< Back to front page Text size – +

CM, 74-56 (final)

E-mail|Link|Comments (2) Posted by Chris Forsberg, Boston.com Staff March 15, 2008 05:20 PM

division 2 boys' state championship
Catholic Memorial 74, Tantasqua 56

Catholic Memorial took out a year's worth of frustration on Tantasqua, denying the Warriors their bid for 50 consecutive wins and ripping the Division 2 state championship from their grasp with a 74-56 triumph at the DCU Center in Worcester.

Tantasqua defeated CM in last year's title game.

This year, Julian Colarusso poured in a game-high 24 points, 18 of which came in the first half where Catholic Memorial turned an early eight-point deficit into a 14-point halftime advantage.

Tantasqua tried desperately to stay close, riding the shoulders of big man Brian Vayda and his team-high 21 points and 11 rebounds. But the lead only briefly dipped from double digits and it was Colarusso who answered with a bucket that helped push the advantage to 20 before Tantasqua chipped away over the final four minutes.

***

4th quarter

Catholic Memorial is pulling this one open at the seams.

Tantasqua will make a basket at the other end and the Knights come racing up court for a demoralizing answer.The lead is climbing towards 20 as CM leads, 62-44, with 4:54 to go.

***

3rd quarter

Tantasqua scraped its deficit down to nine late in the third quarter, but Catholic Memorial responded with three quick buckets and the Knights will carry a 54-39 advantage into the final frame.

Julian Colarusso continues to come up big. His lone bucket of the third quarter came after the Warriors had pulled to within 48-39 as Colarusso calmly sliced the defense for an easy layup that pushed the lead back to 11.

David Grant and Brendan Monteiro added baskets before the break.

***

2nd quarter

Catholic Memorial limped sluggishly out of the gates, but kicked on the burners midway through the first quarter and the Knights lead Tantasqua, 42-26, at the intermission of the Division 2 boys' championship game.

Despite falling behind 11-3 early, Catholic Memorial embarked on a 20-2 run and led, 28-15, with 5:20 to play in the half. Tantasqua clawed to within 12 with 1:19 to play in the half, but a couple buckets by Julian Colarusso helped push the Kngihts' lead right back up.

Colarusso tossed in a team-high 18 points in the first half to pace the Knights.

***

1st quarter

Ho-hum. Just your typical Catholic Memorial start to tournament games.

For the third straight game, the Knights fell behind early (Tantasqua opened on an 11-3 run), but CM responded and carries a 17-13 advantage into the second quarter.

Six points for Julian Colarusso for CM, while Brian Vayda has six for Tantasqua.

***

Starting lineups

Here are the starting lineups for today's Division 2 boys' title game:

CATHOLIC MEMORIAL

5 - Brendan Monteiro - 5-11 - Sr.
11 - Julian Colarusso - 6-3 - Sr.
12 - Allen Harris - 6-4 - Jr.
21 - Jeff Tagger - 6-0 - Jr.
44 - Mike Ennis - 6-1 - Jr.

Coach: Denis Tobin

TANTASQUA

5 - Marcus Gaudet - 5-8 - Sr.
21 - Brandon Forcier - 5-8 - Jr.
32 - Dan Kemp - 6-3 - Jr.
51 - Brian Vayda - 6-5 - Sr.
52 - Ryan White - 6-5 - Sr.

Coach: Jeff Child

« Back to front page

2 comments so far...

Way to go CM
Congrats Coach Tobin!!

Posted by Sean O'Brien "92" March 15, 08 09:38 PM

Congratulations to both team. Great job, Tantasqua, for such an amazing winning streak.

From your fans in Iowa and Minnesota!

Posted by J.Naughton March 16, 08 12:19 AM

You must be logged in to submit a comment.

This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.

Look for updates from:

Bob Holmes: A Reading resident (Go Rockets!) and Boston College graduate, Holmes is the Boston Globe High School Sports Editor. We remind you now that his weekly picks are often made in jest so everyone just calm down when he picks against Everett for 11 straight weeks.
Mike Carraggi: An Everett native (Go Tide!), Mike attends Eastern Nazarene college and is entering his second year with the Globe. He'll focus on Division 1 this fall, which means he'll spend a lot of time in his hometown, which Forsberg thinks is cool because the Tide have that Fried Dough cart.
Emily Wright: A Hyannis native (Go Barnstable Red Raiders!), Emily is a senior at Emerson College and has been with the Globe since the end of July. She'll cover Division 1A and will be the first intern we've trusted to navigate her way to Dennis-Yarmouth or any other school on the Cape.
Mike Grossi: A Lexington native (Go Minutemen!), Mike attends Northeastern and has been with the Globe for two months. He'll cover Division 2 and 2A and unsuccessfully lobbied to include Lexington in the preseason Top 20.
Jonathan Raymond: A native of Benicia, Calif. (a suburb of San Francisco), Jonathan attends Northeastern and has been working at the Globe since the end of June. He will be focusing on Division 3 and is likely woefully underprepared for covering a game in a foot of snow.
David Carty: A native of West Bridgewater (Go Wildcats!), David is a senior at Emerson College and has been working at the Globe for a year. He'll cover Divisions 3A and 4 because, "small school ball is in my blood."
The bench: You'll also catch updates from our regional contributors, including Globe North's Julian Benbow and South's Monique Walker. Correspondent Brendan Hall will have updates from the Globe West coverage area and will often try to sneak in Central Mass. news.