LONGMEADOW – Down to their last possession, with their backs against the wall, on the road, and momentum on the other side, the Northampton girls basketball team needed some magic to pull out a win in Monday night’s MIAA Division 2 preliminary round.

And with under 10 seconds to go, Bri Heafey put up a layup – tying the game at 48 and sending things to overtime.

Even though No. 33 Northampton had blown a lead, the visitors were ready for the extra four minutes. 

The Blue Devils scored the first seven points of extra time, ultimately defeating the 32nd-seeded Lancers 62-55. 

“It's all about perseverance. We didn't give up,” Northampton head coach Perry Messer said. “Never get too high or too low. Wash the next play and always focus on the next.” 

Heafey echoed those sentiments:

“We just kept grinding and we brought the intensity we needed to get the win,” she said.

Coming into the game, Northampton and Longmeadow had split the season series 1-1 so both teams were prepared for a battle.

“We wanted to get them back because they had already beat us here,” Northampton's Ava Azzaro said. “We didn't want the last time they played us to be a loss.”  

Although it was tied at halftime, the Blue Devils led for most of the first half. 

But as the second half began, the Lancers started to find some spots in the Northampton press. 

Then with five minutes left in the quarter, a questionable non-call went Longmeadow’s way – sparking frustration on the Northampton side. 

But after Messer called his team together, the Blue Devils channeled that frustration, going on a 7-0 run and ultimately ending the third quarter with a 37-31 lead. 

But as expected from the two previous matchups, Northampton knew the Lancers wouldn’t go away quietly. 

And they didn’t.

A couple minutes into the fourth, Longmeadow guard Emersynn Cage caught fire. Cage exploded for 10 points in what seemed to be the final quarter, giving the Lancers a real shot at winning the game in regulation. Although Cage didn’t win the game on a last-second shot, all the momentum seemed to be with the team in white.  

In OT however, Azzaro took matters into her own hands. 

The Northampton guard started OT on a personal 7-0 run, putting the Blue Devils up 55-48. This time though, they did not relinquish the lead and hung on for the win to punch a Round of 32 ticket.

“I had a rough patch in the middle of the game,” Azzaro said. “But I knew if I wanted to help my team win this game, I had to step up and do my part.” 

Northampton (13-8) advanced to play at top-seeded Walpole (18-2) in the Round of 32, tentatively set for Friday.

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