Veronica Burton does a tremendous job getting her Newton South teammates involved, but sometimes she just has to take over a bit.
The senior guard did just that for top-ranked Newton South in its 54-46 win over No. 2 Westford Academy (7-2) in a Dual County League girls’ basketball showdown Friday night.
After host South missed half a dozen threes, Burton hit a step-back trey from the right wing with 4:17 to go in the first quarter to put the Lions (11-0) on the board. After a stop at the other end, Burton pushed a lefty finger roll through the cup to give South its first lead.
“We definitely struggled earlier into the game with shooting,’’ said Burton, who finished the night with a game-high 27 points along with six blocked shots. “The spacing allowed me to attack. If they weren’t crashing or crowding the lane I was able to finish at the basket.’’
The Grey Ghosts (7-2) responded with a 3 by Allison Mulhern and a plethora of offensive rebounds from Elizabeth Arnold (11 points, 10 boards). But South guard Paige Ollivierre banked in a runner to beat the first-quarter buzzer. Burton almost outscored Westford by herself in the first half, netting 15 of South’s 22 for a 22-16 lead.
Burton’s teammates picked her up after the break, with Ollivierre sparking a 23-6 run with a pair of threes and a drive.
Ollivierre’s younger sister, Maria, a sophomore, netted back-to-back right wing triples to extend the lead to 40-18 with just over a minute left in the third quarter. Burton then beat the third-quarter buzzer with an NBA range three on South’s next possession.
“It’s the best feeling in the world, when everyone’s shots are on,’’ Ollivierre said. “Then everyone gets into it, the crowd gets into it, our team dynamic lifts up and we destroy teams.’’
Said South coach Joe Rogers, “We got a little better spaced, and that makes them have to cover more ground and our kids hit shots in the third quarter.’’
Five 3-pointers from Westford senior Emily Bramanti in the fourth quarter provided a spark to cut the deficit to single digits, but South’s run proved too convincing.
“What we realized is that we could put some pressure on them,’’ said Westford coach Russ Coward. “We also realized how good Burton is. They definitely deserved to win the game, but at least we made them sweat.’’
Foxborough 75, North Attleborough 26 — Ashley Sampson had 26 points for the No. 3 Warriors (9-1).
Silver Lake 43, Duxbury 34 — The Lakers (8-3, 5-3 Patriot) started the fourth quarter on an 11-0 run to turn a two-point deficit into a 37-28 lead with 3:28 remaining. Allie Crawford scored a game-high 14 points, including seven in the fourth quarter. Teagan Curran and Alli Cavallo had 13 apiece for Duxbury (6-3, 5-2).
Pentucket 67, Lynnfield 39 — Liv Cross (15 points) led the 9-1 Sachems .
Bishop Feehan 64, Martha’s Vineyard 37 — Anna Shaughnessy scored 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds for the 11th-ranked Shamrocks (6-2).
Weymouth 48, Framingham 25 — Melanie Spiney (19 points, 18 rebounds) paced the Wildcats (3-5).
South Shore Voc-Tech 33, Southeastern 28 — Jenna Grande scored 6 points for the Vikings (7-2).
Mt. Alvernia 39, Rockport 27 — The host Mustangs (3-6) used a 17-2 run in the third quarter to pull away.
Mystic Valley 61, Essex Tech 25 — Senior guard Menel Lamadzema scored 27 points, snared 11 steals, and grabbed six rebounds for the host Eagles (8-2).
Rivers 64, New Hampton 36 — Senior wing Tess Sussman (20 points) of Needham paced the 10-1 Red Wings on the road.
Milton 47, Norwood 38 — Jeanmarie Fallon scored 9 points as the Wildcats (6-5) won their fourth straight.
Lowell Catholic 45, Saint Joseph Prep 25 — Senior guard Maggie Penta (19 points) scored her 1,000th career point for the Crusaders.
Needham 54, Brookline 24 — Junior Maeve Barker led the visiting Rockets (8-3) with 14 points.
Fenway 58, Latin Academy 34 — Janayah Gulley (15 rebounds) paced the Panthers (8-2).
Mansfield 44, Oliver Ames 31 — Senior Meg Hill (16 points, 14 rebounds, 7 blocked shots) dominated for the 12th-ranked Hornets (9-4, 7-1).
Pembroke 57, North Quincy 36 — Jayne Howe’s 22 points led the Titans (4-7).
Newton South 54, Westford 46 — Senior guard Veronica Burton poured in 27 points and blocked six shots as the top-ranked Lions (11-0) defeated the 2017 D1 state finalist.
Berwick 50, Bancroft 31 — Anna Madonia (14 points), Keely Baglio (10) and Isabella Balian (10) led visiting Bancroft (2-4) in a loss to Berwick (2-8).
Whitinsville Christian 54, South Shore Christian 15 — Cam Richey (17 points) and Jessye VanderAkker (10) paced the visiting Crusaders (6-3) past the Warriors.
Boys’ basketball
Madison Park 81, Snowden 67 — Senior Dominic Jones erupted for a school-record 51 points for the host Cardinals (4-6). The guard made six 3-pointers and went 10 of 12 from the free-throw line. Jones also added 6 rebounds, 5 steals, and 4 assists. ‘‘It was one of the best performances I have seen and I have been here a long time,’’ said 36-year Madison Park coach Dennis Wilson.
Charlestown 62, Latin Academy 47 — Senior guard Jose Garcia poured in a career-high 37 points — the most by a Charlestown player in 10 years, knocking down nine 3-pointers. Senior center Franklin Udeh chipped in 18 points, 13 rebounds, and 4 blocks for the Townies (7-7).
St. John’s (Shrewsbury) 72, Sutton 62— Sean Burke recorded 22 points and 17 rebounds, and Hunter Gorgas added 17 and 9 as the No. 4 Pioneers (8-5) held off the visiting Sammies (6-4) for Bob Foley’s 900th career coaching victory.
Brockton 79, Bridgewater-Raynham 72 — Jalen Lee (17 points) led four scorers in double figures for the No. 2 Boxers (11-0).
Hingham 65, Plymouth North 50 — John Lowther scored 24 points and grabbed 17 rebounds to lift the visiting Harbormen.
Apponequet 68, Case 54 — Senior Adam Seabloom registered 21 points to lift the visiting Lakers (9-0). Drew Plante’s 35 points were not enough for the host Cardinals.
O'Bryant 62, New Mission 57 — Junior Rivaldo Soares (25 points, 17 rebounds, 6 assists) closed within 43 points of 1,000 for his career and Jerrell Lewis-Guy had 10 points and 19 rebounds for the visiting Tigers (8-2).
Catholic Memorial 69, Xaverian 35 — Senior Kani Glover scored 20 points to lift the No. 8 Knights (7-3).
Mashpee 79, Middleborough 58 — Junior Anthony Gonsalves powered the Falcons with 29 points and 10 rebounds.
Dexter Southfield 77, Landmark 35 — Noah Kamba (28 points, 11 assists) and Jordan Mason (24 points) powered the hosts (9-5).
Canton 66, Stoughton 40 — The Bulldogs (9-1) followed the lead of senior guard Austin Mathews (20 points, 6 rebounds) and junior guard Devin Foster (19 points, 5 rebound).
Quincy 55, Whitman-Hanson 54 — Damien Markov hit the go-ahead layup with three seconds left for the Presidents (8-3).
Franklin 61, King Philip 44 — Chris Edgehill scored 22 points to lead the Panthers (10-1).
Southeastern 74, South Shore Voc-Tech 54 — Isiah Fontes dropped 34 points and pulled down 7 rebounds to lift the visiting Hawks.
Chapel Hill 69, Marie Philip 56 — Cameron Smith registered his fourth straight 20-plus point game to lift the visiting Chargers (4-2).
Marshfield 58, Sandwich 46 — A.J. Conn led the Rams (8-2) with 18 points.
Roxbury Latin 49, BB&N 39 — Junior guard Seb Borgard netted 16 points for the Foxes (6-3), draining four treys.
Arlington 60, Belmont 51 — Dominic Black scored 12 points and grabbed 16 boards for the No. 19 Spy Ponders (8-1).
Needham 63, Brookline 53 — Thomas Shaughnessy had 18 points for the top-ranked Rockets (9-0).
Berwick 77, Bancroft 63 — Carlo Mannina (9 rebounds, 5 blocks) scored 18 points and Anthony Marguerite (7 rebounds) and C.J. Zujewski each netted 15 for visiting Bancroft (5-5, 2-3 EIL) in a loss to Berwick (7-4, 4-0).
Boys’ swimming
Andover 98, North Andover 80 — Sean Bradshaw claimed the diving event with 226.05 points for the Golden Warriors.
Clevio retiring at AC
Serge Clivio is retiring after 35 years on the Arlington Catholic football sideline, the past 29 as head coach. Clivio guided the Cougars to seven Catholic Central titles and Super Bowl titles in 1993 and 2008. He will coach the North squad in the 2018 Shriners’ Football Classic on June 22 at Bentley.
“Coach Clivio’s legacy at Arlington Catholic extends far beyond the gridiron,’’ said AD athletic director Dan Shine.
“I have always valued his dedication to our school, and his commitment to teaching life lessons to all that he coached.’’ Clivio will continue to work in the theology department at the school.
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