Derryfield girls show resilience, rally past Timberlane, 43-38

PLAISTOW, NH – Abby Fournier scored eight of her game-high 20 points in the final 2:40,  leading Derryfield School past Timberlane Regional, 43-38, Thursday night in Plaistow.

The Cougars, who erased a 10-point, second-quarter deficit, also got 11 points and eight rebounds from freshman Bre McCabe, to help run their win streak to five games.

Maia Parker led Timberlane (4-4) with 18 points. With her team trailing, 31-24, in the fourth quarter, Parker drilled a baseline jumper to ignite a 12-2 run. Rylee Donahue drained consecutive 3-pointers from the wing and Ella Lampron banked in a runner, putting the Owls on top, 36-33, with 3:10 remaining in regulation.

McCabe stopped the bleeding with a pair of free throws before Fournier took over. The senior guard scored on consecutive possessions on nearly identical drives from the top of the arc to give the Cougars a 39-26 lead.

Lampron answered with a pair of free throws to pull Timberlane within a point, 39-38, with 1:08 left. But Fournier converted an offensive rebound, then made her fifth steal of the game, leading to a pair of free throws by McCabe to put the game away.

“We were just trying to stay calm and do what we were doing, get stops, make sure we got rebounds, spreading the floor and get to the basket, and good things are going to happen,” said Derryfield Head Coach Courtney Cheetham. “I like games like this because I think it builds resilience and grit and I love that.”

Defense has been the calling card for Derryfield (5-1) during its strong start to the season. The Cougars have allowed more than 40 points just once, that coming in their season-opening loss to Concord Christian (60-25). Thursday night, Derryfield’s smothering defense allowed Timberlane just nine points in the second and third quarters combined, turning a 15-5 deficit into a 28-20 lead entering the fourth quarter.

Anchoring the defensive effort was senior Co-Captain Sam Chappell (4 rebounds, 3 steals), who was given the task of trying to keep Parker contained. Parker had gotten off to a fast start, with eight points in the first quarter, including a pair of 3-pointers. But in the second and third quarter, Chappell held Parker to just four points combined, effectively scuttling the Timberlane offense in the process.

“(Parker) is phenomenal. When she gets an inch of space, she hits a shot,” said Cheetham. “I thought a big difference tonight was Sam Chappell. You’re not going to see it in the scorebook but she was guarding (Parker) and kind of shutting her down. That made a difference and allowed (Fournier and McCabe) to do things on the offensive end.”

Chappell scored just two points, but it was those points that started the Derryfield comeback in the second quarter. With the Cougars trailing, 15-5, Chappell and sophomore guard Kailyn Plage ran a perfect pick-n-roll. Chappell’s layup triggered a 10-0 Derryfield run over the next four minutes. McCabe’s corner 3 tied the game, 15-15, and only a free throw from Lampron in the final seconds allowed Timberlane to take a one-point lead into halftime.

But the momentum had clearly shifted and Derryfield kept rolling in the third quarter. A 3-pointer from Katie McCormick and a putback by Fournier gave the Cougars a 21-18 lead. A drive by Parker pulled Timberlane within a point with 4:15 remaining but Derryfield closed the quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 28-20 lead into the fourth.

Derryfield is entering a soft part of its schedule and should be able to remain hot. The Cougars’ next four opponents (Souhegan, ConCal, Lebanon, Sanborn) are a combined 1-20, as of Jan. 11.

Cheetham isn’t looking that far ahead.

“Right now, we’re just taking one game at a time and looking to keep improving,” she said.