For a half, seventh-seeded Marshwood High was able to slow down the Greely girls’ high-powered offense, holding the Rangers to 14 points.

In the third quarter the No. 2 Rangers showed why the Hawks’ delay tactics made perfect sense. Greely got freshman sensation Anna DeWolfe going in the open court and reluctant scorer Sarah Felkel made consecutive 3-pointers. By the time the third quarter ended, Greely had scored 32 points en route to Monday’s 57-32 Class A South girls’ basketball quarterfinal win at the Portland Expo.

“When we let them set our tempo it affected our overall play,” said Felkel, one of four key components back from last year’s Class B title team. “We pushed the ball better off rebounds.”

No. 2 Greely (16-3) will face No. 6 Leavitt (10-9) in a semifinal at 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Cross Insurance Arena.

DeWolfe scored 10 of her game-high 22 points in the third quarter, but it was Felkel’s 3s that dashed the Hawks’ upset hopes.

The tempo had already changed in Greely’s favor but Marshwood was still in range, trailing 24-20 with 4:30 to play.

Advertisement

On three straight possessions, Felkel hit two 3-pointers and then used a nifty dribble drive to set up Maddie Cyr (8 points) for a layup. DeWolfe then finished on the break after an on-the-run behind-the-back dribble and the lead was up to 34-20 in about 90 seconds.

“If they’re not putting anyone on me because I won’t shoot it, that hurts us offensively,” Felkel said. “I wanted to get our energy up and by doing that I could get other people involved as well.”

Felkel made 3 of 4 from behind the arc for nine points in a game where normal scoring threats Moira Train (7), Molly Chapin (6) and Isabel Porter (2) were relatively quiet.

Marshwood (10-9) knew it had to try something different after losing at Greely 83-42 in the regular season. The Hawks started in a deliberate gear then downshifted when Greely stayed in a passive 2-3 zone. Trailing 6-4, Marshwood chose to hold the ball for over two minutes.

“That team can play at a fast pace and wants to play at a fast pace and we don’t,” Marshwood Coach Steve Freeman said. “Our initial plan wasn’t to hold the ball for a half, it was, ‘we’re going to eat some clock if they allow us to and limit their possessions,’ and the girls did an unbelievable job.”

Greely led 14-12 at the half but was clearly frustrated and had shot poorly (29.4 percent).

“I was pretty vocal (at halftime) and I haven’t been very often with these kids,” Greely Coach Joel Rogers said. “I told them to stop focusing on what (Marshwood was) doing and to value every possession.”


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.