Medford girls basketball lose to Peabody in D1 State Tournament

 Some early game butterflies proved costly for the Mustangs girls basketball team Tuesday night.

The 34th-ranked Medford High hoop team was taken down by the 31st-seeded Peabody Tanners 51-33 in preliminary round action of the Division 1 State Tournament.

Peabody (15-6) advances to play second-ranked Bishop Fenwick on Friday. With the loss, Medford ends its season at 12-9.

According to Mustang first-year coach Sharell Sanders, the Mustangs may have caught a case of the postseason jitters, at least initially, which led them to defeat.

“We played a bit nervous and timid the first quarter, which allowed Peabody to go on a run,” said Sanders. “But we battled back to go into half down 13. We struggled to find rhythm in the first half, but our defense effort was pretty good.”

Medford senior Ruby Andresean provided a much-needed spark off the bench. Her dogged determination and non-stop hustle helped turn several turnovers into easy points. The slick-playing senior was also a threat from three-point land.

“Ruby hit a few deep shots, which gave us a bit of life,” said Sanders.

Andresean rallied the troops with a key trey, followed by a momentum shifting steal, prompting the Mustangs to cut the deficit to 28-14 at halftime.

“We went on our run because of her effort and energy,” said Sanders. “At that point we started to compete a little more, but battling back when being down is a tall task. We just fell a little short.” 

Meanwhile, sophomore Sienna Fauci managed to conjure some of her magic on the court, keeping the team in step.

“Sienna, who has been our engine all season long, started to get into her rhythm,” said Sanders “She was scoring on all three levels.” 

Defensively Medford got key contributions from Nadia Purifory and Joy Riccioli.

A freshman, Purifory continues to show her maturity on the hardwood, perfecting her game at an amazing rate.

“Nadia was great on the defensive end,” said Sanders. “She had some great blocks, rebounded the ball well and altered a lot of Peabody shots on their guards. She forced them to take some tough shots.”

A senior guard, Riccioli remained the Mustangs' defensive conscious, getting key rebounds, while also keeping the Tanners honest making a bevy of steals.

“Joy’s always flying around defensively helping create offense from her defense resulting in easy points,” said Sanders. 

Medford loses a handful of seniors in the off-season, including guard Ryleigh Allen and forwards Rebecca Casey and Carissa Purifory.