RallyNorth.net

NORTH ANDOVER — It isn’t appropriate to call this a rivalry. After all, Andover and their North Andover counterparts rarely meet on the court. But last night’s match up in front of a raucous full house certainly had the feel.

 A pair of local Plymouth State University student-athletes have been honored by the Little East Conference.

Plymouth State freshman Jennifer Samaro from Salem, N.H., was named Little East Conference Rookie Swimmer of the Week, and former Pinkerton standout Ryan Lambert, a junior from Derry, was selected to the LEC Men's Basketball Weekly Honor Roll.

 Junior Becky Cairns of Andover scored the game-winning goal with 45 seconds remaining in the third period to lift Hamilton College to a dramatic 3-2 win against nationally ranked Middlebury College in a New England Small College Athletic Conference game over the weekend.

The Central Catholic boys basketball team saw its perfect season melt in the waning seconds yesterday, falling at defending Rhode Island state champ, Bishop Hendricken, 61-60.

The Central Catholic boys basketball team saw its perfect season melt in the waning seconds yesterday, falling at defending Rhode Island state champ, Bishop Hendricken, 61-60.

The odds of Brooks beating Milton Academy (14-2) seemed slim and none.  Then when it fell behind 15 in the second half and stars Aaron Davis (ankle) and Derek Murphy (broken nose) were injured, it seemed one in a million. But Brooks, with 6-footer Jason Buco of Methuen covering 6-11 blue-chipper Dennis Clifford, almost pulled it off. Behind a career-high 23 points from Shane Rogers, Brooks (7-7) threw a scare into Milton before falling 63-56 in OT.

Pinkerton  shot just 25 percent from the floor but still beat Manchester Central 43-42.

"We won this game by hustle and determination by diving for balls," Pinkerton coach Peter Rosinski said.

Andover lost 51-44 to Lowell for its third straight defeat. "We're in a rut," assistant coach Alan Hibino said. "We've loss three in a row but we get back at Monday against North Andover. ... We just have to get better defensively." Lowell qualified for the North sectional tournament with the victory.

LAWRENCE - Vulnerable? Sure, as a runaway steamroller.

Unbeaten Central Catholic, with top scorer Jimmy Zenevitch limited to spectator status by an ankle sprain, throttled upset-minded Lawrence, 73-60, before about 800 fans last night.

Raudy Minaya scored 29 points, marking the sixth straight game that he has scored 26 or more points.  The 6-1 junior forward helped Methuen to a 78-55 win and he did so by hitting 12 shots from the field - including three 3-pointers.  Mike Gorman and James Staples also had three 3-pointers each.