COURTESY PHOTO
The St. Mary’s girls basketball team poses outside of the ESPN Wide World of Sports, where the KSA Pre-Holiday Classic is being held.
The St. Mary’s girls and boys basketball teams traded the frigid temperatures of the North Shore for some sun and fun down in Orlando, Fla., to take part in the KSA Pre-Holiday Classic Basketball Tournament at the ESPN Wide World of Sports.
Playing against teams from all over the country, both the Spartans teams came away with a win in the opening round of the tournament Monday afternoon.
The girls earned their first win of the season, taking down Edgewater High of Orlando, 57-33. A close game early on, St. Mary’s and Edgewater went into the half tied at 20, but the Spartans put up 18 points in the third quarter and held Edgewater to just five points to stake a big lead. They followed that up with a 19-point fourth to seal the victory.
Temi Falayi (12 points) and Olivia Nazaire (10 points) led the way for St. Mary’s, but the Nowicki sisters had a big impact as well, with both Mia and Christina putting up eight points. The Spartans really spread the offense around, with Gabby Torres scoring nine points and Amanda Idusuyi chipping in with six.
The boys overcame a slow start against McDowell High of Erie, Penn. to top the Trojans, 50-38. McDowell took an 18-7 lead after a quarter, but St. Mary’s turned up the heat and outscored the Trojans 17-3 in the third quarter to take the lead.
Jalen Echevarria had a big game, leading the Spartans with 15 points, sinking three 3-pointers and making four of five free throws. Mike Cerulli scored nine points on three 3-pointers, Stephen Fama added nine points and Jonathan Mola contributed eight points.
Both teams now advance to the winners bracket semifinals, with tip-off scheduled for 1:45 p.m. The boys will take on Briarwood High of Birmingham, Ala. and the girls will play Bentonville High of Bentonville, Ark.
BOYS BASKETBALL
Lynn Classical 61, Revere 51
The Rams (3-1) were led in scoring by Jalen Johnson, who dropped 16 points in the win. Edwin Solis also had a big game, recording a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Classical will host Danvers on Thursday evening.
Gloucester 81, Saugus 57
Matt Waggett scored 19 points in the loss for Saugus (1-2), while Dimitri Filaretos contributed 17 points. The Sachems have a date with Marblehead at home on Thursday.
Peabody 62, Danvers 56
Junior Estrella and Moise Irizarry both recorded double-doubles to help lead the Tanners to their first win of the 2016-2017 season. Estrella led the way for Peabody (1-1) with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Irizarry put up 14 points and 10 rebounds. Matt D’Amato also got in on the scoring, dropping 14 points.
Peabody will take on Beverly at home on Thursday.
Cardinal Spellman 86, Bishop Fenwick 58
The Fenwick boys are still searching for their first win after falling to Spellman on the road. Ryan Veguilla led the Crusaders (0-3) with 19 points, while Isaiah Cashwell-Doe and Nick Pignone put up 16 points each.
Fenwick will have a few days off before taking on St. Clement at home on Friday evening.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Revere 55, Lynn Classical 43
Paris Wilkey was the top scorer for Classical (2-1), scoring 20 points. Irianis Delgado also had a good game with 10 points for the Rams. Classical will travel to Danvers for a meeting with the Falcons on Thursday evening.
Danvers 58, Peabody 45
The Tanners fell behind 18 points at the half, and coach Stan McKeen said that although his team managed to pull closer at times, the gap was too big to overcome.
Four Falcons scored in double figures, and two logged double-doubles. Siobhan Moriarty led the way with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Sarah Unczur added 12 points and 10 rebounds. Julia McNulty put up 13 points and Lily Montanari added 10.
Peabody’s Melissa Gray led all scorers with 15 points, and Alyssa Alperen was solid as well, chipping in 12 points. Katie Wallace also played well defensively.
The Falcons will take on Classical on Thursday, and the Tanners will travel to Beverly.
Bishop Fenwick 52, Cardinal Spellman 41
The Crusaders were led by senior captain Sam Mancinelli, who contributed in every facet of the game, scoring 13 points and logging six assists and five rebounds.
Sophomore Jaxson Nadeau also had 13 points to go along with four rebounds and five steals, and junior Jennie Meagher added 11 points, nine rebounds and two blocks.
The game was tight throughout, but the Crusaders hit big shots in the final three minutes to create some separation.