Pittsfield Girls Get Back to Final Four

PITTSFIELD, Mass. – Even when it became apparent that Friday’s Division 3 State Quarter-Final was going to be tightly called, the Pittsfield girls did not back down.

 

But they did back up – just a hair.

 

Second-seeded Pittsfield kept its defensive pressure on and kept all its players on the floor en route to a 76-46 win over North Reading and a berth in the Final Four against No. 3 Apponequet Regional of Lakeville.

 

Caprese Conyers scored 22 points, and Kyana Summers had a double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds to go with eight assists as Pittsfield got back to the state semi-finals for the second year in a row.

 

The Generals did it, as usual, with stifling defense. Although they did make an adjustment after both teams started racking up early fouls.

 

“We realized we just had to step back a little bit, defensive-wise,” Summers said. “We couldn’t be all up on them. So we knew we just had to play it a little bit smoother.”

 

Pittsfield coach Kristy Conyers said she was not worried that she might have to call off the press.

 

“I just told the girls, keep your hands out where the refs can see them,” Conyers said, demonstrating by holding her arms out wide to her side. “I literally said, just keep them out in the air. You will get steals from deflections, but don’t try to go for the steal if it’s not right there.

 

“Keep your hands out where everybody can see them.”

 

And, for most of the first half, everyone could see just how effective Pittsfield can be at both ends of the floor.

 

Harolyn Castillo (15 points, eight rebounds) scored eight points in the first quarter to help Pittsfield build an 18-point lead in the first seven minutes. Madison Stetz (11 points, eight rebounds) scored with an assist from Asia Smith-Moody to make it 22-4, the Generals took a 24-7 lead into the second quarter.

 

It then opened that quarter with a 19-0 run to effectively put the game out of reach.

 

Stetz got things started with a bucket in the post, and Conyers drove the lane for a bucket and hit a 3-pointer to push the margin to 35-7. Smith-Moody (nine points) knocked down back-to-back triples, and Castillo scored in transition with an assist from Summers to make it 43-7 with 3 minutes, 20 seconds left in the half.

 

The Hornets played even the rest of the half and the rest of the game, but the outcome was never really in doubt, much like Pittsfield’s 53-17 win over North Reading last year in the Sweet 16.

 

“I let the girls know, no matter what the game is, no matter what the season is, everyone’s coming out to win,” Conyers said to the suggestion that her team might look past the Hornets. “You don’t win, you go home. So they know, no matter who we’re playing, even if we already played them last year, you still need to come out and play a hard-fought game.”

 

Pittsfield will face an unfamiliar foe at the next level as the Generals look to climb one rung higher than they reached a year ago.

 

“We’ve just got to come out strong,” Summers said of the semi-final game. “We’ve got to play our game, offense and defense, both sides of the court.

 

“Last year, we didn’t play to our full potential, so we’ve got to plan to bring it this year.”