SPRINGFIELD — A tale of two halves did not break in No. 9 Pioneer Valley Regional School’s favor Tuesday night.
For 16 minutes, the Panthers controlled tempo, made timely buckets and stormed into the locker room with a commanding double-digit advantage. But as the ebbs and flows of the postseason often dictate, host Pope Francis Preparatory School had another gear left in it.
The eighth-seeded Cardinals charged back on their shiny, new home floor, tied the score in the fourth quarter and closed regulation on an 11-0 run over the final 4 minutes, 5 seconds to hand Pioneer a 45-39 defeat in the WMass Div. 4 first round.
Pioneer closed its season 12-9 overall, while Pope Francis (13-8) advanced to Friday’s quarterfinal round against the winner of No. 1 Monson and No. 16 Pathfinder.
“They started pressing us and the pressure multiplied,” Pioneer head coach Meg Burrington said. “We faltered at the end. We turned it over, had some issues in the second half. They took the momentum in the third quarter and did exactly what they did to us last time.”
The “last time” Burrington was referring to came in the regular-season meeting between the two sides in Northfield. In that game, Pope Francis rallied to force overtime and snagged a 61-58 victory in the extra session.
Fast forward to Tuesday night’s tournament tilt, and things unfolded in a similar fashion.
The Panthers limited the Cardinals to just four field goals, and the Pioneer offensive effort saw Steph Scoville and Paige Loughman combine for 17 points in the opening half. Scoville’s jumper just before the buzzer hung on the rim for what seemed like minutes, ultimately dropping in and sending the visitors into the locker room with a healthy 23-9 advantage.
“The first half, they played beautifully,” lauded Burrington of her club, which held the Cardinals off the scoreboard for a span of 8:04 between the first and second quarters. “They played Pioneer basketball.”
Pope Francis coach Alex Roque asked his primarily outside-shooting team to keep chucking. The Cardinals failed to hit a 3-pointer in the first half, but the second-year head man thought that would still be the best path back into the game.
“We talked at halftime about just keep shooting and eventually they’ll go in,” Roque explained. “We needed to play harder in the second half. Go into a trap, tighten up the defense and play quicker. We had to get (Pioneer) out of their rhythm and not make things so comfortable for them.”
That strategy reaped immediate dividends, when the hosts came out of halftime on an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to 23-17 in the blink of an eye.
Julie Garvey, who scored 12 of her 14 points in the second half, drilled a 3 later in the third quarter, and Jasmine Maldonado followed with a triple of her own to pull Pope Francis within 27-25.
Loughman stemmed the tide on several occasions, keeping the Panthers in front for most of the second half. Her layup with 5:08 left in the fourth quarter, combined with Scoville’s basket with 4:29 to play staked the visitors to a 39-34 advantage.
That’s when Pope Francis sprung to life. Garvey answered with a 3-pointer, and Sarah Wolanski tied the game with a layup with 3:34 to play.
The Cardinals took their first lead of the night with just 1:12 remaining. With the score still knotted at 39, a Pioneer turnover under its own basket was scooped up by Maldonado. The sophomore point guard, who was bottled up for most of the night, banked in a layup from close range, giving Pope Francis a 41-39 lead.
The Panthers scrambled for the tying basket but could not hold onto the ball in the final minute. Freshman Myra Green sank two free throws with 38 seconds remaining, and Wolanski sealed the deal with a layup with 18 seconds to play to lift the Cardinals into the Div. 4 quarterfinals.
“We went away from what we planned to do,” Burrington said.
It was a stark contrast in scoring from one half to the next. The Cardinals held a decisive 36-16 edge after intermission to steal the win at home.
“Pioneer’s a really competitive team,” Roque said. “They’re one of the teams that really gave us a hard time this season … in both games we played against them.”
Loughman led all scorers with 15 points and added nine rebounds, while Olivia Rowe pulled down 11 rebounds, blocked 12 shots and scored 4 points despite being double-teamed for the majority of the night. Scoville joined Loughman in double figures with 12 points, 10 of them coming in the first half.
Eighth-grader Azemina Cecunjanin was a pleasant surprise for the Panthers. She made her varsity debut and finished with 6 points, playing with poise and confidence despite the high stakes of a postseason outing. Cecunjanin added four rebounds and a pair of assists.
“She’s been on JV all year but we put her in a scrimmage and she shined so we decided to give her some minutes and see what happens,” Burrington said of Cecunjanin. “She showed really well for her first time out there.”
Garvey’s 14 points led Pope Francis, while Makenna Simis followed with 11 points.
Tuesday’s loss marked the final game in the careers of Rowe, the team’s leading scorer, and classmate Autumn Flagg.
Pope Francis 45 Pioneer 39
Pioneer (39)
Az. Cecunjanin 3-0-6, Loughman 6-1-15, Ellis 1-0-2, Scoville 6-0-12, Rowe 2-0-4, Al. Cecunjanin, Johnson, Kahler, Flagg, Briggs, Faille, Tibbetts. Totals 18-1–39.
Pope Francis (45)
Garvey 5-1-14, Green 0-2-2, Laprade 1-0-2, Maldonado 2-1-6, Cavanaugh 1-0-2, Simif 5-1-11, Wolanski 4-0-8. Totals: 18-5–45.
3-Point Goals: (P) Loughman 2. (PF) Garvey 3, Maldonado .
Score by quarters:
|
Pioneer |
9 |
14 |
8 |
8 |
— |
39 |
|
Pope Francis |
2 |
7 |
18 |
18 |
— |
45 |