It was exactly two years ago when the Marshwood High girls’ basketball team ended Greely’s two-year reign as Class A state champions, beating the favored Rangers in the regional final.
On Monday afternoon, even though the stakes weren’t quite as high, the Rangers made sure there would be no upset when the two met for the first time since then.
Behind the stellar play of guards Chelsea Graiver and Asja Kelman, second-seeded Greely took early control and eased to a 49-27 win over seventh-seeded Marshwood in a Class A South quarterfinal at the Portland Expo.
Graiver scored eight of her game-high 16 points in the first quarter as the Rangers opened a 16-6 lead they would never relinquish.
“That was definitely a factor going into the day,” Graiver said of the regional loss two years ago. “I remember sitting there after we lost to Marshwood … definitely the worst feeling. It’s definitely good to get this one.”
The Rangers (14-4) will play third-seeded Falmouth at 1 p.m. Wednesday at the Portland Expo. Greely defeated the Navigators 67-53 on Jan. 11 in the only game between the two this year.
Marshwood, which won the Class A state championship in 2020, finished 8-11. This was the fifth time in the last six regional tournaments that the teams have met, with Greely winning four of the games. There was no tournament in the 2020-21 school year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Graiver scored the game’s first seven points – two coast-to-coast layups after grabbing defensive rebounds and a 3-pointer – to get the Rangers untracked. And with only three seniors on the roster, that was important, according to Greely Coach Todd Flaherty.
“Young team, inexperienced, early in the tournament, it was good to get off to a good start,” said Flaherty. “It’s what we have to do. We don’t roll out the points like we did in the past.”
“It was very important to set the tone,” said Gravier. “And it set the tone for the rest of the game, to get that early lead and not let them come back into it.”
And, Flaherty pointed out, everyone contributed. In addition to her 16 points, Graiver had five assists and five steals. Kelman scored 11 points to go with 11 rebounds, two assists and a steal. Kaiyla Delisle, despite getting into early foul trouble, had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Sophia Ippolito added eight points.
“With our team, we just work together and pick each other up,” said Kelman. “We’ve got to work with what we’ve got, hustle up the floor and do what we can.”
Marshwood was playing without two of its best defensive players, Shelby Anderson and Tia Anderson (both injured), and was unable to slow down the Rangers.
“We talked about our transition defense a lot in practices this week,” said Marshwood Coach Angie Littlefield. “We knew we had to limit that, but they got a lot in the first half. We did a much better job in the second half.”
Marshwood got within 12 a couple of times in the second half, but no closer.
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