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Final: Andover 57, Acton-Boxboro 51

Print | Comments () Posted by Staff March 11, 2011 02:29 PM

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By Zuri Berry, Boston.com staff

If Nicole Boudreau had it her way, she would’ve scored 50 points at TD Garden.

Instead, she settled for what she called a poor shooting night, tallying 34 points, 10 rebounds and four steals to help the Golden Warriors hold back the the Colonials for the Division 1 girls’ North sectional title.

“I don’t think I was on fire at all,’’ Boudreau said. “We didn’t shoot that well as a team, especially myself. I missed a lot of shots that I thought I could make. But it’s not all about what you make. It’s about defense and making stops and whatnot.’’

Boudreau was being modest. Her 12-point second quarter and 14-point third quarter were clearly the difference, punching Andover’s ticket to the Eastern Mass state final.

“(At the) beginning of the game she got off to a real slow start,’’ said Andover coach James Tildsley. “But if we didn’t have her today, we would’ve been killed. She played unbelievable.’’

Boudreau’s best highlight may have been the most inconsequential. With time winding down in the half, she took the ball up court and drained a 3-pointer about four feet inside the half-court line off the backboard, punctuating the play with a scowl for the crowd and her teammates.

Acton-Boxboro came out of the gate firing, with a 3-pointer by Hannah Foley (11 points) and a bucket by Lily Barnard putting the Colonials up, 7-2, before Tildsley called time out. That’s when Andover’s Natalie Gomez-Martinez went to work, scoring 5 of her 8 points. Andover outscored Acton-Boxboro 11-5 to end the quarter and 31-15 to close out the first half.

Spurred by a full-court press that led Andover to the state title last year, the Golden Warriors put a blanket on A-B’s guards, forcing 17 turnovers.

Acton-Boxboro fought its way back after going down by as many as 20 points. The Colonials’ Elizabeth Belanger poured in 16 points in the second half. Her 25 points and 13 rebounds helped Acton-Boxboro get within 7, but it was too little too late.

End of the game: Andover 57, Acton-Boxboro 51 — Andover's Nicole Boudreau poured on 34 points, 10 rebounds and four steals to lead the defending state champion Golden Warriors past Acton-Boxboro in the girls Division 1 North section final.

End of the third quarter: Andover 49, Acton-Boxboro 32 — Andover's Nicole Boudreau added 14 points in the third quarter. She has 29 on the game to lead the Golden Warriors, which extended their lead to 17 points.

End of the second quarter: Andover 33, Acton-Boxboro 22 — Andover's Nicole Boudreau went on a tear in the second quarter, putting up 12 points including two 3-pointers. The highlight of which was a 30-point bank shot off the backboard to end the half. She has 15 points to lead all scorers. Acton-Boxboro's leading scorer Elizabeth Belanger was injured in the quarter. She hit her head while diving for a loose ball at the 3:45 mark. Her left eyelid was swollen. She sat on the bench for the rest of the quarter icing it. In her absence, Jackie Watts poured in five points to keep the Colonials alive. But Andover outscored A-B 20-10.

End of the first quarter: Andover 13, Acton-Boxboro 12 — Despite leading Andover 7-2 at one point in the first quarter, Andover managed to make it way back to lead at the end of the quarter. Natalie Gomez-Martinez scored 5 points to lead the Golden Warriors.

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We're about 30 minutes away from tipoff at TD Garden where the Andover Golden Warriors are getting ready to play the Acton-Boxboro Colonials in the girls Division 1 North section basketball final.

Andover (24-1) is the defending Division 1 state champions led by Nicole Boudreau (22.1 points per game), Natalie Gomez-Martinez (14.1 ppg) and junior captain Ally Fazio.

Acton-Boxboro (20-3) is led by junior forward Elizabeth Belanger (19.4 ppg) and 5-11 guard Hannah Foley.

We'll have quarter-by-quarter updates here on the blog but you can also get more frequent updates via our Twitter account @GlobeSchools. You can also follow me to follow the game along @zuriberry.

The winner of this game will face the winner of the South section final, between New Bedford (23-0) and Mansfield (24-1), which is slated to tip off at 5 p.m.

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Several reporters and editors contribute updates, news and analysis to the High School Sports Blog.

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. Contact him at rholmes@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeHolmes.
Craig Larson: A native of West Springfield (Leo Durocher anyone? Tim Daggett?) and Curry College graduate (a proud Colonel!), Larson is the sports editor for the Globe's regional sections: South, West and North, as well as a frequent contributor on the college beat. Abington to Xaverian: it all starts with the schools. Have a compelling story idea? Contact him at clarson@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeLars.
Zuri Berry: Berry attended the same high school as sports legends O.J. Simpson and Joe DiMaggio. (Guess which one is his hero.) He's a South Boston resident (formerly of Eastie) and the editor of the High School Sports blog as well as the go-to-guy for everything high school sports on Boston.com. Contact him at zberry@boston.com and follow him on Twitter @ZuriBerry for all of the latest updates.

Also expect updates from correspondents Seth Lakso (boys basketball), Hannah Becker (girls basketball), Craig Forde (boys hockey), Liz Torres (girls hockey), Ryan Mooney and a host of others. To reach the high school sports correspondents and Globe editors, e-mail hssports@globe.com.