While Lynnfield’s girls basketball team came up short in overtime, it gave the North Reading Hornets all they could handle in a 39-36 loss at North Reading Friday night.
Lynnfield struggled offensively in the first half, trailing 7-2 after the first quarter and 15-9 after the second. Both teams turned up the offense in the third quarter, which ended with the Pioneers down by just three, 23-20.
Lynnfield rallied to lead 31-28 with just 18 seconds to go in regulation against the 12-1 Hornets, but North Reading stayed alive with a 3-pointer to force overtime.
Lynnfield head coach Sue Breen said the Pioneers missed a couple of free throws that might have changed the outcome, then was forced to foul to keep their hopes of a big upset win alive.
Sophomore Hayden Valiton led the Pioneers in scoring with 17 points and also had seven rebounds. Senior captain Taylor Valiton scored six points and had 11 rebounds. Breen said senior captain Erika Pasquale played “great defense” and had four points and four blocks. Freshman Chloe Grieves also scored four points and had a team-high 12 rebounds. Sophomore Maeve Wertz added three points and two steals, while freshman Calleigh Caprio scored two points.
Lynnfield 43
Georgetown 34
Defense, clutch shooting from the free-throw line, and a team-first approach got the job done in the home Pioneers’ sixth win of the season.
Tied, 28-28, going into the fourth quarter, the Pioneers clamped down defensively, outscoring the Royals, 15-6, the rest of the way. While they made just two baskets in the quarter, the Pioneers made 11 of 14 free throws to seal the victory. The Pioneers dished out 11 assists on 13 baskets.
“It was a hard-fought game. Georgetown dialed up the pressure in the third quarter, but our defense was very stingy in the fourth quarter,” Breen said. “Defense was the difference and we had really balanced scoring.”
Hayden Valiton (3 blocks) had a monster game with a game-high 16 points and a perfect performance from the free-throw line, making 8-of-8.
Grieves had a double-double with a team-high 11 points and 17 rebounds and also had three assists. Pasquale (2 points, assist, steal) had seven blocks, while Taylor Valiton scored six points and blocked two shots.
Caprio came off the bench and scored four points to go with a block. Breen said fellow freshman Olivia Braley (3 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals) “was a spark off the bench,” Wertz “played solid defense,” and sophomore Faith Angelo ( 5 rebounds, 2 assists) “gave us solid minutes.”
Lynnfield led, 10-7, after the first quarter and 17-15 at the half. Georgetown opened the third quarter with a 11-4 run to put the Pioneers in a 26-21 hole, but Lynnfield responded with a 7-2 run to close the quarter tied at 28-28 and kept its foot on the gas in the fourth with a 12-0 run to take a commanding 40-28 lead with two minutes left.