FREEPORT’S HANNAH CHASE (12) is defended by Yarmouth’s Monica Austin (25) and Sean Cahill (22) during a Western Maine Conference high school girls basketball game at Freeport on Wednesday. The Falcons won 53-52.
In the fourth, Yarmouth dropped two, sometimes three players, down low to deny the Freeport standout the ball, holding her scoreless and taking a 52-51 lead into a Falcons’ timeout with 20 seconds remaining.
Falcons coach Jen Chon threw together a play in the team’s huddle, with Davenport breaking free and scoring the winning basket for a thrilling 53-52 victory in front of a deafening home crowd.
“I just wanted to get open and hoped I would not miss that basket,” said Davenport, who finished with a gamehigh 26 points in outdueling Yarmouth (2-5) standout Morgan Cahill, who had 22 points despite spending a majority of the contest in foul trouble. “Coach drew that play up and told us we could win this. It was frustrating when I couldn’t get the ball, but I just tried to get open.”
“Yarmouth is always our rival school and always comes to play us,” said Chon after watching her squad improve to 3-3 with a visit to Falmouth set for Friday at 7 p.m.
Alex Mitch sent the inbounds pass to a Davenport, who managed to get behind the Yarmouth defense and fight off the challenge from Clippers defender Grace O’Donnell for the winning bucket with 16 seconds left.
“I’ve seen that play work for other teams and it was just a matter of her taking it and having the confidence in Nina that she would finish,” said Chon.
Cahill had two chances to win it for the visitors. Her first shot was blocked by Davenport, one of her four blocks, with the ball sailing out of play. Yarmouth inbounded the ball to Cahill, but Freeport’s Leigh Wyman slapped the ball away and off Cahill’s foot with two seconds remaining to seal it.
Sloppy play
Yarmouth opened the contest on a 5-0 run, forcing Chon to call a timeout after Freeport missed its first 13 shots.
“I tried to get the girls to slow down,” said Chon, whose team trailed by as much as six points (9-3) late in the quarter.
Davenport scored her first points late in the frame, with Yarmouth holding a 13-10 lead after eight minutes.
Freeport center Morgan Brown picked up her third foul, but Cahill soon joined her on the bench with her third infraction.
Still, the Falcons struggled to find a rhythm offensively, shooting just 21 percent (nine of 41) in the first half and struggling mightily from the foul line, going just six of 18 and committing 17 turnovers. Yarmouth also turned the ball over plenty (21 times), struggling with Freeport’s full-court pressure defense.
“I figured if we could get Cahill out of the game, we would control things, but Yarmouth came to play,” said Chon, whose team pulled into a 25-25 deadlock at the break on a Jocelyn Davee jumper.
Morgan Cahill, Shannon Fallon and Sean Cahill each scored to begin the third quarter for a 31-25 Clippers lead, but Davenport took over, scoring 10 third- quarter points to bring her team within
38-37 heading to the fourth quarter, with Morgan Cahill picking up her fourth foul.
In the fourth, the teams went back and forth, with three lead changes and three ties. Morgan Cahill put the Clippers on her back, scoring eight straight points, and Jeanna Lowery’s two free throws put Yarmouth in front 48-44 with 5:12 remaining.
The Freeport comeback began with a rim-circling 3- pointer from Hannah Chase. Wyman scored off a nice feed from Davenport to put the Falcons in the lead, but Lowery answered for Yarmouth, and Morgan Cahill’s two free throws with 1:50 left made it a three-point game, 52-49.
Morgan Brown’s putback drew Freeport to within a point with 47 seconds left, with Lowery missing the front end of a one- in- one. Chon called timeout and drew up the winning play, with Mitch lobbing the ball over the Yarmouth defense to a breaking Davenport for the winning points.
“Being down most of the game and coming back to win it is a great thing for this team,” said Davenport, who added 14 rebounds and eight steals to her totals, with Chase adding nine points, and Davee and Wyman six each. Chase pulled down 12 caroms, Mitch had six steals and Brown six rebounds.
Freeport was 22 of 81 (27 percent) from the floor and made seven of 23 free throws. The Falcon defense forced 34 Yarmouth turnovers.
Morgan Cahill also had a double-double, pulling down 12 rebounds, blocking five shots and picking up four steals. Shannon Fallon chipped in 10 points, with the Clippers shooting 36 percent (22 of 60) from the field and making eight of 14 free throws.
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At Freeport High School Yarmouth — 13 12 13 14 – 52 Freeport — 10 15 12 16 – 53 Yarmouth — Lane Simsarian 2- 0- 4, Shannon Fallon 5-0-10, Sean Cahill 2-0-4, Morgan Cahill 9-4-22, Jeanna Lowery 2- 2- 6, Grace O’Donnell 2- 2- 6, Monica Austin 0-0-0. Totals — 22-8-52. Freeport — Nina Davenport 12-2-26, Leigh Wyman 3-0-6, Hannah Chase 3-1-9, Morgan Brown 2-1-5, Alex Mitch 0-1-1, Jocelyn Davee 2-2-6, Ashley Richardson 0-0-0. Totals — 22-7-53. 3-point field goals — (F) Chase 2. Records — Freeport 3-3, Yarmouth 2-5. Next for the Falcons — Friday at Falmouth, 7 p.m. |
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