Souhegan boys basketball hangs on to beat John Stark

AMHERST – Going into the season, the Souhegan High School boys basketball team knew it was going to take some time for the players to adjust to varsity basketball.

In the first game of the second half of the season, the Sabers look like they might be ready.

Souhegan got contributions Friday night from two of those inexperienced players to take a double-digit lead in the first half and then got a senior to close the deal in the second half, as the Sabers defeated John Stark 59-50.

Brian Dworkin scored 14 of his game-high 18 points in the second half, while Jerrell Duguay Webster (14 points) and Charlie Driscoll (12) each had 10 in the first half to help Souhegan (3-7) take a 31-21 lead into the break. And when the Generals (2-8) cut the lead to six in the third quarter, Dworkin scored seven straight points for Souhegan.

“I thought Dworkin had a great second half and really played well when we needed it,” Souhegan coach Peter Pierce said. “He was the one that stepped up and stopped the momentum. He scored a couple of hoops, got a couple of rebounds and calmed us down.”

John Stark (2-8) got 17 points from Zachary Gagnon, including two 3-pointers, and Serge Boucher added 10 points, and also had two 3s.

“I was proud of the way we played,” John Stark coach Mike Smith said. “We hung in there, but unfortunately, we didn’t play well in the first quarter and we’re not good enough where we can spot teams eight or 10 points. That’s what happened and we ended up playing from behind.”

Souhegan went on an 11-3 run in the first quarter to lead by as many as 10 and had a 17-8 lead going into the second. The lead grew back to 10 by halftime, as the Sabers were able to control the offensive boards, getting multiple second-chance opportunities.

“I thought we did a nice job of the glass, especially in the first half,” Pierce said. “We thought we would have a competitive advantage there and those second and third opportunities allowed us to not be a great shooting team and still compete.”

The Sabers went up by 13 early in the third quarter, but a 9-2 run by the Generals got them to within six points, 36-30, on a 3 by Boucher.

After a Souhegan turnover, John Stark had a chance to cut into the deficit even more, but Egan Nickerson was called for a foul and Dworkin scored on the other end. Then, after the teams traded baskets, Dworkin connected on a 3-pointer that made it 43-34 Souhegan going into the fourth.

The lead grew to as many as 14 points for the Sabers, but a late run by the Generals, including another 3 by Boucher at the final buzzer, made it a nine-point game.

“We played with a lot more energy and we executed better,” Smith said. “There were a lot of four-point swings where we turn the ball over or miss a layup and then give it up on the other end.”

Pierce was pleased to see his team successfully hold a lead to end the game.

“There are seniors out there and they have played a lot of basketball,” he said. “You count on them in those situations to reestablish momentum and stop the other team’s run. (Friday) they were able to do that and respond. It’s nice to see the kids get a return on their investment.”