Sports Roundup: Boys Hoops Pull Off Comeback To Beat Martha’s Vineyard
David Creed •
This Whaler sports roundup includes a recap on the boys basketball team’s come from behind, thrilling victory over Martha’s Vineyard at Nantucket High School Saturday afternoon, as well as an update on the girls and boys swim teams following their meet against Martha’s Vineyard Saturday morning at the community pool.
Jeanty’s 20 Points Lift Whaler’s To Thrilling Win Over Martha’s Vineyard
The boys basketball team had a bad taste in their mouths following their 63-41 opening night loss on the road to the Barnstable Red Hawks on Thursday, and were determined to put together a stronger, more well-rounded performance on Saturday against Martha’s Vineyard.
Despite the Vineyard getting the better of the Whalers in the first quarter, Nantucket head coach Willis Ferreira’s team showed lots of mental toughness on their way to an impressive 64-59 win at Nantucket High School.
"I'm just really happy," Ferreira said. "We usually find a way to lose that game against the Vineyard. We've always had leads and found ways to squander them late. So it was really good. We squandered it. We had a five-point lead or whatever we had, and then we'd lose it. But the kids kept battling. We made foul shots, which we normally don't do.”
The first quarter was fast paced and featured some strong defense on both sides. The Vineyard threw the first punch and jumped out to a 10-2 lead six minutes into the game, but the Whalers punched back with a three from junior guard Donte Brimm and a fastbreak layup by junior guard Vallon Jeanty to make it 10-7 with 90 seconds remaining.
That was how the game was all afternoon long. The Vineyard took advantage of some sloppy turnovers by Nantucket to make it an 18-9 game after one quarter, but the Whalers cleaned up their game in the final three quarters.
Jeanty led the team with 20 points and now has 37 points through the team’s first two games – an impressive feat for the first-year starter. Junior big man Ethan Jarrett finished with 16 points. Freshman guard Burke Lombardi finished with 11 points.
Jake Grant made a contested three point shot early in the second quarter while drawing a foul to complete the four-point play and make it 18-13, bringing some juice into the packed gym. The Whalers handled the Vineyard press much better in the second and it led to a 22-point quarter that helped them head into halftime tied 31-31.
Ferreira said having shooters like Jeanty and Lombardi gives his team more options offensively when you combine their ability to make shots from beyond the arc with the interior presence of someone like Jarrett.
“Vallon was huge. Burke was huge. Being able to shoot the ball from the perimeter has always been a problem for us," Ferreira said. "So to be able to not rely on our athleticism getting to the rim, making layups off the press, we can actually get into the half court and get some good looks and those guys knock them down. I thought E (Ethan) played better. He was excited for this one.”
After the Whalers seemed to find their offensive rhythm in the second quarter, they came out struggling to score in the third. The Whaler’s defense remained strong and limited the Vineyard’s offensive production, and Lombardi was able to score eight of his 11 points in the third quarter to help his team take a 44-39 lead six minutes into the second half and a 46-42 lead into the final quarter.
Ferreira was impressed with Lombardi’s mental toughness to bounce back after a slow start where his shot wasn’t falling as frequently as he’s used to.
"He just does everything well," Ferreira said of his freshman guard. "He had that one turnover late that almost hurt us, but he doesn't usually turn it over. He is usually passing it to the right guy. He doesn't hurt you on the defensive end. He's not the fastest guy but positionally wise he's just so smart. You see it on a football field (as the Whaler's quarterback). He's just a step ahead of everyone else and that helps. That's why he's playing. I got better athletes out there, but his court awareness and then his ability to shoot the ball. He didn't score in the Barnstable game. He only took maybe three shots, but he can shoot it. Coming from where he came from in middle school to here is just a big difference. I think he's handled himself pretty good so far.”
The Vineyard jumped out to a 50-48 lead with just over five minutes left in the game, but Lombardi buried a three to make it 51-50 out of a Nantucket timeout.
The Vineyard bounced back with a three of their own and then a quick two-point shot to take a four-point lead, but Jeanty made a three to cut it to 55-54 with three minutes remaining.
With 1:05 to go in the game and the Whaler’s trailing 59-56, Jarrett made a great post move to get to the rim, make his shot, and draw the foul. It put him on the line with his team trailing by one point. He missed the free throw but got the loose ball off the rebound and put it back for two more points to make it 60-59 with under one minute left.
Nantucket made a stop and got the ball back up one point with 35.6 to go. The Vineyard fouled Jeanty with 33.7 seconds left and he hit both of his free throws to put his team up three. After another Whaler stop, they got the ball back with 17.6 to go in the game and made two more free throws to make it 64-59.
"I like this group," Ferreira said. "They play the game the right way for the most part. They're still inexperienced and young and make mistakes, but they're fun to be a part of too. It is the teaching part, you know, where just instead of always yelling at the guys that have been with me for four years who continue to do the same stupid stuff, you can actually tell a freshman this and this, and they say, 'Okay, yeah yeah.' They get it. So I'm just really happy to get that for them because they've worked really hard these first three weeks. Moving forward, we just got to continue to get better.”
The Whalers will try to improve their record to 2-1 when they host the Bourne Canalmen, who made it all the way to the Div. 4 state championship game last year, on Monday, December 23rd at 12:30 p.m.
Girls Swim Wins, Boys Swim Falls Short In Meets Against The Vineyard
The girls and boys swim teams hosted Martha’s Vineyard Saturday afternoon for meets, and the girls walked away with a 99-57 victory while the boys narrowly lost 76-69.
Below are some of the notable times earned by both teams.
GIRLS:
Sara Dussault, Martha Nastus, Martina Savova, and Charlotte Brooks placed first in the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 2:08.67.
Evie Phelps placed first in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 2:16.12.
Dussault placed first in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:26.19.
Savova placed first in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 1:10.32.
Sammi Nielsen placed first in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 6:48.00.
Phelps, Savova, Kaitlyn Harrington, and Dussault placed first in the 200-yard freestyle relay with a time of 1:54.73.
Bunlerssak placed first in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 1:17.44 with freshman Charlotte Brooks right behind her placing second with a time of 1:19.23.
BOYS:
Pavlin Aleksiev, Markus Vitanov, Eli MacIver, and Jake Johnson placed first in the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 1:53.66.
Andrick Mooney placed first in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 2:25.90.
MacIver placed first in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:14.75.
Johnson placed first in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 22.95 and then placed first in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 52.63.
Aleksiev, Mooney, MacIver, and Johnson placed first in the 200-yard freestyle relay with a time of 1:41.21.
Aleksiev placed first in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 1:11.57.
MacIver placed first in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:10.37.
The Whalers next meet is currently scheduled for Tuesday, January 7th on the road against Barnstable at 4 p.m. You can view more photos from the boys hoops game and the swim meet by clicking here.
SCHEDULE AHEAD:
Monday, December 23rd:
The boys basketball team will host the Bourne Canalmen at 12:30 p.m.
No games December 24th or December 25th.
Thursday, December 26th:
The boys hockey team will play North Quincy in game one of a holiday tournament at 2:30 p.m.
For more coverage of all the Nantucket High School winter sports teams, follow our sports Instagram page here.
For more photos taken by Chris Tran, follow his Instagram page here.