SOUTH HADLEY — With the score tied at 45, there wasn’t much said in the South Hadley huddle going into overtime on Wednesday.
The Tigers already knew what they needed to do.
“I think our adrenaline carried us through. We didn’t say much, but we didn’t really need to,” South Hadley’s Kacie Levrault said. “We were already amped up.”
That energy carried No. 8 South Hadley through OT and into a place in the final eight of the state tournament.
The home team exploded for 16 points in the extra frame, led by clutch shots by Levrault and Olivia Marion, and roared away with a 61-53 victory over No. 9 Notre Dame Academy of Worcester in front of a packed house in the MIAA Division 4 Round of 16.
Avery Marzo posted 24 points for the visiting Rebels in the losing effort.
“The crowd was great, the atmosphere was great, the opponent was great – I mean, it was everything you want in a high school basketball game,” South Hadley head coach Paul Dubuc said.
The Tigers will get to stay at home for their next game, as they’ll host No. 16 Cohasset, which upset No. 1 Cathedral 50-44 in another Round of 16 game on Wednesday. The quarterfinal tilt will be Friday, with game time still to be determined at press time.
The shots weren’t falling for the Tigers early, but their defense was solid enough to give them a chance to find their rhythm. Once they did, they took off against the Rebels at the halfway point of the quarter, going on a 10-0 run to gain a 14-6 lead with 1:38 left.
By that point, Notre Dame had already accumulated six fouls. Despite the deficit, the Rebels chipped away in the final 100 seconds, cutting the Tigers lead to 14-10 to end the first period.
The second quarter was closely contested, the Rebels just barely outscoring the Tigers 11-10. Both teams drew fouls as the game became more physical, and by intermission, both teams had picked up nine team whistles. Though the Tigers led at the half, it was the Rebels who had the edge on the boards; the Tigers consistently got boxed out in the paint when it came to collecting the ball off the glass.
“Every team we play is bigger than us. Every team we play, so it’s really nothing new. We just have to be physical and tough and I think we are tough,” Dubuc said. “We’re gonna play like crazy, ’til somebody tells us we can’t play anymore.”
The third quarter was a never-ending trip to the charity stripe as South Hadley and Notre Dame continued to add to their foul collection. Both teams settled down after the four-minute mark and six trips to the line, and kept up with each other to make it 34-32 South Hadley going into the final frame.
The fourth quarter was frenetic. The Tigers took a five-point lead off the back of an and-one shot by Marion to make it 39-34. The Rebels clawed their way back off shots from Zoe Davenport and Ally Bianco to tie it up just before the halfway mark, and Marzo kept up her impressive performance with a triple to give Notre Dame its first lead since the first quarter with 3:47 to go.
The Tigers took the lead back off a triple from Marion to make it 45-44 with 1:15 left. Things got dicey late – Notre Dame had multiple opportunities to tie or take the lead back in the final minute, but Marzo tied it with 29 seconds remaining on a free throw. She ultimately missed two critical shots at the free throw line in the final minute, and a buzzer-beater jumper from Notre Dame bounced off the rim and out.
The Tigers started overtime with a bang – Drew Alley drained a 3-pointer to make it 48-45, and Marion kept up her strong second-half play with a shot off a steal to give the Tigers a five-point lead.
The Rebels pulled within three points on two occasions in OT, once on a shot from Davenport and another off a triple from Marzo, but after Marzo made it 53-50 with 2:05 to go, Alex Jackson came in and sank two critical free throws, and Marion stepped up again with a big and-one play.
With the score 57-50 with 56 ticks to go, there was nothing the Rebels could do but foul, and both Marion and Carey sank a pair at the stripe late.
The win was a ‘relief,’ said Levrault, but the excitement was overwhelming in the South Hadley gym.
“(We’re) very excited,” Marion said. “I think everyone was just so pumped up and we’re excited to keep going.”