Foxboro rides on Sykes’ 3-pointer

SCHOOLS ROUNDUP

With the game on the line and Foxboro needing a basket, it was no secret the plan was to feed 1,000-point scorer Ashley Sampson.

Trailing by two in the final seconds against Coyle & Cassidy,

Foxboro put the ball in the hands of Sampson before it was ripped out, forcing her to sprawl in the paint for the loose ball.

Sampson regained possession and kicked the ball out to Lily Sykes, who drilled a 3-pointer with 10 seconds left to give Foxboro a 42-41 nonleague win over Coyle & Cassidy yesterday in Taunton.

“We were trying to run a play for Ashley,” Sykes said. “Then, she fell to the floor and then there was nothing else to do besides shoot it. I shoot better three feet outside the 3-point line than I do right on it. So, that was nothing different than what I’ve shot before.”

Coyle & Cassidy (6-1) was in control when Sam Hourihan (14 points, 16 rebounds) passed to Kaylee Haynes for a bucket that capped a 13-4 run and built the hosts’ lead at 41-37 with 55 seconds left.

But experience shined through for Foxboro (4-0).

Sampson collected a steal and finished at the other end before C&C missed the front end of a one-and-one to set up Sykes’ game-winning shot.

“It all comes down to being seniors on the court,” said Foxboro coach Lisa Downs. “I didn’t realize how big that is to have seniors out there with that much court experience until this year when I have that.”

Sampson (11 points) scored more than half of Foxboro’s points over the final 16 minutes. In the first half, however, Rachael Johnson’s defense held Sampson scoreless.

C&C jumped out to an early 11-2 lead before Foxboro fought back with vital contributions from role players after Sampson went to the bench with two fouls just 2:19 into the contest.

Shannon Smally (eight points) came up big as did Kaitlyn Mollica. Chelsea Gibbons drained a trifecta at the end of the third quarter that gave Foxboro a 3128 edge.

Foxboro’s tenacious pressure defense forced 11 second-quarter turnovers.

“We’ve been in that position before, down by that many even in the first quarter,” Sykes said. “It’s our defense every single time. We get turnovers and we’re running and we’re running. Our defense definitely helped us out.”

In other nonleague girls basketball, Val Whalen, Shyanne Trinh and Aliyah Wright scored a combined 38 points as Stoughton (1-5) defeated Norwood, 49-32 . ... Erin Donlan produced 21 points as Arlington Catholic (4-2) beat Fenway, 42-32 . . . .

In boys basketball, Joe Waisgerber scored 18 points to lift Marshfield (3-1) over Scituate, 67-64.

In the championship game of the Randolph Blue Devil Holiday Tournament, Natick

(4-1) took down Stoughton,

74-54, behind 19 points from MVP Sho Kinugawa.

Tommy O’Neil scored 32 points and nabbed MVP honors in the Commonwealth Motors Christmas Classic as St. John’s Prep (4-1) beat Central Catholic, 80-68.

Hockey

John Anghenitti scored a pair of goals as Bishop Feehan

(2-3) blanked Marblehead,

2-0, in nonleague play.

In the DLC/MVC II, Frank Linso scored twice as Boston Latin (2-2-1) blanked Methuen, 3-0.

In girls hockey action, Kat Keith had three goals and Olivia Jordan added three assists for Westwood (5-3) in a 5-1 win over Medfield.