LYNNFIELD — Defense was the name of the game for the Lynnfield girls basketball team Friday night. The Pioneers struggled in the early stages before picking up their rhythm in a 53-44 win over Cape Ann League rival Newburyport at Lynnfield High.
The Pioneers changed things up from their normal 3-2 zone defense in this one, but the results were just as good.
“We switched things up defensively and the girls did a good job of putting it into action,” said Lynnfield coach Peter Bocchino. “There were times when Newburyport was able to find the weak side and get some baskets, but for the most part we did a good job forcing turnovers and making things difficult on them.”
Catherine MacDonald led the way for Lynnfield, notching a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Victoria Morelli added 11 points and seven rebounds in the win, while point guard Grace Klonsky added eight points and a strong defensive effort. Riley Hallahan had seven points and seven rebounds, while Ava Buonfiglio and Melissa Morelli each scored five points.
“Everyone has been stepping up lately and we’ve been getting some really strong performances,” said Bocchino. “It’s great to see the scoring be spread around.”
It was a defensive struggle for the entire first half, as neither team could get off a clean shot. Newburyport played a stout press defense on the Pioneers on nearly every possession and Lynnfield suffered some turnover issues in the early minutes. After a low-scoring first quarter, the two teams went into the first break tied at 10-10.
Things opened up a bit in the second quarter, thanks in part to some better shooting on Lynnfield’s part. The Pioneers took a 13-12 lead about midway through the quarter, but the Clippers had rallied to tie the score at 19-19 with just over a minute to go. But after clutch baskets from Melissa Morelli and Riley Hallahan, Lynnfield took a 23-19 lead into the half.
In the second half, the Pioneers started to pull away. It started with a small run to go up six points, then that lead was extended to nine points by the end of the third quarter — 36-29.
Lynnfield carried that momentum right into the start of the fourth quarter, pushing the lead to as many as 13 points within the first minute of play. Newburyport hung tough for most of the quarter and remained just within striking distance, but the Pioneers were able to make enough plays on both sides of the ball to keep the Clippers at bay.
The win puts the Pioneers back to .500 on the year at 2-2.
“This is a much faster start than we usually get off to,” said Bocchino. “In recent years we’ve had some really slow starts and this year we’re a young team, so to be at 2-2 right now is a good feeling for us.”
Lynnfield has a tough stretch ahead, with a game against Amesbury — which knocked them out in last year’s Division 3 semifinal — on Tuesday (6:30) and a game against a strong North Reading team on Friday (7).
“We’ve just got to keep working,” Bocchino said. “We’ve got some tough games ahead, but we’ve been playing some solid basketball and we just need to keep it up.”