RICHFORD – Richford held off a determined Twinfield-Cabot girls basketball squad last week to win their sixth straight, improving to 10-4 on the season.
Kyrielle Deuso led a balanced Lady Rocket scoring attack with a team-high 10 points, helping her team escape with a 41-36 home win over the Lady Trojans last Tuesday. Alba Costel Delgado, Mikayla Chagnon, and Katelyn Doe scored eight points apiece to give Richford a 21-16 cushion heading into the break. Twinfield-Cabot surged to a 32-30 lead with eight minutes to play behind a game-high 17 points from senior Kendall Fowler, but a key offensive rebound and putback by Delgado, followed by a dagger three by Chagnon down the stretch proved to be the difference.
“Of course, we wanted to come home with a win when you have a chance to beat a team like that on the road, but this effort by the girls was almost as good. We did a nice job staying competitive throughout the game. That is how we have to play against tough teams like Richford,” said head coach Jack Whalen.
Gracie Sylvester chipped in with seven for Richford, who looks poised to once again return to the Division III Final Four in Barre after their sixth straight win. Deuso, a 1,000-point career scorer, is coming off leading her Lady Rocket soccer team to a Division IV soccer championship this past fall and will help her softball team defend another championship this coming spring. They are currently ranked fifth in the Division III basketball rankings with their star senior point guard orchestrating the offense. Chloe North had another strong game for the Lady Trojans, scoring 11 tough points in the paint, with Jorja Washburn and Tegan Trader combining for eight more in the loss.
Twinfield-Cabot continues to hold on to the seventh spot in the current Division IV rankings and are holding off Leland & Gray and Danville for the final two home playoff seeds. West Rutland and Arlington continue to pace the division with a combined 24-5 record.
“This kind of effort from our girls against Richford was huge for us. We lost by 20 to them last month and I told the girls we are much better than the last time we faced them. They went out and proved that and this should give us confidence to end the season strong,” said Whalen.
After a trip to BFA-Fairfax on Tuesday, Whalen’s squad has a chance to separate themselves in the standings this week with a pair of pivotal Mountain League clashes at home against Danville and Blue Mountain on Thursday night and Saturday afternoon.
