HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS BASKETBALL Barrington edges NK for D-I title
Eagles hold Skipper scoreless in 2nd quarter
PROVIDENCE — You might expect a shutout or two on the ice in this building.
With the basketball floor laid down? Far less likely.
That's what made Wednesday night at Amica Mutual Pavilion rather remarkable. Barrington managed something not often — ever? — seen in a girls Division I basketball title game.
The Eagles held North Kingstown without a point in the second quarter. A small deficit turned into a halftime lead that was safe from there. Barrington navigated a couple of tense moments late to close out a 50-40 triumph over the Skippers, a first championship of any kind for the program since the 201617 campaign.
“Ridiculous,” Barrington forward Isys Dunphy said. “Crazy. It's exactly what we've been practicing. We did exactly what we meant to do.”
North Kingstown saw a 15-12 advantage melt away over eight empty minutes.
The Skippers finished 0-for-10 from the field — 0-for-6 from 3-point range — and missed their only two free-throw attempts. They added six turnovers to what eventually became a 24-15 deficit into the break.
“We actually talked about it in the locker room,” Barrington guard Maddie Gill said. “We didn't know. We didn't realize it — it's the heat of the game.”
Jaelyn Holmes slashed through the paint and banked in a runner with 6:04 left in the third. That finally broke the drought for North Kingstown — the Eagles had built a 30-15 cushion behind Dunphy's drive down the left side. They carried a 37-28 edge into the fourth quarter and were within touching distance of a crown after dropping the Division I championship matchup in the abbreviated 2021 season.
“We planned to guard them exactly how they planned to guard us,” Dunphy said. “We're a great matchup. They're almost like the exact same team.”
The Skippers made it tight down the stretch before Barrington ultimately mustered the grit that decided this one.
Gill's blocked shot in transition and Dunphy's blocked shot off an inbounds pass both came nursing a five-point lead. Dunphy's deflection and steal on the left wing inside the final 25 seconds sealed the result.
“All of our defensive effort in practice, it came out,” Gill said. “We pulled it together in that quarter for sure. It was huge.”
The Eagles have the physical ability to stifle most opponents. Dunphy and Gill are strong, fluid athletes. Janaya Prince-Baquero has a bit of Marcus Smart in her game — a veteran, bulldog guard who plays low to the ground. Barrington marries that with a mindset cultivated in games like a 50-48 semifinal thriller with La Salle, a victory that wasn't wrapped up until Dunphy's paint rejection at the horn.
“We came together in these last couple of weeks,” Gill said. “We pulled it together. We trusted each other.”
Both teams will carry top-3 seeds into the state field, which will begin in a few days. North Kingstown fell to Bay View in overtime last year and will be plotting a return to the finals. The Eagles have no plans to — and won't be allowed to — rest on this moment.
“Same mentality,” Dunphy said, a mischievous grin on her face. “Can't be loose. Can't think about this. After every win, Coach [Stephen] Lenz tells us we're bums — we have to get the next one.” bkoch@providencejournal.com
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