SOUTH DEERFIELD — Through three quarters at Goodnow Gymnasium, the Athol boys basketball team stayed within striking distance against No. 3 Frontier in the first round of the Western Mass. Division 3 Boys Basketball Tournament.
The Red Raiders trailed 43-32 entering the fourth quarter, but in the final eight minutes, the Red Hawks made sure the No. 14 Red Raiders weren’t able to pull off the upset to keep their incredible run alive.
Following a Mark Ferrari bucket to start the fourth, Frontier took off on a 13-0 run to open up a 22-point cushion midway through the fourth. The Red Hawks cruised into the quarterfinals from there, capturing a 62-41 victory.
Frontier (17-4) will host No. 6 Monument Mountain (16-5) on Friday at 7 p.m. with a spot at the Cage on the line.
“For us as a team, we brought a whole lot more energy,” explained Frontier’s Gabe Jones-Thomson. “We dialed in, locked in and finished the game and ran away with it. We were all on the same page. In the first half, we didn’t seem to be working as a team. In the second half, the high-low passing was great. Athol had good intensity, they played a good game. That’s what tournament play is.”
Jones-Thomson helped lead the fourth quarter charge for Frontier. The senior scored all eight of his points in the final frame, seven coming during the Hawks’ 13-0 run.
Peter Carey scored two of his 13 points during the big run, Donovan Hoffman knocked home a 3-pointer, and Ethan Machon made a free throw.
Frontier coach Ben Barshefsky credited his team’s patience and ability to play under control to their success in the fourth.
“When we were organized offensively and getting the ball to the middle, we were successful,” Barshefsky said. “It was the opposite when we weren’t organized. The key for us is controlling what we can control. Making the correct cuts, being organized in the press break and half court set.”
Going into the fourth quarter, Athol (9-12) felt it was in decent position to make a comeback, but had to take chances while trailing which led to easy buckets for the Red Hawks.
“All year, the guys battled and fought,” Athol coach Dan Bevis said. “It didn’t matter what the score was, they played hard. Going into the fourth quarter, we had been in that situation before. We’ve won games in that situation and we’ve lost games in that situation. It wasn’t anything new to us. They made some plays down the stretch.”
After eight minutes of action, Athol trailed just 11-9 thanks to a solid effort on the defensive end of the floor that kept the Red Hawks off the scoreboard.
In the second quarter, Frontier knocked down outside shots, while Carey dominated in the paint.
The big man scored six points in the quarter and rejected four shots on the defensive side of the floor. With the attention going to Carey on the inside, Sean Richter knocked down a trio of shots from outside to put the Red Hawks up 32-17 at the half.
While Frontier started pulling away, Ferrari did his part to keep the Red Raiders in the game, getting to the rim for a bucket before knocking down a 3 late in the quarter.
“Give credit to Coach Bevis and his entire Athol squad, that’s a good team,” Barshefsky said. “They made us uncomfortable tonight, from the beginning to the end. So credit to those guys. It’s been fun coaching against their seniors and I wish them the best of luck.”
Ferrari kept his groove going in the third quarter, scoring seven points, but Frontier never allowed its lead to drop into single digits, leading 43-32 into the fourth.
With the teams having played twice this season, there was certainly familiarity going into the game. While they knew each other from the regular season matchups, both teams understood the intensity would be different in a playoff atmosphere.
“The only consistent factor is you’re familiar with the players on the opposing team,” Barshefsky said. “At the end of the day, it comes down to who’s playing better.”
The loss ended a magical late-season run by Athol, which got into the tournament for the first time since 2006 thanks to late-season offensive explosion.
“I told them I was proud of them as a team,” Bevis said. “I’m proud to have an opportunity to have coached them and be part of this season. It’s special in a lot of ways for us. This is going to sting for a while but we’ll eventually move on and think about what we’re going to do in the future.”
Frontier now turns its focus to the Spartans, which dismantled Palmer, 99-47, on Tuesday to advance to the quarterfinal round.
“We’re excited,” Jones-Thomson said. “We expected to be here. We have a lot of work to do. Monument is a great team. We have a lot to prepare for and study for to get ready for Friday.”