Anybody who has watched the Londonderry High girls’ basketball squad play this winter can tell you that coach Nick Theos’ young crew has a whole bunch of promise. But balancing making “young mistakes and learning” and the desire to win right now is a tough situation to deal with at times.
After going on a brief winning skein recently, the Lady Lancers ended up on the down sides of a pair of scores last week in seeing their Division I record slide to 3-7. But in both cases, the team showed glimpses of what it can be in the not-too-distant future.
The locals had a modest two-game winning streak ended by a 49-35 loss to a pretty warm Merrimack High Lady Tomahawks’ crew in Merrimack last Tuesday, Jan. 23.
The victory was the team’s fourth straight Division I success – and its fifth in its last six games – as the Lady Tomahawks advanced to 8-3 in the tough league. The Lancers slipped to 3-6 in D-I.
Merrimack netted 15 of the first 16 points of the game and led 16-3 when the buzzer sounded ending that stanza. And that was a hole which LHS coach Nick Theos’ Lady Lancers couldn’t climb out of despite a fine effort to do just that.
The hosts led 30-13 at halftime, but Londonderry enjoyed a far more solid third quarter as it outscored its host by a 16-10 tally to leave the score at 40-29 in the Lady Tomahawks’ favor going into the final period.
“They jumped out early, taking a 15-1 lead in the first and never looked back,” lamented coach Theos. “They were prepared and ate us up on back side drop-down passes for lay-ups. We were not ready to play good help-side defense and they took advantage.”
Londonderry – which received 10 points from sophomore Courtney Shay, nine from freshman Ashley Rourke, and eight from her fellow ninth-grader Mia Fantauzzi – was certainly a bit rusty that evening after having gone nearly a dozen days between games.
“Eleven days off between games really effected us, and we came out sloppy and slow. But from the second quarter on it was a one-point game. Too bad for us the game was four quarters and not three,” said Theos. “Young teams make these kinds of mistakes and I expect us to learn from them. I just don’t want to let too many of these opportunities slip by. The playoffs will be here before you know it.”
Veteran coach Lani Buskey’s tough Pinkerton Academy bunch hit a little trouble with the host Lady Lancers in Ball Family Trophy play at LHS last Friday night, Jan. 26. But in the end, the Lady Astros were a full 24 points better than the youthful and still developing LHS contingent in a 64-40 success in bagging their fifth straight divisional win and moving to 7-1.
Pinkerton netted 15 of the first 17 points scored in the contest, and at the end of one quarter the visitors’ lead sat at 25-6. They hit 10 of the 16 shots they attempted from the field in that stanza, while Londonderry struggled at 3-for-12.
However, the young Lady Lancers gave more glimpses of the promise they have in outscoring their hosts in both the second and third quarters, with the PA lead sitting at 36-23 at halftime and 48-36 rolling into quarter four.
But Pinkerton once again ruled the court in the fourth quarter, tucking the win away comfortably by outscoring its host by a margin of 16-4. Hence, the Lady Astros had outscored coach Theos’ developing LHS contingent by a huge 41-10 margin in the first and fourth periods, while Londonderry enjoyed a 30-23 advantage in scoring in the two middle periods.
The academy side had four players finish with double figures in scoring led by junior standout Brooke Kane and her 20 points. Amanda Lemire and Cydney Lessard were each good for a dozen, and Alicia D’Onofrio tallied 11. The Lady Lancers had sophomore stalwarts Colleen Furlong (12) and Shay (11) lead their offense.
“After a tremendous first quarter, we had a flat second quarter, which cost us,” said PA leader Buskey. “It’s a good lesson for my girls on the importance of playing a full game. The gym was loud and had a playoff vibe. This win will hopefully pay dividends for us down the road. We kept our composure for the most part and we were able to pull away in the fourth with a strong defensive effort. I thought Londonderry played hard and showed a lot of promise. They are going to surprise some teams for sure.”
For his part, LHS coach Theos had plenty of reasons to be pleased with the fight and skills his squad exhibited despite it being a losing night.
“(Pinkerton’s) a well-coached, very good team. But I couldn’t be happier with the way we played. If we can replicate that effort the rest of the way I like our chances against anybody,” he said.
This week’s slate had the Lady Lancers looking at a pair of home games. They were to host Nashua South this Tuesday the 30th – after Londonderry Times press time – followed by a home battle with Salem Friday night.