Roger Brown
MaxPreps.com
Surprises? Not in this year’s Class I girls basketball tournament.
The tournament’s top-seeded teams have played their way to Wednesday’s semifinals at Southern New Hampshire University. Top-seeded Lebanon (19-1) will meet fourth-seeded Souhegan (16-4) at 7:30 p.m.; and second-seeded Hanover (18-1) will face third-seeded St. Thomas (18-2) at 6 p.m.
Lebanon, which won last year’s state championship, advanced by beating Kearsarge 55-42, in Sunday’s quarterfinals. The Raiders forced 21 turnovers in their victory.
Jasmine Hardy tossed in 14 points and was one of four Lebanon players who scored in double figures. Kim Horne scored 13, and Abby Bergerson and Sarah Wade each finished with 10.
Kathryn Eagan scored a team-high 13 points in Souhegan’s 46-41 victory over John Stark. The Sabers held John Stark to 36 percent shooting (15 of 42) from the field.
“Souhegan played well enough to win and they deserve it,” John Stark coach Wayne Thompson said.
Eliza Polli tossed in 13 to help Hanover defeat Portsmouth, 36-31. No other player for either team reached double figures in scoring.
Portsmouth was held to 12 points in the first half.
“Portsmouth played hard and they played under control,” Hanover coach Dan O’Rourke said. “A couple balls go their way and we’re the ones going home tonight.”
A strong second half propelled St. Thomas to a 53-35 triumph over Oyster River. The Saints led 29-28 at halftime, but outscored Oyster River 12-0 in the third quarter. The Bobcats were held to one field goal in the second half.
Shannon Kean scored a game-high 21 for St. Thomas, which lost to Lebanon in last year’s championship game.
“We came into the locker room at halftime and we decided to step up our defense,” Kean said. “The defense just fed into our offense.”
Wednesday’s semifinal winners will play for the championship Saturday night.
Wrestling: Timberlane Extends Streak
Timberlane won its ninth consecutive Division I wresting championship by posting a convincing victory Saturday at Exeter High School.
Timberlane finished with 300 points. Concord (211.5) was second and Pinkerton Academy (132.5) placed third.
Timberlane won individual state championships in seven weight classes: Cam Sullivan (103), Matt Morris (112), Nick Lawrence (130), Dave Clemens (140), Jared Smith (145), Eric Petrillo (171) and Brian Nicoll (heavyweight).
Plymouth earned 205.5 points and won the Division II title. Bow (137) finished second and White Mountains (128) was third.
Dan Dow (135 pounds), Shawn Sweeney (189) and Peter LaBreck (285) were the Plymouth wresters who took home individual championships.
The top six finishers in each weight class from both meets advanced to Saturday’s Meet of Champions at Londonderry High School.
Boys Basketball: Conant Remains Unbeaten
Conant stretched its winning streak to 57 games by beating Hillsboro-Deering, 75-50, Friday night. The Orioles improved to 15-0 in Class M and are one of four unbeaten boys basketball teams in the state. Salem (Class L), Oyster River (Class I) and Wilton-Lyndeborough (Class S) are the others.
Conant knocked off previously unbeaten Gilford, 73-47, earlier last week. Conant's Kyle Todd, a 6-foot-8 center, scored the 1,000th point of his high school career in that victory.
Gilford’s Eric Dean, one of the team’s leading scorers, missed the Conant game with the flu.
Roger Brown covers New Hampshire for MaxPreps.com
