Moulton Helps Drury Down Monument

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- The Drury girls' basketball team had a bit of a letdown in a loss to Wahconah last Saturday. With a week to prepare for its next game, it's safe to say that the Blue Devils were on top of their game in a 50-34 home win over Monument Mountain on Saturday. 

Drury (8-3) much more resembled the team that picked up a pair of 20-point wins against Hoosac Valley and Mount Greylock last week before dropping a 45-34 decision to the Warriors in the Coaches vs. Cancer Showcase. Led by the smooth outside shooting of forwards Emily Moulton and Shannon Garvey, the Blue Devils stretched out the Spartans' defense and made themselves hard to defend. Moulton finished with a season-high 17 points and game-high 11 rebounds, while Garvey chipped in with 12 points and six boards. 

"I thought it was a great team effort," Drury head coach John Franzoni said. "We played very well on both ends of the court. Our team defense was very good today. We have a smart team, and the kids really executed the scouting report on both ends of the court. Emily Moulton's confidence is great right now, just seeing how hard and aggressive she's playing now. Shannon's shooting the ball well, and that just makes us hard to defend. 

"We showed that today, especially in third quarter when everything was clicking." 

The Devils led 15-9 after the first quarter, but really took control of the game over the second and third quarters. Drury's defense held Monument (6-6) to just 12 points over that span, while its offense scored 12 points alone in the second quarter to earn a 13-point lead at halftime. The hosts ended up going on a 21-3 run at one point during the middle of the game, giving them a 22-point cushion going into the fourth quarter. 

Senior Ali Tatro added eight points and four rebounds for the Blue Devils, while point guard Danielle Racette guided the offense with six assists. The Spartans were led by Vanessa Troiano, who hit a pair of 3-pointers on her way to a 10-point night. 

Franzoni admitted that a week off helped his team be ready for Saturday's game. 

"We were a little banged up and a little sick, so that gave us some time to recuperate," he said. "We also knew that we didn't play our game last week, and we let Wahconah take it to us. We came out today with a more aggressive approach and that was a better result for us with that kind of mindset." 

Drury gets right back to it on Monday with a road game against Lee at 7:30 p.m. The Wildcats beat the Devils the first time the two teams met on Stephanie Young's buzzer-beating shot in the second game of the year. 

JV Game: Drury's junior varsity team remained undefeated this year, earning a 35-19 win over the Spartans. Jill Tietgens led the way with 10 points, while Cat Marceau chipped in with four points and a game-high 15 rebounds. Katie Toomey also came through with six points and seven boards. 

Emily Shaw was the leading scorer for Monument with seven points.