0 on its home court this winter, and the locals now have a 33-game regular-season win streak at the Dunn Gym since a 59-56 overtime loss to Peabody on Dec. 23, 2003.

n n n

Andover, 240-40 since Tildsley took over, has won three North titles in the past dozen years.

The locals captured the State Division 1 crown in 2002, beating Minnechaug Regional of Wilbraham, 48-47, at the Worcester Centrum on a last-second putback by Samantha Hughes.

The following year AHS advanced to the state final before dropping a 40-39 decision to Minnechaug at the FleetCenter when a potential game-winning, buzzer-beating shot rimmed out.

Scoring leaders

Meghan Thomann led Andover in scoring over the 23-game season with 340 points (14.8 ave.), followed by Laura Renfro with 299, Maggie Cosgrove 227 and Lauren Hughes 187.

n n n

Thomann now has 886 career points and Cosgrove will graduate having scored 840.

Three seniors

The Lady Warriors return 10 of 13 players, all juniors, but say goodbye to senior graduates Maggie Cosgrove, Sarah LoMedico and Kasey O'Dea.

"I can't say enough about Maggie," offered coach Tildsley. "She had four great years with us and she'll do well in college (Sacred Heart). We are now officially in search of a point-guard for next year."

MIAA Division 1 North Tournament

Semifinal Round

Lowell 46

Andover 38

Plagued by an Arctic-cold, 13-for-53 shooting night (24.5 percent) from the floor, including 3-for-18 from 3-point range, the Lady Warriors were never able to get themselves untangled against recent nemesis Lowell, which has now won four of the last five meetings by one, two, two (overtime) and eight-point margins.

The locals also struggled from the free throw line where they were 9-for-17.

Andover went the opening 4:40 of the game before finally scoring on a Camille Fantini lay-up.

AHS trailed 8-2 at that point, 27-13 at the half and by as many as 19 points (34-15) in the second half.

And yet, stalked by adversity all night, the Lady Warriors somehow still managed to make a game of it as they climbed back within six points (42-36) and had two golden opportunities to cut the deficit to three.

"We outscored them 21-8 over the final seven minutes," said Tildsley, "and down by six we stole the ball on consecutive Lowell possessions with a chance to get closer. We had two good looks on three-pointers but missed both shots. That was the story of the night for us.

"Our three-pointers wouldn't fall. Our jumpers wouldn't fall. Nothing fell. We had a lot of 'in-and-outs' but they're still misses.

"Lowell had 22 turnovers and we only had nine. But we didn't really take advantage of that statistic."

"The good thing is we never quit," said Tildsley. "But we never got on a run. I think our best 'spurt' of the night was four straight points."

n n n

Midway through the first half AHS had only four points on the board, trailing 12-4 at 7:21 after Meghan Thomann hit a jump shot.

Lowell's Kelley Rogers, who scored all 11 of her points in the first half including a trio of threes, buried two straight treys and followed with a jumper and another trifecta to put Lowell ahead, 25-11, with less than two minutes left in the half.

After Andover opened the second half with a basket, the Red Raiders escaped on a 7-0 run to take their biggest lead of the game, 34-15.

From that point on the locals fought through their frigid shooting, chipping away to trim the 19-point deficit to nine after Lauren Hughes nailed a jumper with seven minutes left.

A Maggie Cosgrove free throw with 3:44 to play cut the difference to six, and it stayed that way after Lowell sparkplug Ashley Rivera and Hughes (layup) traded hoops to make it 42-36.

Lowell notched four more points before a Cosgrove jumper closed out the scoring at 46-38.

"Lowell is very big and physical inside. That stopped the dribble-penetration part of our offense," said Tildsley. "Their big girls take up so much space - and they forced us to adjust a lot of shots."

n n n

Thomann was the only AHS player in double figures with 12 points, and she added three steals, two assists.

Cosgrove capped her Blue and Gold career with seven points, five assists and two steals.

Hughes, Laura Renfro and Camille Fantini added six points each, while Hughes also snagged 10 rebounds, Renfro passed out three assists and Fantini had eight boards, two steals.

Jordy Shoemaker completed the scoring by hitting a free throw.

Lowell, which improved to 20-2, hit 16-of-40 from the floor, 6-of-9 from behind the arc (67 percent) and 8-of-14 at the charity stripe.

The Raiders also out-rebounded Andover, 36-27.

"Their scoring was balanced and that helped them," said Tildsley.

Lowell point-guard Ashley Rivera was game-high with 13 points, and she distributed five assists, while Meaghan Cavanaugh and Kelley Rogers had 11 points each and Brianna Wilson 11 rebounds.

"Rivera is such a tough player," said Tildsley. "She really gets up for us and she was sky-high again tonight.

"She's always under control. I felt Laura (Renfro) contained her most of the night, even forcing four turnovers, but she (Rivera) always seems to come up with the big shot or big play down the stretch."

Lowell moves on to the North championship game this Saturday night at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell (5:45 p.m.).

"They beat us three out of four (on four different courts) this season (the total points in the four games were dead even). Based on that you have to think they were the better team," said Tildsley.

"Next year should be more of the same. We lose Maggie and have to find a point-guard - but overall Andover, Lowell and Central Catholic have the majority of their players back," added Tildsley, already looking to the battles that lie ahead.

Quarterfinal Round

Andover 60

Cambridge R&L 50

The Lady Warriors, successfully concentrating on the task at hand rather than looking ahead to the anticipated fourth meeting with Lowell, continued their recent mastery over CR&L.

Cambridge and Andover met in the first round of the tourney last February, with AHS rolling to a 69-46 victory before dropping a 44-42 overtime decision to Lowell.

One thing that could have been construed as giving Andover an edge against Cambridge entering the game was the comparative performances against No. 1 seed Lowell.

AHS had played Lowell three times this season, losing close 62-61 and 51-49 decisions while also beating the Red Raiders, 68-57.

Cambridge met Lowell in a mid-February non-leaguer and Lowell rolled to a 57-35 victory.

In this one AHS set the tone early, remained focused throughout and never let the Lady Falcons wrest control of the tempo.

A big key to the triumph came in a four-minute stretch late in the second half, when Andover escaped on a 17-7 run that transformed a four-point lead (35-31) into a 14-point cushion and provided the eventual 10-point margin of victory.

"We played so very well in this game - even with no Maggie (Cosgrove) for 11 minutes (because of foul troubles)," said Tildsley.

n n n

Meghan Thomann and Laura Renfro once again powered the attack, burying a trio of three-pointers each while finishing with a game-high 24 and 17 points respectively.

Thomann scored nine points during the 17-7 spurt and Renfro drained a three-pointer.

Thomann also contributed seven rebounds and Renfro five assists, three steals and clutch defense.

Point-guard Cosgrove, saddled with the early foul woes, netted all eight of her points at the free throw line, while Ilana Cohen tossed in five points, Lauren Hughes four and Camille Fantini two.

Cosgrove managed to add seven assists and five steals in limited time, while Hughes plucked 10 rebounds and Fantini had nine boards, three steals.

The locals led 29-23 at the half.

Cambridge finished with a 20-17 edge in field goals, but AHS outscored the Falcons 20-10 at the free throw line while also nailing the only six three-pointers of the contest.

Senior guard and Division 1 college recruit Kyara Weekes, hobbled by a tender ankle, still led the CR&L offense with 15 points.

No. 4 seed Cambridge, which finished 17-5 overall, reached this game by passing its opening tourney test with ease, routing Medford 62-35.

First Round

Andover 87

Salem 30

This one was over almost before it started - and part of the reason for that was the suspension of five Salem players (including two starters) who were being disciplined for an incident related to alcohol use.

Junior guard Laura Renfro sparked the diverse AHS attack (13 players scored) with a game-high 17 points, while junior guard Meghan Thomann and junior center Lauren Hughes also reached double digits with 11 points each.

Ilana Cohen pocketed nine points, Capt. Maggie Cosgrove eight and recent junior varsity callup Maggie King six.

Hughes and Cosgrove were also strong off the boards, while Thomann passed out eight assists and Cosgrove seven.

Completing the winners' offensive assault were junior forward Camille Fantini with five points, junior forward Amanda Fantini, senior guard Sarah LoMedico, junior guard Catherine LoMedico and junior forward Jordy Shoemaker four points each, junior forward Kit Heinrich two and senior forward Kasey O'Dea two.

Salem's 30 points marked the 12th time in 21 games the Lady Warriors held an opponent to 45 or fewer points - including four games allowing 30 or less.

No. 12 seed Salem bowed out with a 10-11 mark.

n n n

This basketball season's final two winners of the Baystate Financial Services Player of the Fortnight award are Kasey O'Dea of the girls team and Peter White of the boys team.

Coach Jim Tildsley highly praises O'Dea's contributions to the program and the team. "O'Dea has been with our program for four years. Her great work ethic and understanding of her role on our team make her a real role model for the other girls. She's a true team player; she works very hard in practice and really supports the starters, making them better players and us a better team."

Coach Dave Fazio appreciates the way White has stepped up his play this season, and he looked forward to still further improvement at the end of the regular season. "White had a couple of rim-rocking dunks against Malden Catholic that really got us jacked up. He's gained in confidence this season; if he can continue this growth, really believing in himself, he can be a real force for us as we move into the playoffs."

Ronald R. Hill of Baystate Financial Services congratulated all of this season's winners of the Player of the Fortnight award, and all of the players and coaches of these two Andover High School varsity teams on their great seasons.