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LOGAN — Guess who’s back.
Thanks to an impressive defensive performance, and a late game run, North Adams (21-5) rallied to knock off Beverly Fort Frye by a 28-25 tally in a Division III regional semifinal at Logan on Wednesday — punching its second Elite 8 ticket since 2020.
“Toughness. That’s all I can say about these girls,” North Adams coach Rob Davis said. “They don’t quit. Nothing rattles them. When they get down eight or 10 points, they don’t get shook. We did a great job defensively. We were losing [Fort Frye’s] shooters early but we cleaned it up.”
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
Both teams had their share of struggles from the field throughout Wednesday’s entire first half. North Adams was just 5-of-27 shooting while the Cadets went 6-of-22.
The Devils started with back-to-back buckets from Harlee Brand and Katelynn Boerger, but that’s all they could muster offensively.
Luckily for NA, Fort Frye wasn’t connecting from deep like it aimed to do. However, the Cadets still managed to force a 5-5 tie after the first eight minutes.
The offensive pace picked up a little bit in the second as Kenlie Jones and Karlie Kennedy each nailed jumpers to keep the Devils ahead at 10-9.
Later, with NA leading 12-9, Fort Frye’s Kianna O’Brien and Emma Duskey each connected from distance to put the Cadets (20-7) ahead before they maintained a 15-13 lead at halftime.
“We couldn’t put a shot in the ocean during the first half,” Davis said. “We missed a lot of easy ones. So we said, ‘That’s done. Let’s turn towards the second half and finish this.’ We got the ball down low, got back in the game and it was huge.”
PHOTOS: Images from North Adams’ regional semifinal win over Fort Frye
After the break, Fort Frye found more signs of life, thanks to its work on the offensive glass. That effort led to an 8-2 run behind Emma Duskey and Alyssa Duskey, extending the advantage to 23-15.
But that’s when things began to click for the Green Devils.
Jones, Brand and Boerger led the charge on a 7-0 run to end the third, cutting the deficit to 23-22.
In the fourth, North Adams started by running its offense through Boerger. She made that decision look like brilliance, ripping off six straight points.
That completed, overall, a 13-0 run to put NA ahead 28-23 — the Devils never trailed again.
With the score at 28-25, Fort Frye had one final chance to force a tie and, with it, overtime. But the Cadets’ final shot bounced off the rim and hit the floor, catapulting the Green Devils into the Elite Eight.
“I knew the shots wasn’t going into the net initially, but it’s a thing where you’re like, ‘Don’t bank in. Don’t bank in,'” Davis said. “They needed a 3 and we had fouls to give. But we didn’t want to tell the girls that because knowing us, we’d foul on the shot attempt. But we played tough defense and it worked out for us.”
Boerger finished the night with a game-high 12 points and 10 rebounds, while Jones had eight points and five boards.
North Adams returns to action in a Division III regional at 7 p.m., Saturday, back at Logan High School in front of a jam-packed crowd. The Devils will face Portsmouth, a winner over Portsmouth West on Wednesday.
“Our community plays such a huge part in our success,” NA’s Karlie Kennedy said. “Logan is a two-hour drive for us and you see that the stands are packed. Our student section was cheering as loud as they have all season. It just plays into our momentum and it gets us going in times we need it.”
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