Lenox Girls Drop Drury to Continue Torrid February

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- The Lenox girls basketball team Saturday used a 7-0 run early in the fourth quarter to open a 10-point lead and went on to a 56-45 win over Drury in the Berkshire County Classic at Mount Greylock.

 

Late runs have been the M.O. for the Millionaires, who Saturday won their ninth straight game to improve to 12-6.

 

Sophie Patella scored 16 points -- 12 in the second half -- and Jade Alward scored 13 to give Lenox the victory in Game 2 of a day of Berkshire County League girls basketball competition.

 

The victory gave Lenox a 2-1 victory in its season series against the Blue Devils, the last team to beat the Millionaires back on Jan. 20.

 

Alward, a senior captain, said Lenox's turnaround began right after that trip to North Adams.

 

"The game we turned around was our Lee game," she said. "That was a very important game to us.

 

"Since the beginning of the season, we said we want to win the South. And we realized we had to start winning games. Ever since then, we kept it in our mind that we really want that."

 

With a 6-5 record in Berkshire County South Division play, Lenox entered Saturday's game -- which did not count in the league standings -- with a two-game lead in the loss column on Lee and Mount Greylock, who are tied for second a5 5-7. Lenox this week finishes with games against the Mounties at home and at Mount Everett, which is yet to win a game in the league.

 

Alward said it was not one specific adjustment that allowed her team to rebound from a 3-6 start.

 

"It's pretty much been a mental adjustment," she said. "We all decided that we're ready to play together, and we're ready to help each other out. It's not like a single person doing everything. We're all together.

 

"I think that's awesome."

 

A tight first half saw neither team lead by more than three points.

 

Ashanti Sampson was strong in the paint for Drury in the first half, collecting five rebounds, blocking a shot and contributing three steals. Mackenzie Dobbert scored six first-half points for the Blue Devils, including a 3-pointer early in the second quarter to give Drury a 13-11 lead.

 

Kat Nichols answered with a triple off a baseline inbounds play moments later for Lenox, which led by three before Drury scored five straight at the line to take its final lead of the game at 18-16.

 

Tabor Paul hit a 3, and Patella scored in the post for Lenox to close the half, and the Millionaires went to the locker room with a 21-18 lead.

 

Lenox jumped out to an eight-point lead midway through the third, but Drury answered with six straight from Tess Zoito (16 points) to make it 31-29.

 

It was a three-point Lenox lead early in the fourth when the Millionaires mounted the decisive run.

 

First, Amelia Reis converted from the left wing to make it 37-32.

 

Then after a Reis rebound at the other end, Patella fed Alward for a triple to make it an eight-point margin.

 

Then Paul grabbed the rebound of a missed Drury 3-pointer, and Mia Girardina scored in the post off an assist from Nichols to make it 42-32 with less than five minutes to go.

 

Drury (7-12) got within seven points a couple of times but never got closer the rest of the way as it saw a three-game winning streak come to an end.

 

Despite Drury's record, Alward agreed that the Blue Devils are a tough matchup for the tourney-bound Millionaires.

 

"Drury's really aggressive," Alward said. "They're just a really great team, and it feels great to beat them."

 

Lenox Monday will look to continue its nine-game win streak Monday when it entertains the Mounties.