AUGUSTA — Monmouth sophomore Hannah Anderson came into the season with a reputation as a defensive stopper.
Her offense has come along, too, highlighted by a buzzer-beater three weeks ago responsible for Boothbay’s only loss of the year.
Monday, Anderson added to her growing basketball resume with a clutch performance in a Class C South quarterfinal matchup against upstart St. Dominic. With the Saints throwing their attention to Monmouth’s two leading scorers,Tia Day and Sydney Wilson, Anderson scored 26 points to lead the Mustangs to a 51-39 victory.
Next up for third-seeded Monmouth (18-2) is a rematch against No. 2 Boothbay in a semifinal game Thursday at the Augusta Civic Center. No. 11 St. Dom’s finishes at 10-10.
The Mustangs blew out the Saints in two regular-season meetings, winning by 49 and 33 points, respectively. But the Saints improved dramatically down the stretch and did a nice job in limiting Day and Wilson to four points apiece on Monday.
“Those two lit us up big-time in those other two games,” Saints coach Jon Berry said. “Defensively, that was our focus point.”
Enter Anderson, who scored 11 of her team’s 13 points in the first quarter including a 3-pointer from the top of the circle, that gave the Mustangs a 13-12 lead at the break.
“Everyone on the team can actually shoot,” Anderson said. “We have a bunch of different shooters so you can really rely on anyone to take a shot. I was just on, I guess.”
The Saints stayed close despite Chloe Dwinell picking up her third foul midway through the second quarter. Berry gambled and brought her back into the game in the period and it paid off.
“She’s led the league in blocked shots for three years,” Berry said of the 5-foot-11 junior. “She’s second in the league in rebounds and also she’s in the top 15 in scoring. It’s kind of important to have her out there.”
Monmouth coach Scott Wing dealt with some foul problems of his own as Day picked up her second in the first quarter and sat out until the half. Anderson closed the second quarter with six straight points as the Mustangs clung to a 23-19 lead against the surprising Saints.
“I think everyone was a little nervous playing here,” Wilson said. “We haven’t won a game since 2008 in the Civic Center.”
The game changed when Dwinell picked up her fourth foul early in the second half while going for an offensive rebound.
“That’s exactly what I told Haley West,” Wing said. “Get her on your back, box out and hold it. She might go over your back.”
This time Berry had little choice but to take Dwinell off the floor and the Mustangs took full advantage with an 11-2 run that pushed the lead to 34-23. Day and Anderson each had three-point plays in the run while Anderson added a short bank shot. The 5-7 guard also grabbed seven rebounds.
“She always guards the opposing team’s point guard or best player,” Wing said of Anderson. “In the last eight, nine or 10 games of the season, she’s come on as a scorer. She’s very, very strong and she’s very athletic.. . She’s tough to stop.”
The Saints drew to within 34-26 on a 3-pointer from Allie Veinote but West converted a rebound and Abbey Allen and Anderson each hit a pair of free throws to put the game away.
West played a strong all-around game with 12 points and six rebounds while sophomore guard Caroline Castonguay led the Saints with 13 points. Dwinell finished with eight points and six rebounds.
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