PORTLAND—It turns out that Greely girls’ basketball team used up its tournament allotment of stardust Monday in the quarterfinals.

And midnight struck quickly for the Cinderella Rangers against reigning regional champion Brunswick in a Class A South semifinal Wednesday afternoon at the Portland Exposition Building.

The second-ranked Dragons didn’t repeat the mistake of No. 3 Gray-New Gloucester, which was doomed by a slow start against sixth-ranked Greely in Monday’s quarterfinals, instead racing to an 8-0 lead just over two minutes in and dominating the first period to the tune of a 17-1 lead, thanks in part to eight points from senior Dakota Shipley.

Brunswick was able to hold the Rangers without a basket from the floor until late in the second quarter and when junior Eva Harvie buried a long 3 on the run at the horn, the Dragons  extended their advantage to an insurmountable 34-5 at the break.

Greely came out with energy in the second half and even went on a 12-2 run at one point, but Brunswick still held a 42-17 advantage heading to the final stanza and the Dragons cruised from there to a 58-21 triumph.

Shipley led the way with 21 points and junior Lexi Morin added 15, as Brunswick improved to 18-2, advanced to take on No. 1 Mt. Ararat (18-2) in a compelling Class A South Final Friday at 6 p.m., at the Expo and in the process, ended Greely’s season at 9-11.

“We lost to a better team tonight,” said Rangers coach Todd Flaherty. “Scoring the ball is a problem for us. The other day, we got off to a great start and helped propel us and gave us confidence throughout the game, but today we started just the opposite.”

A rite of winter

Brunswick and Greely have seen plenty of each other in recent postseasons (see sidebar for results), with the Rangers taking three of four meetings between 2017 and 2022, including a 38-35 upset victory in the regional final two years ago.

This year’s meeting came as a bit of a surprise, as many didn’t give Greely much of a chance to advance after an 8-10 regular season, but the Rangers stunned No. 3 Gray-New Gloucester, 52-31, in Monday’s quarterfinal round (see sidebar for links to previous stories).

The Dragons, meanwhile, lost only to reigning Class AA champion Oxford Hills and Mt. Ararat and as the No. 2 seed in the region, had no trouble with No. 7 Freeport in their quarterfinal Monday, prevailing, 59-16.

The teams met once this season, as Brunswick won at home, 59-36.

Wednesday, the Dragons started in sizzling fashion and dashed any Greely upset hopes almost immediately.

A 3-pointer from Morin got things started. Then, in transition, Morin set up Shipley for a 3 and with 5:56 to go in the first quarter, Morin set up senior Maddy Werner for a leaner and an 8-0 lead, forcing Flaherty to call timeout.

It didn’t help, as Werner made a layup after a dazzling move, then Morin set up Werner for another layup and a 12-0 advantage.

The Rangers finally got on the board with 1:57 left, on a free throw from senior Lauren Hester, but Morin set up Shipley for a layup, then Morin passed to Shipley who launched a long 3 which found the mark for a commanding 17-1 lead after eight minutes.

“I do like shooting here,” said Shipley. “I like to creep out to the 3 (point line) a lot. If my inside game isn’t working, I’ll go out to the 3.”

“Our game plan was to pound it inside, but we shot a lot of 3s which shows how well they listen to me,” joked Brunswick coach Sam Farrell. “It was great to get off to a fast start. It was inside-out. The girls took the open shots. When you hit shots early, especially as a bigger team, that just opens everything else up.”

Greely went 0-of-6 from the floor and 1-of-4 from the free throw line, while turning the ball over nine times in the frame.

“It’s hard to mimic that defense in practice,” Flaherty said. “You can talk about it all you want, but until you see it, it’s suffocating. They do a great job with it.”

The second quarter was more of the same.

After senior Zada Smith made a free throw for the Rangers’ second point, Morin converted an old-fashioned three-point play (bank shot, foul, free throw), Shipley blocked a shot at the defensive end, was fouled on the offensive end and hit both attempts, then Shipley set up senior Emily Doring for a 3 and Morin produced another three point play to make it 28-2.

“When you miss shots, long rebounds lead to transition points and they’re very hard to guard,” said Flaherty. “They get you to switch and you get in trouble and we’re a switching team. Their inside game opened up the perimeter.”

With 1:34 on the clock, Greely finally scored from the floor, as Hester buried a 3, but as time expired, Harvie, on the run, from well beyond the 3-point line, had her prayer answered and the Dragons took a 31-5 lead to the break.

“(Greely) made one bucket in the first half,” Farrell said. “They spread the ball and I thought we moved so well and anticipated. They didn’t get a lot of good looks. They can shoot. They’re tough and Todd is a hell of a coach.”

Shipley led the way with 10 points, while Morin had nine. The Rangers shot just 1-of-18 from the floor and had 14 turnovers to dig a massive hole.

Greely had a much better third period, but the deficit was too much to overcome.

After Shipley opened the second half with a 3-pointer, the Rangers went on a 12-2 run.

The surge started with Kelman making a layup, off a feed from senior Kylie Crocker. After Smith made a layup following a steal, Hester set up Kelman for a 3-pointer.

Harvie answered with a driving layup, but sophomore Avery Bush set up junior Molly Partridge for a layup, then with 3:56 on the clock, Crocker found Bush for a 3 to make it 36-17, but that’s as close as Greely would get.

In the final minute, Brunswick restored order, as Morin fed Shipley for a layup, Werner found Shipley for a layup and two Morin free throws sent the Dragons to fourth period with a 42-17 lead.

Brunswick started the final stanza with a pair of Morin free throws, followed by a 3-pointer from junior Kyra Fortier. After Kelman stole the ball and set up Partridge for a bank shot, Werner drove for a layup, Harvie fed Morin for a layup, then Shipley converted a rarely seen four-point play (made 3-pointer, foul and free throw).

Freshman Julianna Morin then completed the Dragons’ scoring with a free throw and a jumper before a runner from Greely sophomore Lily Wawrzycki-Stein brought the curtain down on Brunswick’s 58-21 victory.

“A good start is what we were trying to do,” said Shipley. “We had some mistakes in the third quarter, but it was OK because we had such a big lead. Whenever we play Greely, we always know it will be a tough game.”

“This was a run for our money,” Lexi Morin said. “I know the score looks like we were up by a bunch, but we had to bring the intensity. The good run put us ahead the entire game. The third quarter, Greely went on a run, but fourth quarter, we came back and finished the game strong.”

Shipley led the Dragons with 21 points and also had 10 rebounds for a double-double. Lexi Morin had another superb game, scoring 15 points and adding seven assists, seven rebounds and three steals. Werner finished with eight points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals, Harvie had five points and Doring, Fortier and Julianna Morin three apiece.

“We practice all aspects of the game, 3-pointers, inside, all of our players, big or small,” Lexi Morin said.

“We have a lot of great scorers on the team,” said Shipley. We just kind of play basketball. We gave the ball to whoever was open.”

“When five players out there are moving, we don’t miss a beat,” Farrell added. “We just played a little better today. We’re so unselfish. We didn’t take a bad shot all game, which shows we moved the ball to find the open player.”

Brunswick made eight 3-pointers to Greely’s two, enjoyed a 35-29 rebounding advantage, hit 10-of-14 free throws and overcame 19 turnovers while playing smothering defense.

“Just talking really (is what we do on defense),” Shipley said. “Everybody’s always talking. We play good zone and man. We try not to let up second opportunities.”

The victory was Farrell’s 201st with Brunswick. Farrell, who previously coached at Winthrop, Greely and Lincoln Academy, has led the Dragons to the regional final seven times in 14 seasons that a tournament was played.

“Brunswick is home,” Farrell said. “I live there, my kids are there, I teach there. Getting to 200 was special because I’ve had amazing kids. That’s what it’s about, win or lose, it the memories and the bus rides.”

Here we go

Brunswick and Mt. Ararat each won on the other’s homecourt this season, as the Dragons prevailed, 44-38, Jan. 4 in Topsham before the Eagles returned the favor Feb. 6 in Brunswick, 41-36.

Mt. Ararat had to rally to get past No. 4 Fryeburg Academy in its semifinal Wednesday.

“I think it will be a fantastic game,” said Lexi Morin. “We’re both (18-2) and we’re both good teams. We’ll bring our ‘A’ game.”

“We used (our loss to Mt. Ararat) as motivation,” Shipley said. “They upset us and knocked us down to number two. We’re here to prove them wrong. We’re all really excited. This is a big year for us. I feel like it’s our year. It’s my senior year and I’m looking forward to it.”

“(Our loss will) be a good thing if we play well Friday against them,” Farrell added. “The kids have short memories. Us coaches have the long memories. We have to keep defending, rebounding and making shots. If we do, we’ll have a good chance.”

Appreciation

Greely got five points from Kelman, who also had five rebounds in her swan song. Hester and Partridge (four rebounds) added four points apiece, Bush and Smith each had three and Wawrzycki-Stein added two.

The Rangers made 2-of-6 free throws and committed 24 turnovers.

“We don’t want to lose, but when we look back on the season, we’ll remember the win against Gray as our Gold Ball if you will,” Flaherty said. “That was our big achievement. We played against a good team today. Today wasn’t our best game, but Brunswick had a lot to do with that.”

Greely graduates Hester, Butler and Smith, along with Crocker (four rebounds, three assists, three steals Wednesday), Avery Butler and Haley Stewart.

“The senior group was the backbone of the program,” Flaherty said. “They’re not all fantastic basketball players, but they’re fantastic people and they compete. They’ve been the core of us. I’m very proud of them.”

The 2024-25 Rangers will be an unproven squad, but look for them to show steady improvement.

“We”ve got some young kids coming, so we’ll see,” Flaherty said.

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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