Before every fan had even taken their seat, the Swampscott High School girls basketball team jumped out to a commanding lead on Friday, January 16 against Salem High School.
The Big Blue scored the first 21 points of the game, keeping their opponents off of the scoreboard until there were 30 seconds left in the first quarter, on their way to a 46-11 home victory. The win came at the right time for the Big Blue, who had fallen in their last two games at the hands of Marblehead and Saugus.
“It’s good to get back in the win column,” said Swampscott Head Coach Katelyn Leonard. “I think everybody is feeling positive now. We’re right at the halfway point of the season and we really want to finish strong and put ourselves in the position to get in the tournament.”
Building an early lead allowed Leonard to give all players a good amount of playing time.
“The starters took a leadership role in helping some of our players who don’t get as much time,” said Leonard.
Anna Kanders led the way with 18 points for Swampscott, 13 of which came in the first quarter. Kanders, who Leonard said is “always impressive,” made 3 three-pointers in that first quarter. Sam Ward scored 12 points of her own, also adding a first quarter three-pointer. Cecelia Tripp scored 8 points.
“We have two or three really good three-point shooters,” said Leonard. “When they’re on, they’re on. It’s always nice to see.”
The victory improves Swampscott’s record to 6-4.
The 11 points scored by Salem is the least the Big Blue has allowed this season. Leonard said the team has worked very hard on their defense, and that the next step is “owning the boards,” or out rebounding their opponents.
“We’re coming together at the right time,” said Leonard. “We had a tough couple of losses but I think we are learning from them.”
One of the team’s strengths is its speed, which helps the Big Blue defensively, Leonard said.
“We take advantage of that when we can,” she said.
The Big Blue will be back in action on Tuesday, January 20 when they travel to Gloucester High School. It will be a rematch of a game on December 12, which the Big Blue won 58-40.
“I’m excited to test ourselves against teams we beat early on and hopefully come back strong against Saugus and Marblehead,” said Leonard.
