SAUGUS — The Saugus girls basketball team had a chance to lock up a spot in the state tournament Monday night and the Sachems had no plans to be denied.
An all-around team effort helped Saugus cruise by Revere, 56-28, at John Towers Gymnasium. Coach Mark Shruender hopes checking off the key accomplishment is just the ticket for a Sachems team that is still looking to improve.
“We always talk about trying to be humble,” Shruender said. “Humble doesn’t necessarily mean you’re really good and you need to calm down. Sometimes it can be when you lose a game and you’re too down. We want to be right in the middle. Our kids will be excited for this accomplishment, but I think that they recognize we made mistakes out there (Monday) that we need to fix.”
Saugus had plenty of contributors in this one. Jillian Ricupero had a game-high 11 points with four rebounds. Jessica Nazzaro (four rebounds) and Taylor Bogdanski (six) each scored nine points. Molly Granara and Fallon Millerick each scored eight points.
“It’s a nice luxury,” Shruender said of the bulk of contributors. “If a kid is having an off night, which has happened this year, other kids step up. (Monday) I thought Jill Ricupero played great. Jessica Nazzaro was awesome from the 3-point range, (she) didn’t force anything. I don’t think she missed a three.”
Kiley Ronan (four points) may not have jumped out on the stat sheet offensively but the senior had seven rebounds, six steals and a block while holding Revere’s Erica Cheever to five points.
“Kiley is awesome,” Shruender said. “She is so tough defensively. We were talking about (Cheever) coming in. Last year she burned us for 30 points or something close. The kids knew it would be a challenge. Kiley took it personally and really made (Cheaver) work to earn her shot. That’s what we expect from Kiley. She’s her own toughest critic.”
It was a tough night for the Patriots, but they did find some momentum in the third quarter, scoring 16 points in the frame.
“We talked about being a little more aggressive on offense and attacking the basket with the mentality of scoring,” Revere coach Matt Willis said. “When you do that, good things happen and you put the pressure on them. Saugus does a great job of that and that was really the difference most of the game.”
Saugus started the night off fast with Nazzaro’s opening 3-pointer and a pair of steals from Ronan. Midway through the first Nazzaro hit another three to bump the Sachems’ lead to 11-4.
Bogdanski hit a pair of 3-pointers, one to end the first quarter and another to start the second, to stretch the Saugus lead to 19-7.
Kathryn O’Donnell (eight points) hit Revere’s first 3-pointer of the night midway through the, but Saugus was unrelenting and carried a 29-12 lead into the second half.
The Patriots shot much better in the third. Cheever, O’Donnell and Skyla DeSimmone (eight points, seven rebounds) each hit 3’s in the frame, but Revere couldn’t dig themselves out of the hole.
Saugus got its lead up to as many 26 points in the fourth before clearing its bench to cap off the win.
“A game like this, four or five plays go differently and the result is different,” Shruender said. “We’ve been fortunate to have those plays go our way this year but we have to keep working. It’s a great accomplishment and now we have to move forward (Tuesday) we have another game.”
Both teams are back on the court Tuesday (7). Saugus (10-2) travels to Marblehead while the Patriots (3-9) host Everett.