Fifth-seeded Windham took on fourth seed Biddeford in the Class A South quarterfinal game at the Portland Expo on Tuesday, Feb. 17 and it all came down to the final 30 seconds, where both teams fought for the chance to advance. After leaving everything on the court, Windham came up short and lost, 45-42.
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| Windham freshman Carly Franzoni speeds by a defender during the Class A South quarterfinal basketball game against Biddeford at the Portland Expo on Tuesday, Feb. 17. PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA |
Windham began hungry and rebounded well; combined with strong offense, they took a small lead early in the game.
Biddeford soon caught up and tied the game 9-9, then tied it 15-15. Windham junior Isabella Vassoler sank a three-pointer. Biddeford responded by hitting a three-pointer.
Vassoler hit a buzzer-beater before the end of the first half. Windham led, 20-18.
The Eagle’s offense and defense remained solid in the second half. They continued to rebound well, and they were on the Tigers’ heels.
In the fourth quarter, freshman Carly Franzoni sank a three pointer and Windham led. Biddeford tied the game at 35-35.
Sophomore Mackenzie Delewski sank a three-pointer, but Biddeford was right there to tie the game 38-38. Windham fought right down to the final few seconds.
“I think the approach for us going into the game was to just enjoy the experience and be proud of ourselves and how far we’ve come this season,” said Delewski who scored 13 points. “I think switching man-to-man was a great decision because of their shooting ability; I think we rebounded well so Biddeford wasn’t able to get as many shots. On offensive and breaking the press, we were much more composed and made more of our outside shots as well. (Something else that went well was) not having a lot of turnovers; I think we were very patient when breaking the press and we were able to get some good looks after we broke it.”
As the clock wound down, senior Marley Jarvais sunk two free throws. This game was incredibly close as with just 46 seconds left, Windham led by two points. But a Biddeford three-pointer gave the Tigers the lead by one point with 15 seconds remaining.
Artes said they needed to make sure they had good coverage defensively in the final 15 seconds and get a rebound. Then they could take care of the ball, Biddeford would foul them, but then Biddeford sank a three-pointer and that put Windham in a position where they needed to foul Biddeford. A foul at the end and that was that.
“I think we came in with the ‘anybody can win it’ mentality and I think that definitely helped,” said Vassoler, who scored 11 points. “We fought harder, we played better defense, we got more shots up than the first time (we played them in the regular season), we didn’t allow as many three-pointers. I think fixing little miscommunications (might have turned things around). I forgot to switch on the girl, we could have put in a basket, converted it, just little things, but I think we did the best we could. We persevered, we kept with them the entire time. We really were fighting tooth and nail until the end of that game.” <
Biddeford soon caught up and tied the game 9-9, then tied it 15-15. Windham junior Isabella Vassoler sank a three-pointer. Biddeford responded by hitting a three-pointer.
Vassoler hit a buzzer-beater before the end of the first half. Windham led, 20-18.
The Eagle’s offense and defense remained solid in the second half. They continued to rebound well, and they were on the Tigers’ heels.
In the fourth quarter, freshman Carly Franzoni sank a three pointer and Windham led. Biddeford tied the game at 35-35.
Sophomore Mackenzie Delewski sank a three-pointer, but Biddeford was right there to tie the game 38-38. Windham fought right down to the final few seconds.
“I think the approach for us going into the game was to just enjoy the experience and be proud of ourselves and how far we’ve come this season,” said Delewski who scored 13 points. “I think switching man-to-man was a great decision because of their shooting ability; I think we rebounded well so Biddeford wasn’t able to get as many shots. On offensive and breaking the press, we were much more composed and made more of our outside shots as well. (Something else that went well was) not having a lot of turnovers; I think we were very patient when breaking the press and we were able to get some good looks after we broke it.”
As the clock wound down, senior Marley Jarvais sunk two free throws. This game was incredibly close as with just 46 seconds left, Windham led by two points. But a Biddeford three-pointer gave the Tigers the lead by one point with 15 seconds remaining.
Artes said they needed to make sure they had good coverage defensively in the final 15 seconds and get a rebound. Then they could take care of the ball, Biddeford would foul them, but then Biddeford sank a three-pointer and that put Windham in a position where they needed to foul Biddeford. A foul at the end and that was that.
“I think we came in with the ‘anybody can win it’ mentality and I think that definitely helped,” said Vassoler, who scored 11 points. “We fought harder, we played better defense, we got more shots up than the first time (we played them in the regular season), we didn’t allow as many three-pointers. I think fixing little miscommunications (might have turned things around). I forgot to switch on the girl, we could have put in a basket, converted it, just little things, but I think we did the best we could. We persevered, we kept with them the entire time. We really were fighting tooth and nail until the end of that game.” <
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