Deering 41

Westbrook 20

The Deering girls used a stifling defense Friday night to wear down Westbrook and to spark their offense in a Western Class A semifinal round win over the Blazes, 41-20. The Blazes led for most of the game, but fell behind down the stretch and couldn’t recover.

“We’re playing 94 feet and we had to work for every inch on that floor,” said Westbrook coach Mike Murphy. “So you are talking about a lot of heavy minutes on some of those kids, and you are talking about legs. We needed more than 10 minutes for a break at halftime.”

Deering opened with the first points of the game, but the Blazes quickly tied it. Westbrook took their first lead of the game with 2:58 to go in the first quarter when Cynthia Wescott scored a basket. She added another with a minute to go to give her team an 8-5 lead. At the end of the first, Westbrook led 8-7.

Wescott scored the first three points of the second quarter to give Westbrook their biggest lead to that point, 11-7. But Claire Ramonas and Diana Manduca scored consecutive baskets for the Rams to tie the score. Westbrook’s Audrey Shutts hit a basket in the closing minutes of the half and Manduca tied it just before the buzzer. At intermission, the score was tied, 13-13.

Deering took over in the third with a 10-1 run. They took the lead on the first basket of the second half, a free throw from Ramonas, and never looked back. The Rams were leading 18-13 before the Blazes scored their first point of the second half. That came on a free throw by Maria Romano. Deering ended the third with a three-point play and another basket to lead 23-14 heading into the fourth.

“They are an outstanding team,” Murphy said. “They won 16 games. They are athletic and they just wore us out. It was a struggle to get into any of what we needed once the minutes started adding up. I look at Erin (Murphy) she didn’t have anything in the second half. They did a good job, my hat’s off to Deering High School. They are a good team and they will be tough to beat.”

Deering allowed Westbrook just six more points in the fourth quarter while adding another 18 of their own. Deering began the fourth with two straight three-pointers and just poured it on from there.

“They are tough,” Murphy said. “They are explosive. But to me, it’s more of a defensive effort that makes them an explosive offensive team.”

The Blazes finished their season with a 14-6 mark. They were led by a solid group of seniors who the team will surely miss next year.

“You start out with Wescott and Shutts, who were with me when they were freshmen,” said Murphy. “They kind of got thrown to the wolves that first year and they progressively got better. Romano kept on getting better, Katie MacDonald fought through knee injuries. They all add something positive.”

“Audrey Shutts doesn’t get the credit she deserves for the defense she plays,” Murphy continued. “She clogs the lane. Wescott is a scorer and can rebound. She had a really successful high school career. Romano does a lot of the dirty work on defense and MacDonald is such a positive influence on the team. She does a lot of the quiet things that you want from seniors. She does a great job in her role. They are a great group of seniors. I would take that type of group every year.”