Alibozek Goes Off Again in McCann Win
NORTH ADAMS, Mass — After a rough start to the season, Ashley Alibozek and the McCann Tech girls' basketball team definitely seem to be hitting their stride in the past week.Alibozek continued her recent assault on the nets, and the Hornets earned their third win in a row on Tuesday night with a 44-32 home victory over Southwick. Alibozek has found her scoring tough in the three-game winning streak, increasing her point total each time on her way to a career-high 25-point effort against the Rams.
In her team's six losses to start the season, Alibozek averaged 9.33 points per game. In the last three games, Alibozek is averaging 21.33 points a contest, giving McCann (3-6) the go-to scorer it needed to jump start its offense. The senior guard has been dangerous from the 3-point line, hitting three more triples on Tuesday night to go along with nine rebounds and two assists.
"Ashley dominated the basket and lit up the scoreboard," Hornets head coach Kristen Lewis said. "However, she couldn't have done it alone. I thought we played very strong together, and everyone on the court had a part in winning what was an intense game. With only a minute to go in the game, it seemed as if it were a one-point game when we were really winning by nine to 11 points. Southwick tried to foul to get the ball back at the end of the game, but we went 5 of 7 from the foul line to lock up the win.
"We are on a roll, now having won three games and we are ready to carry that intensity and excitement over to the two other homes games we have on Thursday and Friday this week. We think we are prepared and ready to compete with any team who enters our gym."
After building just a one-point lead at halftime, McCann slowly put some distance between itself and the Rams in the second half. The Hornets led 30-25 after three quarters and clinched the win by doubling up Southwick 14-7 in the fourth. Lewis said senior forward Cassie Field played a big part in the win by holding the Rams' best post player, Mariah Collins, to just seven points. Besides her solid defense, Field also contributed six points and five rebounds to the Hornets' cause.
Senior guard Brittany Briggs helped set the table for the McCann offense, finishing with a game-high seven assists, while juniors Mary Nguyen and Xiomara Colon also impressed Lewis with their play.
"Brittany was able to find the open person and deliver passes to all of them to score baskets," Lewis said. "Mary, who is rarely credited for the hard work she does, controlled the floor and the tempo the whole game. She is a great point guard who tells the girls where to go and how to get open. She can find the open person every play. She played hard and under control. Xiomara also played hard and used her body properly to get a game-high and career-high 12 rebounds. She had some open shots and made some easy baskets as the other team was very concerned with our outside shooters"
Melissa O'Neil was Southwick's high scorer with 16 points. The Hornets next host Mount Everett at 7 p.m. on Thursday.