Robinson, Ryan, Rosse Rout Athol at Coaches Vs. Cancer Showcase
CHESHIRE, Mass. -- High school is a time for moving beyond the basics in your education, but Hoosac Valley girls basketball team, it is all about the three R's: Rosse, Robinson and Ryan.
McKenzie Robinson dished out nine assists to help the Hoosac Valley girls basketball team defeat Athol, 53-34, on Sunday afternoon in the finale of the Coaches Vs. Cancer Showcase.
The Hurricanes' victory gave Berkshire County a 2-2 record against the visitors from the Pioneer Valley. Wahconah started the day with a 60-51 loss to Granby. Drury beat Frontier, 39-13. And Mount Greylock fell to Hampshire, 55-42.
Host Hoosac Valley got 21 points and 12 rebounds from Emily Rosse and 18 points from Madi Ryan, who knocked own five 3-pointers.
The Hurricanes (11-1) jumped out to a 20-7 lead early in the second quarter and never looked back.
Robinson was masterful in directing Hoosac's offense.
"She really does a great job running the floor for us," Hoosac coach Ron Wojcik said. "I know a couple of passes early got deflected. We talked about their length. They're big. But I thought once we got used to that, McKenzie was reading well, very well.
"She hit Rosse on the inside a couple of times, found the other guards ... I just though it was great. McKenz is our floor leader, and she does a great job for us."
Rosse came out big early, establishing a presence in the post and stretching the Athol defense with a 3-pointer. She had eight points at the end of the quarter, which was capped by a Ryan triple off a Robinson assist to make it 15-5.
Fallon Field scored seven of her nine points in the second quarter as the 'Canes built their way to a 29-15 half-time advantage.
It was down to a 13-point margin late in the third before Ryan hit a 3 (with help from Robinson) and had a steal and lay-in to make it 40-22 and allow both coaches to give their starters some rest.
Molly Cleveland scored 12, and Emily Casella grabbed nine rebounds for Athol (12-2).
Hoosac Valley travels to Monument Mountain on Thursday.
Sunday's games were recscheduled from Saturday because of the threat of bad weather and the impact it would have on teams traveling west from the Pioneer Valley. But crowds were steady throughout the day despite the date switch.
"It's a fun event for all the teams," Wojcik said. "All the kids get to contribute. "The event is about cancer awareness and raising money for it. We might have had a little bit more on Saturday, but each team brings quite a few people.
"All the teams start off by contributing $250 or more. The refs give their time and make a donation at the end of the year. I know we start off with at least $2,000, and between selling the program and the attendance, hopefully at the end it's $3,000 or $4,000."
Granby 60, Wahconah 51
Freshman Kate Sullivan scored 20 points to lead Granby (12-0) past Wahconah in the opening game of the showcase.
She had eight points in a pivotal first quarter as Granby took a 20-13 lead.
Lily Pudlo scored 18 to lead Wahconah (6-6), which will look to snap two-game losing streak on Monday at Monument Mountain -- a game that could be postponed by Winter Storm Juno.
Drury 39, Frontier 13
Speaking of Monday night, Drury's girls are supposed to play Taconic on Monday, but the stress of a back-to-back was easier to handle when the Blue Devils put away the Red Hawks early and got their starters some rest.
They did it with defense, limiting Frontier to a maximum of four points in any given quarter.
"Our last three games, we've given up 52, 53 and 54 or something like that, so the emphasis in practice this week has been on the defensive end," Drury coach Jay Meehan said. "We're still not scoring, but if we're not going to score, we better defend, and today we did a good job of that."
The Blue Devils (4-7) also did a good job rebounding. Kaitlyn Toomey and Olivia Carlson each grabbed nine boards.
Toomey finished with a game-high 12 points, nearly matching the offensive output for Frontier (3-10).
The tone for the game was set in a 12-2 first quarter that featured five points from Molly Moulton (10 points, three assists).
After Frontier's Jordyn Roberts knocked down a 3-pointer to start the second quarter, Drury went on a 9-0 run that ended with a 3 by Moulton on an asssist from Sarah Lamarre.
Jenna Moulton added eight points, and Lamarre and Heather Morris had six rebounds apiece as Drury broke a five-game losing streak.
Hampshire 55, Mount Greylock 42
Climbing out of a hole can be tough -- whether it is the 2-5 start that Mount Greylock had this winter or the 26-5 deficit that doomed the Mounties' latest attempt to get back to .500.
Hampshire (11-3) took that 21-point advantage late in the first quarter when Nicole Buzzee capped a 15-0 run with a pair of 3-pointers on back-to-back trips.
From that point on, Mount Greylock (5-7) outscored Hampshire by a margin of 37-29. But the first seven minutes of the game left the Mounties with too tough a task.
Lucy Barrett scored 20 points, and Arianna Walden added 10 to go with five steals and two assists.
Hampshire got 22 points from junior Lauren Aldrich and 25 rebounds from sophomore Katie O'Connor.
Rebounds were a big problem for the Mounties all afternoon. Hampshire finished with a 49-25 edge in that department.
The Mounties are scheduled to host Lenox on Monday night.