by Kevin McCaskill Jr.
1/28/23 * 1:00 PM
(LUDLOW, MA) - On Friday night, the Lions from Ludlow HS hosted the Tigers from Westfield Tech. Ludlow had history on the line: a win would put them back in the State Tournament for consecutive seasons for the first time since the late 1980’s.
When I arrived at the game, Ludlow was ahead 25-16, in the 2nd quarter. The win for Ludlow was never in doubt. They led the entire 2nd quarter and 2nd half. The Lions smothered the Tigers on defense.
Ludlow beat Westfield Tech 59-36.
Braeden Schwartz scored a team-high 17 points; Anthony Emco scored 15 points.
The bright spot for Westfield Tech on Friday was DeCarlo Lincoln. He scored a game-high 22 points. He drove to the basket with a purpose all night.
After the game, Ludlow HC Cliff Zimmer said it was, “…a big night for the program. [We] qualified for the playoffs for the second consecutive year. The last time that was done was ‘88-‘89 and ‘89-‘90, 33 years in between so this was huge for us”. HC Zimmer also said he is “thankful the Ludlow community continues to come out and support this group of guys”. Finally, he said Captain Matt Mendez is “a rock for us…[he is] a phenomenal athlete and leader and we’re luck and blessed to have him”.
Braeden Schwartz said the Lions are going to “attack” the rest of the season “with the same energy every night. We have to come out with more intensity and more energy than the other team and we shouldn’t have a problem the rest of the season”.
Ludlow is now 10-3. They host Mount Everett on Tuesday, 1/31/23.
