AUGUSTA — After spending much of the game Monday trying to shake its opponent, Waynflete School used a pair of guards off the bench to accomplish that task.
Jumpers by Willy Burdick and Will Nelligan doubled a small lead and set the tone for the rest of the final quarter. The Flyers then pulled away from Hall-Dale 54-40 in a Western C quarterfinal at the Augusta Civic Center.
The Bulldogs closed to within 36-32 entering the final quarter. Though Waynflete coach Rich Henry said his rotation of subs could have been a little better and allowed for more playing time for Burdick and Nelligan, both junior guards, they came through in brief appearances.
Their back-to-back baskets gave Waynflete (16-1) a 41-32 lead early in the fourth. The Bulldogs got as close as sixth but couldn’t overcome the deficit.
“Willy Burdick and Will Nelligan have been huge for us all year, with the stability that they give us and the shooting ability,” Henry said. “When Burdick made the shot, I already had a sub ready for him.”
Milo Belleau led the Flyers with 20 points, including eight in the third quarter. Harry Baker-Connick added 12, while Abel Alemayo finished with eight. Hall-Dale (13-7) got nine from Wes Lapointe and seven from Ryan Sinclair.
“Milo is a very gifted player,” Henry said of his junior guard. “I thought he forced a couple of shots in the first half, but then the second half, it came a little more naturally to him.”
After a back-and-forth first half, Waynflete led 25-22 at the half. Belleau had a pair of 3’s and Alemayo also hit one.
“When we’re hitting our outside shots, it kind of brings everybody up,” Belleau said. “But just getting out into transition and stuff like that is more important than the 3-point shooting. But definitely for people to find the open space and for individuals to hit the open shot, it really helps the team.”
After a Belleau 3 late in the third, the Flyers were up 36-30, but a basket by Lapointe closed the gap to 36-32 entering the fourth.
Burdick opened the fourth with a short jumper with 6:55 left to make it 38-32. Then just over a minute later, Nelligan drilled a 3 for the 41-32 lead.
A steal by Sinclair cut the advantage to 42-36, but the Flyers finished the game off from the foul line. Waynflete scored 12 of the next 14 points. The Flyers had eight of those from the foul line.
After the Sinclair steal, Baker-Connick scored on a drive. From there, Baker-Connick and Pace Hutchinson hit free throws to pad the lead.
Waynflete came from behind for an 8-7 lead after the first quarter. Neither team shot particularly well and got points from the foul line.
“We played a little rushed,” Henry said. “There was anxiety in coming here to play. We hadn’t played in a week-and-a-half. We talked about having a little more patience on offense.”
The Flyers used a 9-0 run in the second to open a 19-12 lead but the Bulldogs battled back. A pair of 3’s by Quinn Stebbins had Hall-Dale within 23-22 late in the half before a drive by Baker-Connick made it 25-22.
“I thought it was good when we got up by eight or so a couple of times,” Belleau said. “It was good for them to pressure us like that because it got us back into our game.”
kmills@sunjournal.com
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