Mon, Mar 09, 2015 05:45 PM @ Andover

Team	1	2	3	4	Final
Braintree	16	19	11	15	61
Andover	10	10	8	9	37

Andover ousted at Garden by nationally-ranked Braintree

Friday, August, 07 By David Willis

David Willis dwillis@eagletribune.com — Posted: Tuesday, March 10, 2015 2:04 am

BOSTON — Andover’s E.J. Perry knew there were concerns and questions two years ago,when the football coach, known for his fiery competitiveness both in games and in practice, took on the job as Golden Warriors girls basketball coach.

“They didn’t know what they were getting into a couple years ago with the Andover football coach walking in,” said Perry, who replaced four-time state champion coach Jim Tildsley. “To be honest, I didn’t know what I was getting into. I hadn’t coached girls.

“But let me tell you, this senior class embraced me so much. It has worked because these girls, girls like Rachael (Cormier) and Colleen (Caveney) and Talia (Dellatto) are so mentally tough. They not only dealt with me, but they welcomed me with open arms.”

Andover girls basketball’s tournament run came to an end two victories short of a dream finish last night as the North champion Golden Warriors (23-3) fell to South champ and defending state champion Braintree 61-37 last night in the Division 1 state semifinal at the TD Garden.

Braintree (24-0), which is ranked the No. 21 girls basketball team in the country by Maxpreps.com and No. 25 in the nation by USA Today, will now play for a perfect season on Saturday in the Division 1 state title game at the DCU Center in Worcester.

“My girls did all they could,” said Perry. “But it just wasn’t in the cards against a team as big and as talented as Braintree. We expended too much energy on Saturday (41-38 North title win over Billerica) and this Braintree team is so talented.”

The Golden Warriors’ best run came at the end of the first quarter. After Braintree opened the game with a 9-0 run, Andover rallied led by a basket each by Jillian Webber and Dellatto, then Cormier’s aggressive drive and layup at the buzzer cut the advantage to 16-10.

But the Wamps opened the second with an 11-0 run, and the closest the Warriors would cut it from there was 11 on a 3-pointer by Alyssa Casey (team-high 11 points).

Andover, used to owning the paint with 5-foot-11 Merrimack Valley Conference MVP Casey and 6-foot Webber, faced an even more dominant size advantage in Braintree’s massive front court.

Led by 6-foot-2 Molly Reagan, who is heading to Division 1 Liberty University, along with 6-foot Villanova-bound Bridget Herlihy and her 6-foot junior sister Brianna Herlihy, the Wamps were able to turn away nearly everything the Golden Warriors attempted to earn under the basket.

“We cut it to around 10 a few times, but they were just too tough,” said Perry, whose son E.J. Perry IV led the cheers for a small Andover student fan section. “That front court is just amazing for a high school team. They made the plays of the game.”

Following the contest, Perry shared a moment and a few words with each of the seniors on his team, from four-year varsity player Cormier to forward Fatouma Kone, who missed the entire season due a knee injury.

“This class really made it possible for me to fit into this job,” said E.J. Perry. “Talia holds a special place because she fought her way back from the concussions to play again. Rachael overcame so much tragedy (the loss of her father) to be so important to us. She was amazing down the stretch in the postseason.

“Colleen was an average player as a sophomore and she worked so hard to become a top player and she will have a great career at Middlebury. And Carissa Reming worked so hard for us.

“Then there is Emily Connors who battled our great big girls every day in practice and was amazing and Paige Hartnett who hit some big 3’s early in the season for us before we started to play more fast-paced. And we could have used Fatouma’s size today.”

An already emotional Perry cleary held back emotions as he talked about one senior in particular, his daughter, guard Julia Perry.

“It is obviously hard to see Julia go,” said Perry.”As the 12th man on our team, she handled that role so well. She protected her teammates every day at home. We had many dinner conversations about what I was doing wrong. She protected every girl, and having the chance to coach her was an excellent bonding experience.

“This group was very special. This senior class ended a three-year wait for Andover basketball to get back to the Garden. I told the underclassmen that it is their job now to get us back to the DCU Center.”