Published in the February 15, 2021 edition.
By RYAN MARSH
WAKEFIELD — The game was close and coming down to the wire late in the fourth quarter. The Warriors had a big lead before Wilmington climbed back, cutting it to one possession. Sophomore Emma Shinney was fouled and had two free throws with 18.4 seconds left in the game. The Warriors had a three-point lead, so even one free throw made would have sealed up the victory. That’s a lot of pressure in the hands of one shooter, and the tension was high as Shinney shot the ball – it swished through the net as the Warriors took a 45-41 lead, effectively finishing the game.
The Wakefield girls’ basketball team took on the Wilmington Wildcats in a Thursday night duel. The Warriors were coming off of a victory versus Stoneham the night before. Wakefield controlled the game with hard rebounding and hustle and were victorious, 46-41. Although the game was close, the Warriors dominated throughout.
The game started later than the usual time as a delay occurred due to late referees. Even with the delay, the Warriors did not let that stop them from having fun.
“The game being delayed was interesting because most athletes thrive on routine, and when that routine was interrupted, I just loved how our kids were so loose. I have to give a lot of credit to our assistant coach, Kayla Wyland. She keeps the kids engaged and upbeat all the time and she stepped in during the delay to bring them all together,” said head coach Jason Pavey.
Wakefield took the floor after the delay ended. Junior Ashlee Purcell (11 points), senior Briana Lotti, junior Sophie Brown (7 points), junior Hannah Hill, and sophomore Mia Forti (6 points) were the five starters for the Warriors.
The Warriors started a little slower than usual as both teams were able to create offensive chances, but could not finish them. After a couple of possessions, Wakefield finally got some points as Purcell was fouled and she successfully made two free throws to take a 2-0 lead.
Wakefield was shutting down Wilmington as Forti stole the ball on defense and drove down the court. The Warriors made some great defensive plays and were able to convert those to solid offensive chances, but their shots weren’t falling.
The two teams kept taking jabs at the other, but no shots were falling for either side. The Warriors eventually took a timeout with 2:13 left in the quarter, down 5-2. Wakefield’s defense held strong against Wilmington who were making plays through contact.
“In my opinion, the slow start offensively to the first quarter wasn’t because of the delay, but more so both teams were coming off of playing the night before,” said Pavey.
Not much changed in the score as the first quarter ended 5-2.
The second quarter started as Wakefield showed more fire and drive. Purcell brought the ball up the court on the first possession and found freshman Emma Quinn (6 points) for an open layup.
Wakefield played hard as Brown fought through contact for a basket and a chance at the free-throw line, which she made. The Warriors were now down 9-7 with their foot pressed onto the gas. Following the three-point play by Brown, Forti blocked a Wilmington shooter.Wakefield’s defense was getting the ball back and allowing the offense to go to work.
The Warriors began to fight through hard contact and hit 3’s. Senior captain Clara Butler (9 points) drilled a big 3-pointer as the Warriors took back the lead, 10-9. Following the 3, Wilmington called a timeout with 4:34 left in the quarter. The Warriors finally had the lead, but they wanted to extend it.
Wakefield’s defense was incredible, stopping the Wildcats in almost every possession. Purcell stole the ball from a Wilmington player and drove down the court for an easy layup. Purcell got the ball again and took a shot, which she missed, but she fought hard for her rebound and made a layup. The Warriors were being aggressive and were on a roll.
Wilmington scored with two minutes left in the quarter to cut Wakefield’s lead to one point, 14-13. Butler nailed a 3-pointer to extend the lead once again. Wakefield continued to fight hard as Brown drilled a mid-range shot as time expired to take a 19-15 lead going into halftime.
The Warriors continued their trend of playing hard and physical in the second half, starting with Brown getting a layup, and Purcell hitting a free throw and then getting her rebound on a miss.
“Overall, I thought we were relentless on the offensive glass, especially Sophie Brown, Brianna Lotti, and Ashlee Purcell…who are also the smallest kids on our team,” coach Pavey explained.
Wakefield was now up 22-15 as a timeout was called with 6:31 remaining in the 3rd. The team was having a complete reversal of fortunes from the first quarter as their strong defense kept up, and their offense was hitting their shots.
The Warriors showed off their chemistry as the team passed the ball around the floor and Purcell passed to Quinn around a defender for another easy layup. The lead continued to grow as Forti knocked down a 3-pointer to take a 31-23 lead. The best attempt to slow Wakefield’s momentum was with a timeout from Wilmington with 3:30 left in the quarter.
Wakefield continued their onslaught into the Wilmington zone as sophomore Emma Shinney (7 points) drilled a three, followed by another three from Forti to take a 37-25 lead. The Warriors shined overall as the quarter ended 37-27.
The fourth quarter was where the Warriors found their biggest struggles. With a 10-point lead, the Warriors just needed to slow down Wilmington and ride the game to the end, but Wilmington began to come back.
Both sides were fighting hard for rebounds and points. Wakefield had many players get hacked finishing a layup, but that did not stifle the team’s aggressiveness.
Butler hit a 3 to bring the score to 40-31 with 4:44 left in the quarter. Physical play continued to be the dominant theme as Shinney made a tough layup to keep the Wakefield lead at nine points with a little over two minutes left to play.
All of a sudden, Wilmington began to roar back, hitting multiple shots as Brown fouled out of the game. With the game clock ticked down to one minute remaining, the Warriors held on to a five-point lead.
Wilmington’s defense stood strong, but so did Wakefield’s. The Wildcats drilled a shot with 20.7 seconds remaining to cut the lead to three points. Wakefield got the ball and moved down the court when Shinney was fouled. She stepped up to the line with the game in her hands and drained the first free throw. Shinney hit her second free throw and the game ended as Wakefield held on to win, 46-41.
The Warriors played strong despite the delay and a game the night before. Ashlee Purcell led the team with 11 points, followed closely by Clara Butler with 9 points off the bench.
Wakefield extended their winning streak to four games and improved to 7-4 on the season when they beat Melrose on Senior Day Saturday, 54-29. A full story will appear at a later date.
