Page 14 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2022 Saugus players named to NEC all-star teams T By Greg Phipps he Northeastern Conference (NEC) recently announced its 2021-22 all-conference team in both boys’ and girls’ basketball. Five Saugus players were selected. Two of them made the NEC all-conference team. For the boys, Saugus’s top scorer, Tyrone Manderson, was one of seven players to make the NEC all-conference squad. He was a consistent and at times prolifi c off ensive performer for the Sachems, who fi nished 8-12 this season and fell just shy of earning a playoff berth in Joe Bertrand’s fi rst full season as head coach. Junior guard Ben Tapia-Gately was recognized as a member of the NEC Dunn Division all-star squad. He was another consistent performer and engineered the Saugus off ense. Tapia-Gately frequently fi nished with double-digit scoring eff orts. On the girls’ side, senior forward/ center Fallon Millerick captured a spot on the seven-member all-conference team. She led the team in points scored numerous times and helped guide the Sachems to a 12win campaign and playoff appearance in 2021-22. Two Saugus girls made the Dunn Division all-star team. Ashleen Escobar, a solid all-around guard/forward, and eighth-grade guard Peyton DiBiasio were recognized for their efforts. Escobar performed well both offensively and defensively while DiBiasio showed some scoring prowess with a number of double-digit scoring outputs and an ability to attack the net. Beverly guard Ryder Frost was named NEC Player of the Year for the boys. For the girls, Peabody’s Logan Lomasney received the honor. NEC Dunn Division all-star selection Ben Tapia-Gately Senior all-Northeastern Conference player Tyrone Manderson Senior all-Northeastern Conference player Fallon Millerick (Advocate photos by Greg Phipps) Eighth-grader Peyton DiBiasio was selected to the Northeastern Conference’s Dunn Division all-star team. Ashleen Escobar received a nod for the Northeastern Conference’s Dunn Division all-star squad. Season ends for Saugus girls’ basketball team in Round of 32 T By Greg Phipps he Saugus High School girls’ basketball team took part in numerous low-scoring games this season. More often than not, the Sachems were able to grind their way to low-scoring wins. But their propensity to struggle at times on the offensive end proved to be their undoing in a 55-30 Div. 3 Round of 32 playoff loss last Thursday to the Bishop Stang Spartans. Visiting Saugus was not only up against the 13th-seeded Spartans but a raucous home crowd at the Bishop Stang gymnasium. The combination was too much to overcome for the No. 20 Sachems. The season-ending loss didn’t take away from what had been a strong season overall for the Sachems, who finished with a 12-9 record after losing three of their first four games. Head Coach Mark Schruender and his squad recovered nicely from a tough, pandemic-shortened 2020-21 campaign when Saugus managed to win only twice. “We came off last season winning just two games,” he told the press after last Thursday’s defeat. “Obviously, it was crazy with the pandemic. This year we went 12-8, and I’m so proud of everybody for coming together. Our seniors, in particular, did so much.” Three seniors suited up in a Saugus uniform for the fi nal time. They were co-captains Fallon Millerick, April Aldred and Cassandra Israelson. No Sachems player reached double fi gures in the defeat. Ashleen Escobar was high scorer with nine points while Millerick and Ashleigh Moore each netted six. Saugus found itself looking up at a 33-18 deficit at halftime after shooting just seven of 25 from the field over the first two quarters. From there, the Sachems were unable to muster a comeback and scored just 12 points over the final 16 minutes. Schruender acknowledged that producing 30 points isn’t going to win many games, especially in the playoffs. “It’s a credit to [Bishop Stang’s] defense. They were outstanding all night and made it hard to start our offense,” he observed. “We were nervous a little bit and had shots that did not go down for us. That’s part of playing in a state tournament game.”
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