PORTLAND—No one thrives in the role of the underdog quite like the Greely girls basketball team.

One year after stunning Gray-New Gloucester in the Class A South quarterfinals, the seventh-seeded Rangers weren’t given much of a chance when they took the Portland Exposition Building floor Monday afternoon to face second-ranked Marshwood.

But Greely had other ideas and while it wasn’t quite able to shock the world again, it came pretty darn close.

The Rangers gained early confidence by taking a 6-0 lead on a 3-pointer from senior Molly Partridge and an old-fashioned three-point play from junior Lily Wawrzycki-Stein.

The Hawks would settled in and pull even, 6-6, after one quarter, then ride their 3-point shooting acumen to a 17-10 halftime advantage.

Marshwood stretched its lead to eight, 24-16, on a jumper from senior standout Sarah Theriault, but Greely’s offense surged to life and a 10-2 run, capped by a layup from junior Kelsey Crocker, tied the score, 26-26.

The Hawks went back on top by two heading to the fourth period, but with 7:22 to play, junior Avery Bush buried a 3 and the Rangers, improbably, had the lead.

But Greely couldn’t hold it, as Marshwood junior reserve Renee St. Pierre scored six points in 42 seconds to spark a run and the Hawks gradually pulled away for a 47-35 victory.

St. Pierre led the way with 12 points as Marshwood improved to 17-2, advanced to take on No. 3 Gray-New Gloucester (15-4) in the Class A South semifinals Wednesday at 1 p.m., at the Expo and in the process, ended Greely’s season at 7-12.

“We kept it close,” said Rangers coach Todd Flaherty. “We just didn’t make a couple plays and they did. That was the difference. We had to work really hard to stay that close and make a run. I think we ran out of gas a little bit, but I’m very proud of the girls.”

Not quite enough

Greely opened with losses at preseason Class A South favorite Mt. Ararat (61-15), at home to reigning Class AA South champion Gorham (57-24) and at defending Class A champion Brunswick (44-25), then turned around and rattled off victories over visiting York (41-34), visiting Gardiner in overtime (43-39), host Lewiston (41-32) and visiting Fryeburg Academy (37-26). The pendulum then swung the other way with losses at Gray-New Gloucester (46-18), at Wells (52-43), at home to Messalonskee (31-26) and at home to Mt. Ararat (54-26). The Rangers then defeated host Cape Elizabeth (47-27) and Falmouth (48-20) before losing at home to Freeport (40-33), at Sanford (54-30), at home to Brunswick (39-24) and at home to Gray-New Gloucester (63-33). Greely closed the regular season with a 36-28 victory at Yarmouth.

Marshwood, meanwhile, has been one of the feel-good stories of the year. The Hawks just missed the playoffs a year ago with an 8-10 record, but this winter, they lost only to Biddeford and Kennebunk and enjoyed win streaks of six- and 10-games.

The teams didn’t meet this season.

The Rangers took five of six prior playoff encounters, including a 49-27 win the 2022 quarterfinals, the most recent meeting, but this time around, it was Marshwood’s turn.

But not without a mighty scare.

Greely sophomore Hannah Hussey looks to pass as Marshwood senior Lauren Walker defends during the Hawks’ 47-35 victory in Monday’s quarterfinal. Hoffer photos.

Greely opened the scoring 88 seconds in, as Partridge, the team’s lone senior, knocked down a 3.

Hawks coach Angie Littlefield called an early timeout, hoping to energize her team, but it didn’t immediately help, as Wawrzycki-Stein banked home a shot while being fouled and added the and-one free throw for a 6-0 advantage.

The Rangers wouldn’t score the final 4:10 of the frame, however, and Marshwood finally got its offense going.

With 3:51 on the clock, after senior Lauren Walker kept possession with an offensive rebound, she fed senior Emily Clark for a layup.

Theriault then drove and made a layup for her first points and St. Pierre took a feed from Theriault and scored her first points, a layup, which made it 6-6 after one period.

Sophomore Hannah Hussey scored on a runner with 5:47 to go in the first half to end Greely’s 6 minute, 23 second scoring drought, but St. Pierre answered with a 3 for the Hawks’ first lead.

“It felt really good to make that shot,” said St. Pierre. “I wasn’t shooting that well in warmups. That shot gave me the boost I needed to stay in the game. I was actually really nervous coming into this. I knew I had to step up and be aggressive. After the first few plays, my nerves were out and I just focused on what I could do. The adrenaline took over and it became like a normal game.”

With 3:35 remaining before halftime, after a steal by Crocker, Bush converted a layup, making it 10-9 Rangers, but they would be shut out the remainder of the half and Marshwood closed on an 8-0 run.

A leaner from Theriault was followed by consecutive 3s from Walker and Theriault to make it 17-10 at the half.

Theriault led the way with seven points and Greely was hindered by 14 turnovers, but the game was far from over.

Marshwood senior Sarah Theriault gets a step on Greely junior Avery Bush.

A free throw from junior Natalie Lathrop began the third quarter, but Bush scored on a putback to snap a 4:54 drought and a 9-0 Hawks’ surge.

After an offensive rebound by Partridge, Wawrzycki-Stein hit a jumper, but Lathrop inbounded to Clark for a layup.

Crocker made a layup for the Rangers, but Theriault grabbed an offensive rebound and set up sophomore Isabelle Tice for a layup before Theriault knocked down a pull-up jumper with 3:18 left, giving Marshwood a 24-16 advantage.

And then, Greely flipped the switch and made things very interesting.

Hussey got things going with a 3-ball, then she hit a jumper.

“We passed up some shots early, but once we hit one or two, we started to get confidence,” Flaherty said.

After Theriault set up Clark for a layup, sophomore Adria Riolo drained a 3, then Hussey set up Crocker for a layup to tie the score, 26-26.

With 25.1 seconds left, Theriault made two free throws and the Hawks clung to a 28-26 lead as the final stanza began.

Marshwood senior Sarah Theriault tries to drive into the lane on the Greely defense.

The Rangers’ upset hopes got another jump-start when Wawrzycki-Stein set up Bush for a 3 with 7:22 left, good for a one-point edge.

Greely had a couple chances to extend its advantage, but couldn’t do so and with 5:19 on the clock, St. Pierre scored on a putback and finally, Marshwood was in front for good.

St. Pierre was just getting started, as 21 seconds later, she made a layup and with 4:37 remaining, after a Lathrop steal, Tice fed St. Pierre for another layup and a 34-29 advantage.

St. Pierre scored six points in 42 seconds to turn the game around.

“I couldn’t have done that without my teammates stealing the ball,” said St. Pierre. “It was a team effort.”

“You wouldn’t expect Renee to be a spark for us, but she always is and she’s a great sixth person to have when we need momentum,” Lathrop said. “She can help us through everything. She always makes effort plays and that makes the rest of us want to make effort plays.”

“She’s a spark,” added Littlefield. “It’s either those layups or it’s a 3. Having a good sixth man is the best thing you can have on a team. She’s been clutch for us in big moments. She’s never played here, so it was nice to see her rise to the occasion.”

Tice added a putback, but with 3:31 left, Bush’s 3 cut the deficit to four, 36-32.

The Rangers then had a chance to make it a one-possession contest, but Lathrop stole the ball and made a layup before Tice drove for a layup with 2:17 to play, pushing the lead back to eight.

“We’re definitely a defensive team because our defense translates to our offense,” Lathrop said. “Our defense will carry us through.”

“That’s what (Isabelle and Natalie) do,” said Littlefield. “We were in a zone and that allowed them to get steals, which is what they do best.”

St. Pierre would add a free throw with 47.4 seconds to go, but 10 seconds later, Partridge set up Bush for a 3, keeping faint hope alive.

But that would be it for Greely’s offense and down the stretch, Lathrop made two free throws, Tice did the same, then Clark brought the curtain down with two more foul shots and Marshwood survived and advanced.

“We’ve had many games when we’re down and coming back is what we do best,” St. Pierre said. “When we’re down, we have good heart and good grit and just play the game no matter what. Winning this was important because we’re here to win and we wanted to keep our season going.”

“The best thing about this team is that’s how we’ve played this season,” Littlefield said. “We never count ourselves out of a game. It’s a bigger stage and there were a lot of nerves, but I told them this will be the toughest game you play this week.

“(Greely) just played their game. They have shooters and if we didn’t defend them, shooters are going to shoot. Greely’s a good team. They have great defensive pressure and that messed us up on the offensive end.”

St. Pierre scored a team-high 12 points and Theriault also wound up in double-figures with 11 points (to go with five rebounds and three assists).

Clark (six rebounds, two steals) and Tice (nine steals) added eight points apiece, Lathrop (seven steals, four assists, three rebounds) finished with five and Walker had three.

The Hawks made 10-of-13 free throws and overcame 16 turnovers.

Looking ahead to the semifinals, Marshwood won the regular season meeting, holding off visiting Gray-New Gloucester, 59-56, Dec. 21.

The Hawks hope history will repeat itself Wednesday.

“We just need to stay locked in on defense and let our defense translate to our offense,” St. Pierre said.

“Winning means a lot because this team is something special,” Lathrop said. “We’re playing for our seniors. We’re just really excited to battle Gray-New Gloucester again. If we play like we did last time and stick to a team game, we’ll show up.”

“We have great chemistry, we have a lot of heart and a lot of grit and we have talent and if we’re going to slay the giant again, we have to come in and play to our potential,” Littlefield added. “We’ve done it once and we can do it again.”

Rangers pride

For Greely, Bush had a game-high 13 points. Hussey added seven points (as well as four rebounds). Wawrzycki-Stein finished with five points and six rebounds, Crocker had four points, Partridge three (to go with eight rebounds) and Riolo three.

The Rangers made six 3-pointers to the Hawks’ three and enjoyed a 38-30 rebound advantage, but made just 1-of-3 free throws and turned the ball over 28 times.

“They took advantage of our turnovers,” said Flaherty.

“I’ve told the girls all year I’m wicked proud of them. They don’t hang their heads and they keep playing. We have a lot of multi-sport athletes who competed and got better and that’s all I could ask.”

Greely will miss Partridge, but everyone else returns and the Rangers could be poised to take the next step in 2025-26.

“We have a nice foundation for next year,” Flaherty said. “We’ll put some time in this summer and develop some offensive skills and go from there. We want to get back here and win a few.”

BOX SCORE

Marshwood 47 Greely 35

G- 6 4 16 9- 35
M- 6 11 11 19- 47

G- Bush 5-0-13, Hussey 3-0-7, Wawrzycki-Stein 2-1-5, Crocker 2-0-4, Partridge 1-0-3, Riolo 1-0-3

M- St. Pierre 5-1-12, Theriault 4-2-11, Clark 3-2-8, Tice 3-2-8, Lathrop 1-3-5, Walker 1-0-3

3-pointers:
G (6) Bush 3, Hussey, Partridge, Riolo
M (3) St. Pierre, Theriault, Walker

Turnovers:
G- 28
M- 16

Free throws
G: 1-3
M: 10-13