On Wednesday evening, the No. 14 Vineyarders traveled to Mattapoisett to face the No. 3 Old Rochester Regional Bulldogs for the second round of the MIAA Division III state tournament.
The Vineyarders fought well, but ultimately lost a back and forth battle, ending their season.
Things started off surprisingly slowly in the first quarter, with Old Rochester shooting poorly from the free throw line, and the Vineyarders struggling to get into a consistent rhythm offensively. The Vineyarders only managed ten points in the first, but junior Josh Lake kept MVRHS in it, hitting some nice jump shots and feeding senior center Matheus Rodrigues down low.
With the score at 10-15 and the clock winding down, neither team had really staked their claim on the game, until the Bulldogs nailed a buzzer-beating three-pointer to take a solid eight point lead. The Old Rochester crowd went nuts, and the Vineyarders now had to play catch-up.
In the second, things started shakily for the Vineyarders, as they initially struggled to regain the momentum, and turned the ball over a few times. But then it became the Nate Story show, with the junior going off for three threes in less than four minutes to spark an MVRHS comeback. The Vineyarders kept finding him in the corner, and Nate kept scoring.
Re-energized, the Vineyarders started moving the ball better, and the pace of play increased on both ends of the floor. Senior Ryan Koster added on two, with a nice drive to the basket, splitting the defense; senior Matheus Rodrigues really riled up the Martha’s Vineyard crowd with a contested two-hand jam. Going into halftime, the game was tied, 29-29.
In the third, things were initially looking good for the Vineyarders, as Story hit another three, and Lake hit a nice pull-up jumper off the glass to take a 35-34 lead. But then the Old Rochester three-point shooters woke up, and the Bulldogs went on a 16-6 run over the next several minutes to end the quarter up 50-41. With a total of 33 points recorded, it was the highest-scoring quarter all game.
Finally, in the fourth, the game ended how it started, as a slow tactical battle. On the defensive end, Rodrigues was a presence down low, and the Vineyarders held the Bulldogs to only three points in the first four minutes. On the offensive end, threes from Story and senior small forward Tobey Roberts brought the Vineyarders within three. But after that, the MVRHS offense sputtered, ultimately leading to a 59-50 loss for the Vineyarders.
Story finished with 22 points, and Rodrigues had a double-double.
After the game, Coach Mike Joyce praised his team for battling back after the first quarter, and giving the Vineyard faithful a great final performance.
“[The] kids gave great effort all year and fought hard in a very hostile environment; [MVRHS] had a great crowd and it really helped them keep their energy up,” Joyce said.
He added, “I thought our seniors set the tone from the beginning of the year and helped create the great chemistry that helped lead to our success. Our kids really bought in and had a lot of fun competing in practice with each other.”
Rodrigues, Story, and Lake earned Cape & Islands all-star honors, with senior Cam Napior being an honorable mention, and Roberts earning the sportsmanship award. Rodrigues was unanimously voted league MVP.
The Vineyarders were undefeated at home this season, and were Cape & Islands league champions. “Both [are] great accomplishments, and they have a lot to be proud of this year,” Joyce said.
