Back in familiar territory
QUINCY >> With the exception of the lost COVID year, Yirsy Queliz has never played a season without making the state final since joining St. Mary’s of Lynn as an eighth-grader.
Her senior campaign will be no different.
The top-seeded Spartans (22-2) ended the first half of a Div. 3 state semifinal at Quincy High School on Wednesday night on a monstrous run, taking control early before toppling No. 4 Rockland, 7043, in a rematch of last year’s state final — and a semifinal matchup the tournament prior.
Queliz (15 points, eight rebounds, five assists) combined with fellow 1,000-point seniors Niya Morgen (20 points, nine rebounds) and Kellyn Preira (six points) to lead the charge, moving the ball extremely well for well-balanced scoring. That shined brightest in the second quarter while holding the Bulldogs to just two points in the frame, taking complete control within a 21-0 run for a 40-9 lead at the break.
Reese Matela (15 points, nine rebounds) and Bella Owumi (eight points) made big contributions in that time, eventually propelling the experience-laden Spartans to a fourth straight trip to the state final.
“As a senior especially, it feels great to go to the finals for my last year,” Queliz said. “I think this one means the most, more than the past three. It’s my last year.”
“We’ve got a veteran group that’s played in a lot of games,” added head coach Jeff Newhall. “I thought you could tell kind of right away that we were going to be able to set the pace that we wanted, which we were not able to do a year ago. … We played with urgency and we played like a veteran group that’s been here before. That’s what you hope for.”
Controlling the pace of play and preventing big runs were two key components Newhall focused on against the dangerous Bulldogs, who showed off much of their prowess by matching St. Mary’s point for point in the second half. If not for the Spartans’ early dominance, this one could’ve very well turned into the two-point thriller fans saw in the state final last season.
But after cutting a firstquarter deficit from eight points to four off some success from freshman Zariah Ottley (14 points, nine rebounds), Rockland struggled to produce points over the final 12 minutes before the break. Queliz had four of her five steals and her lone block in the first half, while everyone on the floor forced contested looks in the paint that the Bulldogs weren’t knocking down. Matela’s size played a huge factor.
As Rockland shot 0-for-7 from deep in that time, Morgen connected for three 3-points as St. Mary’s moved the ball seamlessly. Matela was a force on the inside on the other end, and Queliz and Preira orchestrated the offense while scoring in small spurts to rack up the 31-point lead.
“We knew we how important this game was and we knew that this was a good team so we can’t take our foot off the gas,” Morgen said. “We (had) to keep sticking it to them, and that’s what we did. We all stayed together, had each other’s backs and just kept the energy going.”
“I thought offensively, we executed as well as we have all year,” Newhall added. “(21-0) is a good run. I didn’t realize it was that much.”
Much of the same offensive success followed in the second half for the Spartans, though Rockland came alive to break out of its uncharacteristic slump. Maddy Hermenau dialed up 11 points, Ottley posted eight points and Maggie Elie added five points between the third and fourth quarters, helping the Bulldogs outscore the Spartans 34-30 and end the season with a spark.
The 21-0 run was just too much to overcome.