AUBURN — The Poland girls basketball team set a school record with their 10th win of the season Tuesday night.
Friday night, they were looking to add another against a St. Dom’s team trying to earn a spot in the upcoming high school basketball tournament.
An aggressive press and precise passing propelled the Knights to that 11th win, 45-30.
Poland came out with a full-court press that created havoc, producing three steals of St. Dom passes and leading scoring opportunities on the other end, while also limiting the Saints on offense.
“The plan was to put pressure on them full-court in the first half, and for the most part, we did,” Poland coach Mike Susi said.
The Knights (11-5) came out shooting from the outside in the first quarter, connecting on a trio of 3-pointers. Morgan Brousseau got the Knights on the board with a 3. Sarah Moody and Katelyn Dufour also connected from behind the arc in the opening quarter.
Junior Nathalie Theriault commanded the offense, setting up the plays and setting the tone for their passing game, allowing her to be open for a pair of buckets that gave the Knights a 14-6 advantage after one quarter.
“We know teams are going to play us zone because we don’t shoot the ball particularly well. We spent a lot of time in practice attacking and defeating the zone, and for the most part, we did that tonight in the first half,” Susi said.
St. Dom’s attacked the press, beating it a few times in the second quarter and cutting the lead to 17-12 behind Chloe Dwinell’s strong presence underneath. Dwinell scored six points, hauled down three rebounds and registered a block in the quarter.
Poland had an answer in Theriault. The guard decided to be a little more aggressive on offense, driving the hoop as the defense guarded against the pass. She went to the line five times, sinking four free throws. With 1:47 remaining in the half, Theriault sank a baseline jumper and completed the three-point play after being fouled.
After another St. Dom’s turnover, Theriault went to the line again, and made the front end of a one-and-one. After missing the second, teammate Jessica Seeley grabbed the rebound and dished it to Theriault for another hoop, giving the Knights a 27-12 lead at the half. Theriault finished the quarter with 10 points.
“Coach tells all to be aggressive, and that’s what we all try to come out and do. We started off kind of slow and wanted to get to the hoop,” Theriault said. “Once we did that, it started opening things up and really helped us out in the second quarter.”
“She is a creator, a playmaker. Other teams defend her with one, two or three players at one time. It’s because she tears apart their defenses, not just with the dribble, but with the pass and unselfishness to include her teammates,” Susi said. “She a real talent and drives a lot of what we do and getting everyone else involved.”
Poland came out sluggish in the third quarter, taking almost six minutes to score a basket. Despite the drought, the Saints could not capitalize, mustering just five points on offense.
“We talked at halftime about how the first three minutes of the half could determine whether this was going to be a game the rest of the way or not. We’ve done this all year, where we find ourselves in situations where we can’t stand prosperity.”
After a timeout, Poland responded with a 7-0 run to end the quarter, highlighted by a pair of steals by Moody and Lexy Grondin, and the Knights had the Saints doubled up, 34-17, through three quarters.
St. Dom’s continued its efforts in fourth quarter, outscoring Poland 13-11, but it wasn’t enough. Rileigh Stebbins netted five fourth-quarter points and created a couple of Poland turnovers on defense. Dwinell hit a layup before fouling out, finishing with a team high 10 points.
Poland was led by Theriault’s 16 points, followed by Moody and Grondin, who scored five points apiece. In all, nine Poland players hit the scoring column in the victory.
“We’re coming together as a team and after tonight’s win, we were in the locker room talking about how we’re taking these last two games as if we are 1-0,” Susi said.
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