by Kevin McCaskill Jr.
2/3/22 * 3:07 PM
(SOUTH END, SPRINGFIELD) - On Thursday night, Baystate Academy/Paulo Freire hosted The High School of Commerce (HSC), at the SECC. HSC beat Baystate/Paulo Freire 46-23 earlier in the season when the two teams played at HSC. Baystate/Paulo Freire beat Westfield Tech and Libertas earlier this week.
The score might not indicate it but this was a fast-paced game. Both teams were flying around the court on defense. There were a lot of traps and a lot of steals in the first two quarters. Baystate/Paulo Freire committed more turnovers in the 1st than HSC. HSC led after one quarter 11-7.
Baystate/Paulo Freire settled into the game and started to make a comeback. Baystate/Paulo Freire Guard Jayshalynn Oquendo made a layup and got fouled. The layup tied the game @ 15. She made the FT and Baystate/Paulo Freire had their 1st lead of the game 16-15. They maintained that one point lead until halftime.
The third quarter was the turning point of the game. The game was tied @ 19 with 4 minutes left in the quarter. Baystate/Paulo Freire went on a 13-2 run for the last 4 minutes of the quarter. They created turnovers and they were very aggressive going after offensive rebounds. Oquendo continued to take the ball to the basket strong.
In the fourth, HSC fought back in the game. They made some good plays going to the basket to get points. They also capitalized off of Baystate/Paulo Freire turnovers. Baystate/Paulo Freire HC Jasmine Lovejoy got her team to slow down and play with control. They held on for the victory 37-29.
Oquendo scored a game-high 22 points. Natalie Acevedo scored 6 points.
Leala Samuel scored 15 points for HSC. She is quick and a good dribbler. She is also a good shooter; she made three 3s on Thursday night.
After the game, HC Lovejoy said she was expecting a “physical game from Commerce”. She said she has seen an improvement in “ball movement, patience…[and buying] in on the defensive end” from her team since the first game of the year.
Baystate/Paulo Freire improve to 6-4. They have now tripled the win total from last year. They have a great shot at making the State Tournament this season.