SPRINGFIELD – With 1 minute, 13 seconds left and her team down by 33, Hampshire Regional coach Amy Cyr pulled Katelyn Pickunka off the floor at Springfield College.
Archbishop Williams was about to win its second consecutive state Division 3 championship, 77-42, and the coach wanted to give her senior a curtain call Saturday.
Pickunka played every minute up to that point and scored 18 points. She would have finished the last 1:13 if Cyr let her.
“Katelyn absolutely would have stayed in until the end,” Hampshire junior Caroline O’Connor said. “She’s a fighter.”
Instead, Pickunka, the Raiders’ only senior, checked out of the game to a standing ovation from Hampshire’s crowd and bench. She hugged Cyr and every person on Hampshire’s bench before she sat down.
“I did not have any say in it, but I am glad she did take me out,” Pickunka said.
Hampshire’s student section chanted “Thank you K.P.” and clapped three times in rhythm, honoring the Raiders’ captain for reaching this point.
“We wanted to give her her senior moment, which she deserved,” Cyr said.
It was all they could do. Archbishop Williams (21-3) built a 10-point lead 18-8 in the game’s first six minutes, 25 seconds.
“They came out with a lot of intensity,” Pickunka said. “That’s something we’re not usually used to, and we had to adjust from it.”
She missed her first six shots before making a layup with 1:23 left in the first quarter to pull Hampshire (22-3) within single digits again 18-10. The Bishops’ imposing front line limited what Pickunka and the Raiders could do in the paint.
“Driving was hard, and getting boards was hard because those girls arms were just way over my head,” O’Connor said. “I couldn’t possibly get it up there.”
Archbishop Williams keyed on Pickunka from the opening tip. The Bishops (21-3) shaded their defense her way from the opening tip.
“We knew she was a really good player,” Archbishop Williams coach Matt Mahoney said. “We saw some film and heard some stories, so we focused on her.”
The Bishops built a 40-21 halftime lead. Their advantage stretched above 20 when Jess Knight hit a layup wo make it 54-33 with 1:15 left in the third quarter. Knight tied the game high with 20 points. Archbishop Williams senior guard Asiah Dingle also scored 20 and spearheaded the Bishops’ defensive pressure. She made life difficult for Hampshire freshman point guard Lila Labrie every time she brought the ball up the floor.
“I thought Lila worked hard, and they all fought,” Cyr said.
O’Connor said Pickunka would be hard to replace.
“She’s our captain, our senior, everyone’s going to miss her a lot,” O’Connor said. “I think it’s going to be impossible to fill her role as a scorer. It’s hard to find a post like her.”
The rest of the Raiders will return to defend their Western Massachusetts championship. Hampshire won the sectional title for the first time since 2007 and reached its first state title game since 2005.
“There’s so much fire,” Cyr said. “The future’s bright because they’re so hardworking.”
Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com.
Archbishop Williams 77, Hampshire Regional 42
Archbishop Williams (21-3)
Dingle 9-2-20, Sayers 1-0-2, Smith 1-0-2, Silvia 2-0-4, Knight 8-4-20, Donaghue 2-1-5, Mercel 3-0-6,Spain 6-2-14, O’Reilly 2-0-4. Totals 34-9-77
Hampshire Regional (22-3)
L Labrie 0-2-2, Pellegrini 1-0-2, Taylor 0-0-0 S. Labrie 0-0-0, Pickunka 8-2-18, Babyak 0-0-0, Rubeck 0-0-0, Labrecque 1-0-3, Pond 3-0-8, Golasinski 1-0-2, Marek 0-0-0, O’Connor 2-2-7, Salomao 0-0-0. Totals 16-6-42
|
Archbishop Williams |
22 |
18 |
18 |
19 |
—77 |
|
Hampshire Regional |
14 |
11 |
11 |
6 |
—42 |
3-Pointers—Hampshire Regional 4 (Pond 2, Labrecque, O’Connor)