Undefeated Farmington pulls away from Avon to move to Class L semifinals

Avon’s Olivia Welter shoots over a defender in Monday night’s Class L quarterfinal game against Farmington.

FARMINGTON – The undefeated Farmington High girls basketball looked sharp Monday night in the Class L quarterfinal. At one point, visiting Avon was within two points of the Indians with 5:36 remaining in the third quarter.

But Farmington, the top-ranked team in Class L and the No. 2 ranked team in the latest coaches poll, exploded for 11 consecutive points and 18 of the next 23 in the contest to pull away from No. 8 Avon in a 78-54 victory.

Hannah Friend was outstanding for the Indians (26-0) with a game-high 35 points and five 3-point shots. But she got plenty of help from teammates Sophie Borg with 18 points and Cheray Saunders with 12. The Indians moved the ball with precision and deadly accuracy in the second half as they turned a two-point game into a blowout.

Abby Laszewski had 14 of her team-high 18 points in the first half for Avon, focusing Farmington to play more attention to the 6-foot-4 junior in the second half. The Indians rebounded better and wore down the Falcons (20-5), who were without two players. Guards Kaleigh Sherman and Kelly LaMarre suffered injuries in the last week to take them off the floor.

This was a game about Farmington getting ready for its biggest challenge of the season to date – defending Class L Capital Prep out of Hartford. The Trailblazers have been one of the dominant teams in the state the past three seasons and are expected to win Tuesday night’s quarterfinal game with Hand and opposed Farmington on Friday night at a neutral site.

“We did a much better job in the second half defensively,” Farmington coach Russ Crist said. “We wanted it to be a wide open game. We thought we could run and tire them out. That did happen. In doing that we didn’t do a great job on the boards in the first half and on the help defense on Laszewski.”

Farmington’s Hannah Friend was tremendous with a game-high 35 points.

Friend, who has committed to attend Delaware next year, was tremendous.

“She is unbelievable – a game changer,” Crist said. “She can do it at both ends of the floor. You tell her to stop somebody and she’s been doing it the last few weeks against some of the best players in the state. She has a great wing span and the desire to stay in front and not let (her opponent) touch the ball offensively.

“And every time, we needed a big shot, she hit a three.”

Farmington led for most of the first half but Avon kept hanging around. Friend drained a three-point shot with 4:10 left in the second quarter to give the Indians an eight-point lead. Avon quickly erased it.

Laszewski scored on a foul shot and Welter sank a three-pointer with 3:31 remaining. Laszewski scored inside off the glass to cut the lead to two and Avon tied at 27 all with 2:34 left in the second quarter on a jumper from Welter.

Sarah Lipinski scored back-to-back baskets for Farmington, including a three-pointer to push the lead back to five. A Welter jumper cut the lead to three before Friend scored on a fast break with 27 seconds left on the clock for a five-point halftime lead.

“We were as ready to play as we could be,” Avon coach Frank Waters said. “For the first half, we took their thrusts, parried them and fought back. It was great. They’re a very, very good team. What could you do differently? I not sure we could have done anything differently.” 

Avon’s Carly Carpino tries to shoot over Farmington’s Sophie Borg (3).

In the third quarter, Farmington pushed the lead to seven but Marcus hit a three-pointer from the corner and Shannon Curry scored inside on a nice underhanded scoop shot into the basket. That trimmed the Farmington lead to 36-34.

That’s when Farmington took off. Friend scored on a drive to the basket and a foul shot. After an Avon turnover, Friend drained a three-pointer for a 42-34 lead.

Avon had several chances to close the gap. Welter and Curry couldn’t finish on baskets in the paint. Two minutes later, Farmington’s Cheray Saunders hit a three-pointer. And then Borg scored inside.  In the final minute of the quarter, Friend scored on a three-pointer and on a weakside rebound for a 52-36 lead.

Now – finally – Farmington can focus their attention on Capital Prep or Hand in the semifinals.

“We really had to stay focused,” Crist said. “People all around us have been talking about the possibility of a match up with Capital Prep and I have to give credit to the girls on the team. They’ve stayed focused on one game at a time. 

“Now, we’re ready to take that next step. It is just about executing and playing our best. We’re playing our best basketball now, which is what we need to be doing.” 

Avon ends the season as the NCCC co-champions with Canton and the NCCC Tournament champions. The Falcons won a pair of Class L tournament games over Fitch and Pomperaug but running into the Indians in the quarterfinals. 

Farmington 78, Avon 54
At Farmington
Avon (54): Michaela Marcus 3-2-11, Alex Benedict 1-2-4, Abby Laszewski 7-4-18, Olivia Welter 5-1-12, Shannon Curry 2-3-9, Heather McGuire 0-0-0, Carly Carpino 0-0-0. Totals 18-12-54
Farmington (78): Mary Schuher 0-0-0, Sophie Borg 7-4-18, Cheray Saunders 5-0-12, Muna Mumah 0-0-0, Devon Michaelis 1-0-2, Abby Wollenberg 1-2-4, Sarah Lipinski 3-0-7, Hannah Friend 12-6-35, Amanda Sanes 0-0-0. Totals 29-12-78
Avon (20-5)                    10  19  10  15  — 54
Farmington (26-0)          15  19  20  24  — 78
Three-point goals: Saunders (F) 2, Lipinski (F), Friend (F) 5, Curry (A), Welter (A), Marcus (A) 3