After press time: North Reading defeats Lynnfield 65-31 (Feb. 1)
NORTH READING — The North Reading High girls’ basketball team won two out of three games to improve to 9-5 on the season with wins over Triton and Ipswich and a tight loss to Hamilton-Wenham. The Hornets need just one more win to automatically qualify for the MIAA State Tournament.
On Jan. 23, North Reading traveled to Hamilton-Wenham to meet a talented Generals team and suffered a close, 42-39 loss. The Hornets trailed 23-16 at halftime but used a strong third quarter to take a 30-29 lead heading into the final period. A back-and-forth final eight minutes saw several lead changes but four late points by Hamilton-Wenham was the difference.
Sophie Gallivan (10 points, 8 rebounds, 6 steals), Ariana Demetri (10 points, 6 rebounds) and Caitlin Reilly (9 points) led the way for the Hornets.
On Friday night, North Reading bounced back with a strong performance in a 46-33 win on the road at Triton. A close first half ended with the Hornets up 22-18 before a strong 15-7 third quarter allowed North Reading to open up a 37-25 advantage heading into the final quarter. Reilly’s 14 points. 4 rebounds and 3 assists led the way along with strong contributions from Demetri (12 points, 3 rebounds), Bella Cannalonga (7 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists), Gallivan (5 points, 7 rebounds, 6 steals) and Allie Lanciani (4 points, 7 rebounds).
The key to the win was a strong defensive effort forcing 27 Triton turnovers leading to 24 North Reading points.
On Monday, North Reading hosted the Ipswich Tigers and used a dominant 34-11 first half en route to a 52-33 win. Once again, a strong defensive effort was the key as the Hornets forced 21 Ipswich turnovers leading to 16 points.
Demetri had a strong performance scoring a game-high 13 points while holding Ipswich’s leading scorer under her season average. Cannalonga filled the stat sheet with 10 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Maggie Schulz (6 points, 4 steals), Reilly (8 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists) and Gallivan (9 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals) all impacted the game.
“The team has established a defensive identity where despite a significant height disadvantage every night they battle for every inch of the court and do not allow the opponent anything easy,” said head coach Bob Romeo. “This mindset is what will be needed to finish out the regular season strong against very good teams and continue throughout the State Tournament.”
The Hornets host Shawsheen Valley Tech this Friday night at 7 p.m. Their next game after that is a home matchup against Newburyport on Thursday, Feb. 8 at 6:30 p.m.