Mounties Run Away With Game in Second Half at Drury
.JPG) Mount Greylock coach Paul Barrett strategizes with his players. |
Barrett scored in transition and set up three buckets, including a Mackenzie Flynn 3-pointer with 3 minutes, 27 seconds left that gave the Mounties (1-0) their largest lead of the night, 50-32, in a game that went back and forth most of the night.
Drury (0-1) led most of the first half and rallied from a three-point half-time deficit to take its final lead, 22-19, when Olivia Carlson knocked down a pair of free throws early in the third quarter.
The visitors took the lead for good with a 10-0 spurt that started with a 3 by Kelsey Orpin and ended when Barrett hit a triple to make it 34-24.
Drury got back within five when Emily Moulton put back an offensive rebound for two of her team-high 10 points at the end of the third.
But Flynn (13 points) hit from the elbow on Mount Greylock's second possession of the fourth quarter, and the Mounties were off to the races.
"I didn't know what to expect, but certainly you could tell there was some first-game stuff," Mount Greylock coach Paul Barrett said. "After last season where they struggled, it was nice to see them come out and eventually start to get a little confidence in themselves and start to play."
The Blue Devils, playing their first game under new head coach Jay Meehan, did their best to shake Mount Greylock's confidence with full-court pressure in the first half.
Drury's press forced five turnovers in a five-minute stretch that spanned the first and second quarters.
That stretch saw the Blue Devils break open a tie game and build a 15-10 lead when Molly Moulton hit a foul shot with 3:37 left in the half.
.JPG) Drury head coach Jay Meehan is starting his first season. |
The big difference for Mount Greylock in the first half was the play of its big front line, in particular Flynn and freshman Jenna Benzinger, who combined for 16 first-half rebounds as the Mounties built a 27-12 edge on the glass at intermission.
Benzinger ended with a game-high 17 caroms; Flynn had 13. Forward Sarah Stripp had 10 rebounds to go along with four steals and a block.
"Mack [Flynn] is a senior, she's been around, she's a soccer captain as well, and she's in great physical shape," Barrett said. "She's going to need be because we can't really take her off the floor.
"Jenna [Benzinger] is only going to get better every game. ... I don't know how many rebounds she had, but as they say, you can't teach height. It's great to have someone in there like her who keeps the ball up high. And she did a pretty good job of passing out of it, too.
"As they play with each other more, we'll get more comfortable as far as knowing where people are and knowing where to go with it."
Mount Greylock travels to face McCann Tech on Monday. Drury will look for its first win Monday at Hoosac Valley.