The sixth grade Cape League final should be an extremely competitive battle between Dartmouth and Nauset.
Dartmouth knocked off Plymouth North (22-10) and top-seeded Falmouth (14-12) on its path to the championship game.
In the Plymouth North win, Dartmouth was led by Erin Kate Bailey (9 points) and Audry Morin (6 points).
In the semi-final battle against Falmouth, the offense was once again led by Bailey with eight points. Samara Turgeon chipped in four points in the victory. The key to the win was Dartmouth's defense led by Mariah Beniquez.
"(We) got off to a slow start and lost a few key early season games to division rivals," said head coach Eric Morin about his returning championship team from Dartmouth. "However, with each week we saw steady improvement offensively, and in the second half of the season the defense began to gel and play like a disciplined team should. Winning key games against those same division rivals down the stretch gave our girls a renewed confidence going into the playoffs. The parents and coaches couldn't be prouder of this team."
Nauset scored in the 30s and won by double digits in both their wins in the playoffs as they took care of Nauset 30-10 and then Lakeville 32-17.
In the Barnstable game, Paige McMakin scored 11 points and Stephanie Gould added six points. In the Lakeville game, McMakin carried the scoring load again, this time by scoring 18 points and Ashley Ross added nine points.
Avery Burns did a nice job of handling the point guard duties while Makayla Hutchinson and Shay Risk were the defensive catalysts. Michela Galazza and Korin Mereste also played key roles in the victories.
"I believe we are reaching our goals of improving and becoming a stronger team, and learning from each and every practice and game we have," said Nauset head coach Steve Ross.
These two familiar foes split during the season. This "rubber match" is for the ultimate Cape crown.
"We have played Dartmouth six times over the past two years," said Ross of the two teams familiarity. "They are a very competitive and well-coached team and we are looking forward to meeting up with them again on Saturday."
Eric Morin echoed that sentiment on Dartmouth's end.
"We know Nauset very well, and they provide difficult match-ups for us," explained Morin. "They're tall, fast and well-coached. We're hoping that the momentum we've built up over the last several weeks carries through the championship game. We know that we've got to play our best game of the year, because anything less won't get the job done."
Good luck to both squads this weekend!
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