Perfect Home Record for Newington Basketball

   Newington Lilly Ferguson against E.O. Smith in the Class L semifinals. Photo credit: Dan Healy - Eclipse Sportswire 

​Newington girls’ basketball played their final game of the season at Richard Rogalski Gymnasium, defeating Guilford 54-45 in the quarterfinals of the Class L state tournament on March 8.

Guilford gave the home team a scare early on, taking a 12-10 lead after the first quarter. The Nor’easters outscored the visiting Grizzlies 37-23 over the next two quarters to regain control and advance to the semifinals.  

Senior Lilly Ferguson led a balanced attack with 19 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. Freshman Bela Cucuta and senior
Marlie Zocco each knocked down four three-pointers as the Nor’easters connected from 11 total shots from beyond the arc. 
Cucuta finished with 14 points and seven rebounds, while Zocco had 12 points and four rebounds. 

Newington, the top-seed in Class L, earned a pair of home games in the tourney because of their 19-1 regular season record. The win over Guilford, improved the Nor’easter to 11-0 at home this season.

It was a thoroughly dominant home stand for Newington, who outscored their visitors by nearly 28 points per game this winter.     

After winning a 35-34 thriller of E.O. Smith in the semifinals, Newington will now play Notre-Dame for all the marbles this Saturday. March 19 at 6:15 in the Class L state championship game at Mohegan Sun Arena. 

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