FREEPORT

Senior Night always brings emotions to the game. Add a playoff atmosphere to the mix and teams quickly find out what they are made of.

Both Freeport and Wells handled emotions of the ceremony and noise of the crowd to start the game, but it was the Falcons who pulled away in the second half behind their relentless full-court press to a 60-41 victory in Western Maine Conference action Monday.

“It was exciting tonight. It felt like a playoff atmosphere,” said Freeport coach Mike Hart. “The band was playing and the crowd was loud. It was good for our girls to experience that.”

Caroline Smith popped a 3-pointer to open the scoring a minute into the game and a putback from senior Allie Goodman gave the Falcons a quick 5-0 lead. Following a pair of baskets from Wells’ Franny Ramsdell, Smith found Jessie Driscoll underneath with a slick bounce pass for the three-point lead.

Ramsdell scored two of the next three baskets to keep even with the Falcons, 10-10 after eight minutes.

Wells jumped out to a 15-10 lead to start the second frame, but a 13-0 run by Freeport turned the lead into a 23-15 deficit.

The full-court press put on by Freeport turned things around for the Falcons.

“Coming out of the pregame ceremonies and the emotions, I didn’t want to put the press on too early,” said Hart. “Sometimes that could go the other way so I wanted to make sure the girls could handle it.”

The Falcon defense forced six second quarter turnovers, converting them into points on the other end.

“We really wanted to keep pushing in transition and look for open shots,” Goodman said. “We executed on our cuts and made plays. It was an emotional night. A great night.”

Playing in their last home game, seniors Taylor Rinaldi, Johanna Bogue-Marlowe and Megan Cormier each joined Driscoll and Goodman with entering the scoring column in the second quarter to hold a slight four point advantage, 27-23 at the break.

“We’ve come really far,” said Driscoll. “Our teamwork is awesome and coach knows how to play to our strengths. We had to come out strong and pull away. We came out with a big win.”

“The girls did a great job,” Hart said. “All of them did. It’s fun to watch this group because five of them have been with me since the word ‘go.’ I’m very proud of them.”

Goodman paced Freeport with nine points while grabbing four rebounds in the first half. Along with Smith’s trey, Bogue-Marlowe, Goodman and Cormier all hit baskets from behind the arc in the opening half.

Wells’ Ramsdell led all scorers with 15 first-half points, while Mackenzie Foss followed with four for the visitors.

Freeport continued much of the same full-court pressure in the third quarter, with Wells occasionally breaking it for opportunities to penetrate the basket. Ramsdell went to the line six times in the third quarter, hitting all but one to keep Wells within striking distance.

Leading 33-29, Freeport, or better yet, Goodman and Driscoll, went on a 10-5 run to close out the quarter with a nine-point lead, 43-34. Goodman poured in 10 third-quarter points while dishing out a pair of assists and snatching three boards. Driscoll added six points while hauling in three rebounds.

“Their defensive pressure ended up wearing us down a little bit,” said Wells coach Don Abbott. “Their length and strength bothered us, particularly at the end of the third and the start of the fourth. It snowballed from there.”

Goodman kept up her high-level play in the fourth. The senior continued to draw defenders to her, and when she wasn’t stopping to hit the short jumper, she was passing it off for the assist.

“Allie is taking that midrange jump shot in transition and that’s tough to stop,” Hart said. “She can be deadly. She’s a tough player. Huge game from her tonight and Jessie is a super-athletic kid. When she works hard to the rim, she’s very difficult to stop.”

Driscoll continued her solid final home game, tallying six more points including a big offensive rebound she put back for two points and an end to the Warriors battle.

Freeport held Wells to just seven points in the final quarter and pulled away for the 19-point win.

Both teams were ready to put the game in the rearview mirror and look towards the postseason.

“We have a chance to go into the tourney No. 1,” said Hart. “Everyone in that locker room wants it.”

Currently Freeport sits No. 1 in Class B South and faces No. 2 Gray-New Gloucester on Thursday at 6:30 p.m., with the winner most likely grabbing the No. 1 seed.

Ramsdell finished with a game-high 25 points. The sophomore was 7-for-8 from the line, while Megan Schneider chipped in six points and six rebounds in the loss.

Goodman finished with a team-high 24 points, while Driscoll finished with 16 and seven boards. Goodman also had 10 rebounds, six assists and two steals. Rinaldi had six points, and Smith and Cormier split 10 down the middle.