Lebanon
Sophomore guard Anna Wolke hit nine of her 11 charity-stripe attempts, fronting a team 19-for-27 performance at the line as the top-ranked Raiders eliminated No. 9 Kingswood, 45-25, from the NHIAA Division II quarterfinals on Friday night.
Wolke hit six straight free throws early in a third quarter in which Lebanon (20-0 league, 22-1 overall) scored the first 14 points to finally put down their stubborn guests.
Lebanon’s line dance came as a result of taking what the Knights gave. Raider freshman Rebecca Wright torched Kingswood for a season- and career-high 31 points in a 58-32 Lebanon win on Feb. 14, so third-year coach Dan Chick had his Knights (13-7 league) collapse on anything the Raiders tried in the paint on Friday.
That left the wings open, and Lebanon capitalized. If the Raiders didn’t score in transition, they drew fouls and buried their free throws.
“We’ve got a lot of different offenses; if one’s not working, we try another one,” said Wolke, who finished two points short of her season-high from a December win over Kennett. “We spread it around and see what works.”
The Raiders will meet No. 4 Pelham in Tuesday’s semifinals at Southern New Hampshire University. The Pythons needed overtime to end No. 5 Hanover’s season, 43-38, on Friday. Lebanon and Pelham didn’t meet in the regular season.
Chances are Lebanon will see a 2-3 zone in that one as well. The opponent employing such a tactic now has 20 reasons to reconsider.
“It was obvious they were going to do their thing and run the offense the way they wanted to run it,” Chick said. “They got people open, and they finished very well. They have a lot of girls that can finish very well.”
It took a while to get to that point, however.
As has happened on occasion this winter, Lebanon responded to Kingswood’s zone slowly. The Raiders didn’t hit a field goal from beyond the elbow all night. They also didn’t attack the Knights’ defense at first, and the result was a 5-4 lead for the visitors after one quarter.
Senior guard Liz McLaughlin also had a big role in keeping Kingswood competitive early. A career 1,000-point scorer, McLaughlin stuck three 3-pointers in the first half — usually when Lebanon defenders failed to switch on screens — and scored 14 of the Knights’ 16 first-half points.
“I don’t think any quarterfinal game is going to be easy,” Lebanon coach Tim Kehoe said. “They defended us pretty well. Last time we played them, we just shot the lights out. It might have been our best shooting first half of the season. … It was kind of the opposite this time. We struggled in the first half (5-for-21 from the floor), and we came out and played pretty well in the second half.”
Wolke stepped up on two fronts over Lebanon’s final 16 minutes.
First, she got the assignment of slowing down McLaughlin and did it to near perfection. Denying the Kingswood senior the room she enjoyed before the break, Wolke held McLaughlin without a second-half field goal. The Knights’ star had two late free throws to finish with a game-high 16 points.
“We all really work hard defensively,” Wolke said. “It also has something to do with my size, just a bigger person. Any of us could have played her on defense. But for me personally, my defensive game is really important to me, and I’m just here to try and stop some of the best players on the other team.”
While Kingswood succeeded in slowing Wright and fellow big Joslin Wainwright, the foul count grew with the Raiders’ continued incursions from the wings. And Lebanon made the visitors pay.
Up 17-16 at the half, Lebanon scored the first 14 points of the third quarter to take control. Wolke started with two free throws, interspersing four more and a Josie Brown-fed layup with a Wainwright bucket to stretch the lead to double figures (27-16) by the period’s midway point.
Maddie Hastings (eight points) and Wainwright (13) closed the run with bunnies. Wolke ended the period with another layup, leaving Lebanon in control of a 33-19 cushion. Kingswood made just one field goal and scored only nine points after halftime.
“They were packing it in, but by the end they were really covering those outside wings more,” Wolke said. “When we drove in, instead of all collapsing like normal, it was easier to get to the rim and draw that foul.”
Finally freed of her defensive shackles, Wright added six of her nine points in the final period to salt away another Lebanon win.
“I think this team has been pretty special,” Kehoe said. “I don’t think we’re the overwhelming favorites. … I’ve had two other teams that went undefeated, and from the get-go we kind of had a feeling that we could make a run. This team wows you with incredibly consistent half-court defense.”
Be it at the free-throw line or the back end of the court, Kehoe will accept that winning formula any night.
“This team has all about consistency, not trying to overwhelm you with a lot of athleticism,” Kehoe said. “It’ll take that.”
Free Throws: Lebanon owned a 35-26 advantage on the boards, with Wright grabbing a team-high 11 rebounds. Wainwright and Hastings each contributed nine caroms. … Injured Lebanon senior Meredith Melendy accessorized her black dress with a matching black knee brace on Friday, having had surgery to repair her damaged left knee two weeks ago. Lost for the year after just two games, Melendy said she’s already started rehabilitation, with the hope of being able to commence basketball-centered exercises within six months. … Chick emphasized Kingswood’s growing improvement as a basketball team, having gone from four wins two years ago and five last winter to 13 this season, capped by a first-round tourney win. “Very fundamental stuff: catching and squaring, defensive stances, not watching the ball in flight on defense (or) rebounding, getting your hands up so you can be in a rebounding position,” he said. “All of the little things that they didn’t do as a second-nature type of thing. They’re getting it now.” … Lebanon will play in the 8 p.m. semifinal at SNHU on Tuesday. No. 2 Portsmouth and No. 6 Hollis Brookline collide in the 6 p.m. lidlifter.
Greg Fennell can be reached at gfennell@vnews.com or 603-727-3226.