The Walpole High School Girls Basketball team is set to face Bishop Feehan in the first round of the MIAA Division 2 State Tournament. The 10th seeded Rebels will play the 7th ranked Shamrocks at Bishop Feehan on Wednesday, February 27 at 5 PM at Bishop Feehan High School.
Bishop Feehan, winners of the Eastern Athletic Conference, head into the game with a record of 16-4. The Rebels, the Bay State Conference Herget Divison champions, ended the regular season at 13-7. In the middle of the season, the Shamrocks went on a 10-game winning streak, solidifying themselves as a major threat in the tournament. Bishop Feehan seniors Maddie Jolin and Sierra Schrader are likely to pose the biggest threats to the Rebels; Jolin is a solid overall player and has good 3-point range, while Schrader is an athletic player who can go coast-to-coast with the ball and likes to get out running.
However, the Rebels pose match-up problems for the Shamrocks. Bishop Feehan’s tallest starter is only 5’10”, while Walpole has two six-footers—sophomore Summer King and junior Bri Doherty. King is a major factor for the Rebels, as she is both a huge defensive and offensive threat. Walpole also has senior Captains Bridget Nicholson and Lauren Bodin, who have proven to be major threats from beyond the arc. Bodin, along with sophomore Julie Moser, can regularly take charges on the defensive end, slowing opposing teams’ momentum. Senior Darci Bruce is also a strong defender for the Rebels, as she makes steals regularly. The Rebels can also regularly call on freshman Kat King, junior Nell Sandvos, and sophomore Olivia O’Brien to make solid contributions coming off the bench.
The winner of the Bishop Feehan-Walpole match-up will go on to play the winner of the Medfield- Sandwhich game in the MIAA Division 2 South Tournament on March 1 at 7 PM.
