Here is a look at the thirteenth and final week of scheduled games for ORR winter athletics.
Boys’ Basketball: The ORR basketball team has seen a great deal of success this season. After narrowly losing the SCC title to rival Wareham, the Bulldogs kept their heads up and received the top seed for the Division 3 South tournament. Then, after a first-round bye, they won their first playoff game in over a decade against Joseph Burke High School. Unfortunately, the Bulldogs could not find success in the South Sectional Semifinal, where they ended their season with a loss to Westport, 57-55, in a hard-fought nail-biter.
The game got off to a strong start for the Bulldogs, who jumped out of the gate to an 8-2 lead. Things began to deteriorate from there, as the Bulldogs were plagued by over a dozen turnovers in the first half alone. Turnovers and a strong Westport defense made it difficult for the Bulldogs to capitalize on any offensive drives. By the close of the first quarter, ORR was trailing 20-11, and by the end of the half, 33-24.
A large crowd, who traveled up to Taunton to cheer on ORR, watched anxiously as the Bulldogs came out in the second half, hoping that they could narrow the Westport lead. The Bulldogs delivered, going on an incredible 14-0 run to take a five-point lead, thanks largely to senior Paul Graves, who scored two three-pointers to lead the Bulldog run. ORR maintained the lead, and at the close of the third quarter, the game was a close 46-40 in ORR’s favor.
A tense fourth-quarter matchup ensued. ORR and Westport continually countered each other’s shots, and ORR held a slight 53-50 lead with half a quarter to play. Unfortunately, Westport scored a big three-pointer as well as a pivotal layup that would put the Bulldogs behind. ORR was never able to fully recover. With the loss, the Bulldogs were knocked out of the tournament. It was the last high school game for seniors Haydon Bergeron, Jeremy Bare, Robby Magee, Ryan Simcoe, Jack Smith, Mikey Pruchnik, and Graves.
With the boys’ basketball loss, the winter season has officially ended for ORR. ORR notched two SCC championships this winter, thanks to girls’ track and boys’ ice hockey. Athletes will now be looking to spring sports, which begin on March 17.
Below are the final overall winter team records, followed by the conference records in wins, losses, and ties as of March 9.
Boys’ Basketball: (17-5-0) (13-4-0); Girls’ Basketball: (6-15-0) (6-10-0); Boys’ Track (6-2-0) (5-2-0); Girls’ Track (8-0-0) (7-0-0); Boys’ Swimming: (1-7-0) (1-7-0); Girls’ Swimming: (4-2-0) (4-2-0); Hockey: (13-10-0) (9-1-0).
By Michael Kassabian
