Page 10 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, MArCH 10, 2023 Future looks bright for Saugus girls’ basketball By Greg Phipps O n record, it will show that the Saugus High School girls’ basketball team lost its last four games of the 202223 season. In reality, the Sachems put forth a very strong campaign. They faced two highly rated Div. 1 teams and competed well in their final three regular-season contests and were then defeated in a close game on the road by the 11th-seeded Archbishop Williams Bishops in the Div. 3 Round of 32 last Friday. Against the Bishops, the 22nd seeded Sachems, who finished with a 13-8 overall record, found themselves in a battle, tied at 44 apiece with two minutes left in regulation. Saugus was unable to score over the remainder of the game while the hosts put up the final eight points to come away with a 52-44 triumph. Saugus Head Coach Mark Schruender said the game was pretty much a toss-up affair Freshman guard Peyton DiBiasio collected 11 points in last Friday’s playoff loss at Archbishop Williams. throughout. “By all indications it was an even game. They attempted 62 shots [from the field] and we attempted 61,” he pointed out. “We attempted 17 free throws and they attempted 15. We turned the ball over less by a very thin margin as well.” Junior Ashleigh Moore had her best offensive game of Junior Ashleen Escobar netted 12 points in last Friday’s playoff game at Archbishop Williams. the season by pouring home a team-high 19 points, while fellow junior Ashleen Escobar collected 12. Freshman guard Peyton DiBiasio chipped in with 11. Junior Jessica Bremberg played a strong defensive game with seven rebounds and two steals and held her own guarding a player who had a five-inch Center Devaney Millerick is one of several junior players who will be returning next season for Saugus. height advantage. “I was thoroughly impressed with our team’s focus and toughness,” said Schruender. “[The players] executed the game plan and knew exactly how to guard each player on the Archbishop Williams team. Given that we were on the road and were the under-seeded team, I thought that our team did not back down at all.” Next season looks bright and promising for the Sachems, who had no seniors on this year’s squad and will be returning their entire roster. Every member of this year’s team made a strong contribution on the court. “Knowing how close we were to beating Archbishop [Williams], I’m sure our players are very hungry going into next season.” said Schruender, who mentioned that the Bishops had advanced to the final eight of the Div. 3 tourney. “My hope for all our players is that they invest time and sweat every day in the offseason to try to be back and better at this time next year,” Schruender observed. Saugus finished as co-champions in the Northeastern Conference’s Lynch Division. The conference all-star team – which will no doubt include several Sachem players – was set to be announced later this week. Sachem boys hang tough in playoff defeat By Greg Phipps I n its Round of 32 Div. 3 playoff loss at 16th-seeded Seekonk last Friday night, the Saugus High School boys’ basketball team was far more competitive than the final score suggested. The No. 17 Sachems trailed by three at halftime and were within seven with a little over three minutes left in the game before eventually falling by a 68-54 margin. Trailing 19-11 after one quarter, Saugus fought back to tie it as the first half was coming to a close. But Seekonk drilled a three-pointer at the halftime buzzer to take a three-point edge into the break. From there, the hosts increased their lead to 11 after three periods before the Sachems brought the deficit back down to single digits late in the fourth quarter. Sachems head coach Joe Bertrand said his team felt pretty good at halftime only being behind by three after falling behind early. But Saugus went cold from the field in the third quarter and never fully recovered. “Seekonk made some big shots to pull away late,” he said. Ben Tapia-Gately led the charge for the Sachems with 22 points and nine rebounds. He also dished out five assists on the night. Josh Osawe was the other Saugus player in double figures with 13 points while Cam Soroko, Max Anajjar and Isaiah Rodriguez finished with seven each. Chris Flynn also made the scoring column by netting six points. Last Fr iday ’s playoff appeara nc e was the first for the Saugus boys in three years. “It was a great opportunity for the entire program. We haven’t been in the tournament since the 2019-20 season. It was a great experience for our team and our younger players got to see the intensity of a state tourSenior Ben Tapia-Gately ended his high school career with a solid 22-point, nine-rebound effort in last Friday’s playoff loss at Seekonk. nament game,” Bertrand observed. The team’s five senior players - Tapia-Gately, Osawe, Anajjar, Flynn and Isaiah Garcia - will be missed. “[They] have done what I asked of them a couple of years ago, Cam Soroko contributed seven points in last Friday’s playoff game at Seekonk. and that was to leave our program better than they found it,” Bertrand said. “It’s the goal of the underclassmen to do the same.” The Sachems finished the season at 13-8 overall and will have a 2022-23 Northeastern Conference Lynch Division crown to defend next year. Saugus is also likely to have several players named to this year’s conference allstar team, which was scheduled to be announced later this week.
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