Drury Girls Stymie Wahconah

DALTON, Mass. -- Halfway through Thursday's game at Wahconah, Drury senior center Olivia Carlson had no points.

 

Going into the fourth quarter, she had just a bucket.

 

But none of that mattered. She had her mind on the scoreboard, not the scorebook. And throughout the game, the Blue Devils were on the right side of that scoreboard, which ended with a 45-33 Drury win.

 

"We definitely play team basketball," Carlson said. "What we emphasize is: We want to get the big a touch in the middle, so if we work that inside-out game, even if they can converge on me, that's going to open up our shooters.

 

"And we have some awesome shooters: Molly Moulton, Jenna Moulton, Sarah Lamarre. They all knocked down shots for us tonight. We don't score who scores the points, as long as we're scoring them."

 

And as long as the other team is not.

 

Once again on Thursday night, the difference was the defense for Drury, which has allowed an opponent 40 points just once in its last 11 games.

 

Coincidentally, 10 of those games were wins; the 11th was a 53-43 loss to Pittsfield.

 

On Thursday, Carlson had the task of holding in check Wahconah pivot Lily Pudlo. She finished with five points and 16 rebounds. Carlson, who scored five in the fourth quarter to finish with seven, also grabbed 18 rebounds of her own.

 

"The job she did defensively and on the boards with Pudlo was as good as offense," Drury coach Brian Flagg said. "[Pudlo's] coming off a 16-16 game [against Pittsfield] and then she went down and dropped 20 on Bay Path.

 

"She was definitely a focus for us tonight, and I told Olivia, 'If you stop her, that's as good as scoring 10 points.' And she did. She did a great job."

 

Molly Moulton finished with 15 points to lead all scorers, and Jenna Moulton and Katlyn Toomey scored eight apiece; Toomey also grabbed 12 rebounds.

 

She scored in the post in the opening moments to break a 2-2 tie and give Drury a lead it never relinquished.

 

The Blue Devils (14-5) closed the first quarter with a 7-0 run capped by Brooke DiGennaro's 3-pointer to take a 16-6 lead.

 

They maintained the double-digit lead most of the second quarter.

 

Wahconah did make a run to open the third, which Amelia Daugherty started with a triple from the top of the key to get the lead to 26-17. After a Molly Moulton bucket at the other end, Ashley Zink hit a pair of free throws, and Pudlo put back her own miss to get her team within seven, 28-21.

 

But Drury closed a low-scoring quarter with a 7-2 run that ended on Carlson's putback, her first points of the game at the buzzer.

 

Neither team could get its offense going to start the fourth as they traded turnovers and empty trips over the first four minutes. Wahconah's Emmy Cote made a push with six points quick points with about two minutes left to make it 41-33, but that was all Drury allowed.

 

Wahconah (13-7) will spend next week getting ready for the Western Mass tournament, whose seeds will be determined on Feb. 27. Drury finishes the regular season on Monday at Hoosac Valley.

 

Prior to Thursday's game, Wahconah recognized graduating seniors Hannah Brennan and Mikayla Gagliardi.