THE SENIORS have led the Hornets back to the tournament for the 4th consecutive year. The brackets will be released on Saturday. Pictured in the front row from left are captains Andrew Boulas and Alex Carucci. In the back row from left is Anthony Pino, Sam Morelli, Kevin Doble, Matt Guidebeck and captain Logan Scribner. (Eric Evans Photo)
NORTH READING — The North Reading High boys’ basketball team punched their ticket to the Div. 3 state tournament with a 62-36 win over Triton at NRHS on Feb. 16.
The Hornets finished the regular season with a record of 10-10 after falling to Wilmington 46-43 on Sunday and Greater Lowell 61-54 on Monday. They will now wait for the bracket to be released on Saturday.
This is the 4th year in a row that the team has qualified for postseason play and the 16th out of the last 22 in the coaching tenure of head coach Joe Casey and assistant Mark Bisognano.
“I’m extremely proud of the kids,” said Casey. “This wasn’t a foregone conclusion that we were going to qualify and they hung in there and found a way to get it done. The kids have worked hard all season have been a great group to work with and are more than deserving of this.”
The first quarter against Triton was close throughout with NR getting a huge boost from Logan Scribner who had 7 of his team-high 20 points following his 23-point effort against Pentucket.
The Hornets exploded in the 2nd quarter, dominating the Vikings with their full court man-to-man pressure leading to countless easy layups. The team was led defensively by Alex Carucci, Scribner and Andrew Taylor whose relentless pressure helped balloon the lead to 23 at the break.
The second half was a formality as Triton couldn’t get any closer than 15 the redt of the way. Freshman Jason Berry gave the squad some nice minutes in the 4th, netting 5 points. Andrew Boulas scored 18 while fighting through an ankle injury, including 4 3-pointers.
