PORTLAND–Monday afternoon at the Portland Exposition Building, Brunswick’s second-ranked girls’ basketball team got ready for its quarterfinal round contest versus No. 7 Freeport by watching third-seeded Gray-New Gloucester, a prohibitive favorite, get upset by sixth-ranked Greely.
When the Dragons took the floor, they made sure they wouldn’t follow suit and get bounced early.
Instead, Brunswick dominated the Falcons from start to finish and took the first step toward getting back to the state final.
The Dragons won the first quarter, 19-4, to set the tone, as senior Maddy Werner scored 10 points.
Despite being mired in foul trouble and hindered by injuries, Freeport hung tough early in the second period and drew within 10 points before Brunswick closed the half on a 16-1 run to grab a commanding 35-10 advantage.
Junior Lexi Morin opened the second half with a pair of 3-pointers and by the end of the third quarter the score was 46-14.
The Dragons were never threatened in the fourth period and went on to a 59-16 victory.
Morin led the way with 16 points, Werner had 12 and senior Dakota Shipley added 10 as Brunswick improved to 17-2, set up a semifinal round showdown versus No. 6 Greely (9-10) Wednesday at 1 p.m. at the Expo and in the process, ended Freeport’s season at 8-11.
“We came here and watched the game before us and thought to ourselves, we can’t let that happen to us,” Morin said. “We had to come out hard and that’s what we did.”
Domination
Freeport has battled adversity all season, losing three starters, junior Izzy Orlando, junior Mia Levesque and sophomore Emily Groves, over the course of the season, but a late victory at Falmouth clinched an eighth consecutive postseason berth.
Brunswick, which got to the Class A state final last winter before losing to Lawrence, has excelled again this season, losing only to Oxford Hills and Mt. Ararat.
The Dragons won the regular season meeting, 59-32, Jan. 27 on the road. Shipley led the way with 16 points, while Werner finished with a dozen. The Falcons were paced by 13 points from junior Sydney Gelhar and 11 from freshman Abby Giroux.
The teams had never before met in the postseason.
Monday, Brunswick quickly ended Freeport’s upset hopes.
Brunswick senior Maddy Werner goes up over Freeport junior Maddie Cormier for two of her 10 first quarter points during the Dragons’ 59-16 victory in Monday’s Class A South quarterfinal. Hoffer photo.
It took all of 63 seconds for Brunswick to go on top to stay, as Morin fed Werner for a layup.
Morin then added two free throws and after the Falcons got on the board on a Cormier layup, the Dragons closed the frame on a 15-2 surge.
The run started with a Morin layup. Shipley then converted an old-fashioned three-point play (putback, foul, free throw) before Werner drained a 3 to make it 12-2, forcing Freeport coach Seth Farrington to call timeout.
It didn’t help, as Werner scored on a putback, Werner converted a three-point play and after Cormier scored on a putback, junior Kyra Fortier’s floater made it 19-4 after eight minutes.
“We came out with a lot of energy,” Morin said. “We were excited to come play.”
“I made sure the girls knew that anyone can upset anyone,” Brunswick coach Sam Farrell said. “We didn’t want to see it happen to us.”
The Falcons momentarily entertained comeback hopes when the second quarter began, as Giroux drained a 3, then Gelhar hit two free throws, but it was a mirage.
After Fortier scored on a putback, Morin drained a 3 from the corner.
Cormier made a foul shot with 4:55 to go in the frame, but that would be it for Freeport’s first half offense and the Dragons scored the final 11 points.
After senior Emily Doring made a layup after a steal, junior Eva Harvie drained a 3, Harvie set up Shipley for a layup, Harvie made a foul shot, then Fortier’s 3-ball made the score 35-10 at halftime.
In the first 16 minutes, Werner had 10 points to lead the way, while Fortier and Morin added seven apiece.
In the first half, Gelhar was whistled for four fouls, while Cormier picked up three.
When the third quarter began, Morin sandwiched 3-pointers around a pair of free throws from Giroux.
After Cormier drove for a layup with 1:55 on the clock, the Falcons’ first field goal in 13 minutes, 55 seconds, Shipley buried a 3 and Morin made a layup after a steal for a 46-14 advantage.
The fourth period began with Morin setting up Werner for a layup, Morin finding Shipley for a layup and Morin sinking a 3.
“I love shooting here,” said Morin. “I love this gym. It feels like another home to me. It’s a great atmosphere.”
With 5:44 remaining, Cormier hit a jumper for what proved to be the Falcons’ final points and with 3:29 to go, Cormier fouled out.
Down the stretch, Fortier tipped in a missed shot, junior Maya Koerber-Marx put back a miss and a layup from freshman Julianna Morin brought the curtain down on a 59-16 victory.
“It was an awesome game,” said Lexi Morin. “We’re really on a redemption tour to get back to states. The team wants that and we’re hungry.”
“I know the girls are excited about offense, but giving up 16 points in a tournament game, that’s how you measure it,” said Farrell, after his 200th victory with the program. “As long as the girls play together, it doesn’t matter what defense we run. They were aggressive and it worked.”
Brunswick was paced by Lexi Morin, who had 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
“Lexi’s a natural leader and winner,” said Farrell. “Winning’s a skill and you have to hone that when you’re young. What she hates most is losing and that’s contagious to her teammates.”
Werner (12 points, seven rebounds) and Shipley (10 points, a game-high 13 rebounds and four steals) also wound up in double figures. Fortier had nine points, Doring (three steals) and Harvie added four apiece and Julianna Morin and Koerber-Marx finished with two apiece.
“We practice playing everywhere and we mix it up,” Lexi Morin said. “We have a very diverse team and I feel that really helps us. There’s a lot of communication with each other. Communication is key. We’re loud, we’re on our toes, we’re ready and we bring a lot of energy.”
“We’re at our best when we’re unselfish,” said Farrell. “They were face-guarding Dakota and that freed other kids up. When we’re unselfish, we’re hard to defend and they’re more fun that way.
The Dragons made eight 3-pointers to Freeport’s one, dominated on the glass, 38-24, made 5-of-9 free throws and only turned the ball over 14 times.
Brunswick handled visiting Greely, 59-36, Jan. 23.
The Dragons are just 1-3 all-time versus the Rangers in the playoffs, with a 38-35 upset loss in the 2022 Class A South Final the most recent, but Brunswick will be confident Wednesday.
For good reason.
“If we play like we played today, I feel like we can beat any team that stands in our way,” Lexi Morin said.
“We’ll worry about Greely on Wednesday,” said Farrell. “We’ll watch film and worry about that. (Greely) Coach (Todd) Flaherty’s a great coach. Some of our girls play with their girls in travel, so it’ll be a fun one.”
Falcon pride
Freeport got nine points, five rebounds and two steals from Cormier. Giroux added five points and three rebounds and Gelhar had two points, but she didn’t play in the second half due to illness. Sophomore Abby Cormier didn’t score but collected seven rebounds.
The Falcons made 5-of-6 free throws, but turned the ball over 21 times and were simply overwhelmed by a superior foe.
“They were a one seed last year and they’re a two seed this year for a reason,” Farrington said. “They’ll be a tough out. Someone will have to knock them out to win Southern Maine. It was a tough matchup. Their 2-3 matchup zone was tough. We got crushed on the boards and at the rim. It was tough to match up with their physicality. Credit to them.
“I’m proud of the girls. You can’t always grade out success by wins and losses. I’m pretty happy with what this group accomplished. Talk about one thing after another. We could have easily not been on this floor this year. I’m more proud of this group than any group I’ve coached because of what they had to overcome.”
A silver lining for Freeport is that everyone returns in 2024-25. With better luck on the health front, the Falcons figure to be a top contender in Class A South.
“We return everybody, so I’ll be optimistic,” Farrington said. “A lot of these kids got playing time that’s hard to come by. Hopefully, we’ll develop some depth for next year. We want to go eight- or nine-deep next year. The future’s bright.”
Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net. For game updates and links to game stories, follow him on Threads: @foresports2023
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