Game of the Week - 2/12/13
Breakdown
North Attleboro and Franklin will meet on Monday night with the Rocketeers holding a one game lead in the Kelley-Rex division. Both North and Franklin will be coming off tough losses to Davenport teams (North to Foxboro, Franklin to Sharon), which makes this an even more interesting showdown. The game has also been moved from Friday thanks to the storm and the extra days off should ramp up the excitement for both teams.
The Panthers 55-49 loss to Sharon ended a seven-game winning streak. Prior to the Sharon game, Franklin’s last loss was to North. Franklin is a team that focuses on the defensive side of the game. The Panthers are physical and aggressive, which helps them get out on the break and get easy looks. When Franklin gets on a roll, they are very tough to stop, but they have also run into tough stretches where the Panthers struggle to make shots (such as the first half against North and OA). The trio of Alicia Kutil (whose strong second half brought the Panthers back in the first meeting), Lexi Martin, and Lauren Irvine gives Franklin flexibility at the forward position and head coach John Leighton likes to rotate players frequently. Kristi Kirshe is a calming influence at point guard and Sarah Shaw is Franklin’s best long-range threat.
North Attleboro rebounded from its loss to Foxboro with a convincing win at Cumberland (RI) after another star performance by Player of the Year candidate Meg Ronaghan. Ronaghan was also a big threat for North in the first meeting against Franklin and few teams have been able to stop the Hockomock League’s leading scorer. No player can win on their own and the emergence of sophomore Melissa Beaupre has helped create space for Ronaghan. While Beaupre has been a force on the boards, fellow sophomore Danielle Perron has taken on the ballhandling duties and consistently gotten North into its offense. If Perron can handle the pressure defense of the Panthers and keep Franklin from getting out into transition than North will have a great chance to clinch at least a share of the division title.
Players to Watch
The most important player for North Attleboro is Meg Ronaghan. The league’s leading scorer is a dominant post player with range and is tough to defend one-on-one, but has the presence of mind to find spaces inside a zone. Melissa Beaupre and Danielle Perron are important, but with two evenly matched teams North needs contributions from other players as well. Look for Alison McHugh on the inside and Sarabeth Parent from the outside to both play important roles for the Rocketeers.
Franklin has a number of weapons, but it needs the Alicia Kutil that they saw in the second half of the first meeting. If Kutil is making shots than the whole offense opens up and the spacing is much better for the Panthers. Lexi Martin and Lauren Irvine will provide energy off the bench, but Sarah Shaw will be the key as she has the ability to stretch the floor. When the Panthers make three’s, they are very tough to beat. Julia Bireley can make shots off the bench as well.
North Attleboro and Franklin will meet on Monday night with the Rocketeers holding a one game lead in the Kelley-Rex division. Both North and Franklin will be coming off tough losses to Davenport teams (North to Foxboro, Franklin to Sharon), which makes this an even more interesting showdown. The game has also been moved from Friday thanks to the storm and the extra days off should ramp up the excitement for both teams.
The Panthers 55-49 loss to Sharon ended a seven-game winning streak. Prior to the Sharon game, Franklin’s last loss was to North. Franklin is a team that focuses on the defensive side of the game. The Panthers are physical and aggressive, which helps them get out on the break and get easy looks. When Franklin gets on a roll, they are very tough to stop, but they have also run into tough stretches where the Panthers struggle to make shots (such as the first half against North and OA). The trio of Alicia Kutil (whose strong second half brought the Panthers back in the first meeting), Lexi Martin, and Lauren Irvine gives Franklin flexibility at the forward position and head coach John Leighton likes to rotate players frequently. Kristi Kirshe is a calming influence at point guard and Sarah Shaw is Franklin’s best long-range threat.
North Attleboro rebounded from its loss to Foxboro with a convincing win at Cumberland (RI) after another star performance by Player of the Year candidate Meg Ronaghan. Ronaghan was also a big threat for North in the first meeting against Franklin and few teams have been able to stop the Hockomock League’s leading scorer. No player can win on their own and the emergence of sophomore Melissa Beaupre has helped create space for Ronaghan. While Beaupre has been a force on the boards, fellow sophomore Danielle Perron has taken on the ballhandling duties and consistently gotten North into its offense. If Perron can handle the pressure defense of the Panthers and keep Franklin from getting out into transition than North will have a great chance to clinch at least a share of the division title.
Players to Watch
The most important player for North Attleboro is Meg Ronaghan. The league’s leading scorer is a dominant post player with range and is tough to defend one-on-one, but has the presence of mind to find spaces inside a zone. Melissa Beaupre and Danielle Perron are important, but with two evenly matched teams North needs contributions from other players as well. Look for Alison McHugh on the inside and Sarabeth Parent from the outside to both play important roles for the Rocketeers.
Franklin has a number of weapons, but it needs the Alicia Kutil that they saw in the second half of the first meeting. If Kutil is making shots than the whole offense opens up and the spacing is much better for the Panthers. Lexi Martin and Lauren Irvine will provide energy off the bench, but Sarah Shaw will be the key as she has the ability to stretch the floor. When the Panthers make three’s, they are very tough to beat. Julia Bireley can make shots off the bench as well.
The Pick:
| HockomockSports.com Picks | ||||||||||
| Ryan Lanigan |
Josh Perry |
Dan Libon |
Andrew Cyr |
John Botelho |
||||||
| HockomockSports.com Staff |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|||||
| North Attleboro vs. Franklin Tuesday, 6:30 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|||||
| Girls Basketball | Lanigan 0-0 | Perry 0-0 | Libon 0-0 | Cyr 0-0 | Botelho 0-0 |
|||||
| Girls Basketball | Lanigan 4-0 | Perry 3-1 | Libon 3-1 | Cyr 3-1 | Botelho 2-2 |
|||||
| Hockey | Lanigan 1-1 | Perry 0-2 | Libon 1-1 | Cyr 1-1 | Botelho 1-1 |
|||||
Local Experts:
Brendan Hall, ESPNBoston.com: Franklin
Brendan Hall, ESPNBoston.com: Franklin