Feb 25 – The Bolton High girls’ basketball team made history on Friday.
And the Bulldogs still have a lot to look forward to.
Tournament standout player Isabel Kenney had 14 points and six rebounds as top seed Bolton took an early lead and beat No. 3 Somers 50-40 in the NCCC tournament championship game in East Granby High.
It marks the first time in program history that the Bulldogs (22-1) have won the conference tournament and sweep the conference regular season and tournament titles.
“The team has played very well during the tournament,” Bolton manager Frank Mensinger said. “There were moments against Granby in the semifinals and tonight against Somers where the team doubled but righted the ship and didn’t break. A year of growth and maturity will do that.
“The team has been playing well, but there is work to be done to prepare for the state tournament.”
Bolton will be the No. 1 seed for the Class S state tournament which is scheduled to begin on Tuesday. The Bulldogs have a first-round bye and will host No. 16 Kolbe-Cathedral or No. 17 Wamogo next Friday for a spot in the quarterfinals. Bolton reached the S-Class semi-finals a year ago.
Kenney averaged 14.7 points and 6.0 rebounds in three tournaments to earn the top individual honor. Her teammates Emma Diehl and Makenna Graves joined her on the All-Tournament Team.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 15-4 lead, but saw the Spartans pull within six at halftime. Bolton built their lead back to 11 in the fourth quarter and took their 19th straight win.
Graves matched Kenney’s 14 points and six rebounds on Friday. Diehl finished with 13 points, seven rebounds, four assists and four steals. Niya Islam also had four assists and four steals.
Sydney Cassidy had 12 points and Eliana Wood nine for Somers. Cassidy and Deidre Dalessio were named to the All-Tournament Team.
The Spartans will have a 17-6 record in the Class S tournament. They are the No. 3 seed and are scheduled to entertain the No. 30 Wheeler in a first-round game on Tuesday.
“We feel great going to the states,” Somers coach Jay Fenlason said. “Obviously we wanted to play better tonight, but Bolton were outstanding.
“We know what we need to improve to play teams like that in the states and we’re excited to get back in the gym and work on that stuff. We have an amazing group of young women that bring it to practice every day and that kind of effort is what we need to run in the state tournament.
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