Beat Woburn in quarterfinals for 6th straight W

Published in the February 23, 2021 edition.

By DAN PAWLOWSKI

WAKEFIELD — The Wakefield High girls’ basketball team pushed top-seeded Burlington to the brink in the 2021 Middlesex League Playoff semifinals on Thursday morning at Burlington High. 

The Warriors controlled the tempo and had their best defensive performance of the season, leading a typically high-octane Burlington throughout the middle of a low-scoring battle just hours after both teams won their respective quarterfinal matchups on Wednesday night. The Red Devils got back into the game in the 4th quarter, closing on a 17-8 run and winning a nail-biter 29-27. 

“Tough game,” said Wakefield head coach Jason Pavey. “You could tell both teams were fatigued from playing the night before – lots of settling for outside shots and struggling to finish around the rim. Their zone is very disruptive, but so was ours. I thought our defensive effort was there all morning.

“I don’t want to over simplify things, but in the end, Burlington hit more shots in the 4th than we did….one 3 from NBA range and a few easy buckets off our misses.”

The Warriors were led by junior Ashlee Purcell (9 pts, 3 reb, 1 ast, 4 stl) who was a part of a six-player rotation including senior captains Brianna Lotti (5 pts, 5 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl) and Clara Butler (3 pts, 8 reb, 1 ast), junior Sophie Brown (4 pts, 5 reb, 1 ast), sophomore Emma Shinney (3 pts, 5 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl) and freshman Emma Quinn (3 pts, 3 reb). 

If Wakefield was fatigued, they didn’t show it on the defensive end. 

A corner 3 from Butler extended Wakefield’s lead to 19-12 early in the 4th before the Red Devils finally ramped up the intensity, cutting it to 19-17 in a flash. Shinney found Quinn for a 3 to push the lead back to five before Burlington went on a devastating 12-0 run. Burlington took the lead on consecutive easy layups by Alyvia Pena who was leaking out to half court when Wakefield put up shots. 

It was Pena who hit the dagger deep 3 to make it 27-22 with just a couple minutes remaining. 

After a much needed bucket in the paint from Brown stopped the run, Lotti kept the Warriors in it with a step back 3 to make it 29-27 with 25.6 second remaining. Burlington missed the front end of a 1-and-1 setting up a Wakefield timeout with 8.4 seconds left. 

The Warriors ran their set, got one good look that didn’t fall, fought for the rebound and throw up another last second chance through traffic that also missed.

“We drew up a play and got the look we wanted; the shot was on point. We executed what we wanted,” said Pavey. 

Burlington’s 4th quarter outburst was only unexpected because of how the Warriors defended them all day. It wasn’t atypical for a talented Red Devil team, it’s just that Wakefield was locked in with their 2-3 zone from the start. 

In fact, Wakefield only allowed three points for about 16 consecutive minutes of game play.

After Burlington took a 9-7 lead after one, Wakefield went into halftime with a 14-9 lead, completely shutting out the Red Devils in the 2nd. 

That continued in the 3rd as Wakefield swarmed and Burlington continued to miss shots, only scoring three points in the quarter as the Warriors went up 16-12. 

Purcell scored all of Wakefield’s seven points in the opening frame, a 3 starting the scoring, a floater in the lane later making it 5-4 Wakefield and a long jumper later making it 7-6. 

A Shinney 3 off a Brown rebound and kick made it 10-9 to start the 2nd quarter and give Wakefield a lead they would hold until the final quarter. A Brown drive and two and a Lotti layup made it 14-9. 

Wakefield also struggled to score in the 3rd, a Purcell runner to start the quarter their only points of the frame. 

In the end, the Warriors were frustrated because they knew they had the top seed on the ropes and they could’ve won. But looking back, they will know it was more about the effort at the end of a successful season and proving they had the ability to beat an undefeated team that really mattered. Burlington would go on to win the Middlesex League tournament and finish their season undefeated.  

Beat Woburn in quarterfinals

The Warriors beat Woburn 45-39 in the first round of the playoffs on Wednesday night at Woburn High behind a 20-point performance from Purcell. It was Wakefield’s sixth win in a row.

The Warriors took a 26-20 lead into halftime but the Tanners stormed out of the gates in the 3rd, going on a 13-0 run to take a 33-26 lead. In need of a bucket, Butler (12 points) hit one of her four 3’s on the night to get Wakefield back into it and close the quarter on a 5-1 run, making it 34-31 Woburn after three. 

The fourth belonged to Wakefield, who dominated on the defensive end while attacking the hoop as they won the quarter 14-5. 

“That was a great win for the program, to go on the road and beat a Division 1 team that traditionally dominates this league,” said Pavey. “It was a complete game. Our defense stepped up and players hit clutch shots. We know it was going to be a battle. Woburn is a very tough, hard nosed team. We had a great first half but we knew they would make a run. I remember during a timeout telling the kids ‘we just need to stay composed, keep playing hard and have the mentality that if we do that, something good is around the corner; shots will fall.’”

Purcell’s drive and two and later a trip to the line cut the deficit to one early in the 4th. That got the bench into it and helped Wakefield believe they could win this one. 

“Ashlee Purcell (20 pts, 5 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl) was the most dominant player on the floor,” said Pavey. “From start to finish, she was all over the place. Defensively, she and Sophie Brown (7 pts, 8 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl) created havoc. We ask a lot from those two kids; they never come out of the game. They willed us to win.”

Butler (12 pts, 4 reb, 2 ast) hit another 3 to reclaim a lead Wakefield wouldn’t relinquish. 

Shinney (3 ast, 4 stl) tipped a pass and Purcell recovered the steal and finished on the break to make it 41-37. As Wakefield continued to shut down the Tanners, Brown secured an incredible offensive rebound and kicked to Butler whose step back 3 was a dagger to Woburn’s chances, extending it to 44-37. 

“Clara Butler was fearless,” said Pavey. “She hit some backbreaking 3’s in that second half. Clara and Emma Shinney had some good chemistry on pick and rolls and hand offs. Emma was great at handling their pressure and getting us into our offense and finding the open person.”

Wakefield finished the year with a record of 9-5. They were also successful in committing to COVID protocols and playing a complete season, often accepting the challenge of a changing schedule just so they could play.

“In the end, I’m really proud of this team,” said Pavey. “We ended up playing 14 games and never had to quarantine. We would play anyone, anywhere, anytime. The kids did everything right and I want to thank their families as well. It took everyone this season to do the right things and make sacrifices in order to get things up and running. The icing on the cake is that we improved a lot from a basketball standpoint.”