FREEPORT — In the early going of Friday’s girls high school basketball game, Freeport had difficulty putting the ball in the basket and avoiding traveling calls as the Morse defense gave the Falcons trouble.
That is until captain Caroline Smith and sophomore forward Rachel Wall went to work.
Wall scored 15 first-half points on her way to a game-high 21 and Smith ran the show as Freeport rolled to a 66-32 victory over the Shipbuilders.
Smith had 11 points, seven assists and six rebounds in leading the Falcons to a 4-1 mark.
“It starts with Caroline Smith, who sets that tempo,” said Freeport coach Seth Farrington. “She values the best shot possible, and it is contagious throughout the entire team.”
“She was setting me up pretty well,” said Wall, who added four steals, two assists and two blocked shots. “We do this high-low thing, and it always ends up with a layup.”
Coming into this year one season removed from advancing to the Class B South regional final, Smith felt opponents were going to gear up to stop her. However, the players around her, according to the junior, have stepped up.
“There is a lot of attention on me, but we are so diverse and everyone has stepped up,” said Smith. “I thought (Morse) were taller, but Rachel and I worked well. I give her a lot of credit for catching those passes.”
Trailing 5-4, Freeport’s offense took off. After missing its first nine field goal attempts, Wall put the Falcons ahead to stay, 6-5. After pair of free throws by Smith, returning Hannah Groves scored inside.
Morse called a timeout, but baskets by Mason Baker-Schlendering, Hannah Spaulding and Wall finished off a 15-0 run for a 17-5 Falcon lead.
The biggest problem for Morse was moving the ball up the court in the face of Freeport’s full-court press. Though the Shipbuilders forced eight Freeport turnovers, 14 first-quarter miscues had Morse playing from behind.
“We have been working on defense, it is just the offense, with the kids young and hesitant,” said Morse coach Jan Veinot, whose Shipbuilders will take an 0-5 record into this Saturday’s home game with Kennebunk (4 p.m.). “Their offensive skills are coming, but it takes time.”
Freeport led 19-7 after a quarter behind Wall’s eight points. The 5-foot-11 sophomore was surprised when last year’s coach Mike Hart placed her on varsity. Now, Farrington has increased her role.
“Last year, I didn’t think I would start out on varsity. Coach Farrington has really helped me to become even a better basketball player this year,” said Wall.
“I am old school and I like to pound the ball inside, and Rachel, along with Hannah Groves, who just came back from injury, did the job,” Farrington said, after watching Groves add seven points and cause havoc inside with four blocked shots.
Falcons keep rolling
Morse standout Julia Goddard swished a 3-pointer and had 10 first-half points while trying to keep her Shipbuilders in it.
However, a quick 6-0 run gave Freeport a 27-10 lead midway through the second quarter. A 6-2 spurt closed the half as the Falcons went to the break with a 38-16 advantage behind 15 points from Wall and eight from Smith.
Any thoughts of a Morse second-half rally quickly evaporated as Freeport began making one extra pass for easy baskets. Catriona Gould set up Smith for a trey, Wall found Spaulding for an open 3-pointer and Wall scored off a Smith setup for a quick eight points and a 46-16 lead.
In all, nine Falcons scored in the contest, with Smith finishing with 11, Spaulding nine, and six each coming from Baker-Schlendering and Lindsay Routhier.
For Morse, Goddard led with her 10 first-half points, while Marija Medenica added seven points and Kaylee Creamer six.
“We tell them all the time what we are doing well,” Veinot said, whose ’Builders shot 27 percent (12-of-44) from the floor but forced 25 Freeport turnovers. “We are all working for that second half of the season and getting better every single game. We are getting there. We see it as a staff.”
Now comes the next challenge for Freeport, which faces a tough schedule with home games against Greely (Jan. 10) and Yarmouth (Jan. 18) along with big road matchups with Cape Elizabeth (Jan. 15) and Wells (Feb. 5) among its remaining 13 games.
“Our next challenge is Lincoln Academy, a team that is well-coached and will come after it,” said Farrington, whose Falcons head to Newcastle on Friday at 1 p.m.
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