Springfield turns back Mill River in playoff opener

The Cosmos found themselves trailing at multiple points during Monday’s VPA Unified Basketball quarterfinal playoff game against Mill River. Each time Springfield fell behind, there was a response and it carried them to a 55-46 win.

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2016-05-03 / Sports Springfield turns back Mill River in playoff opener By CHRIS DOHERTY cdoherty@eagletimes.com Springfield's Kenny Skinner goes up for a layup during Monday's game. — CHRIS DOHERTY Springfield's Kenny Skinner goes up for a layup during Monday's game. — CHRIS DOHERTY SPRINGFIELD — The Cosmos found themselves trailing at multiple points during Monday’s VPA Unified Basketball quarterfinal playoff game against Mill River. Each time Springfield fell behind, there was a response and it carried them to a 55-46 win. “It was a lot of fun,” Springfield assistant coach Derek Graham said. “The kids worked hard, they played the game the right way — all the kids, both Mill River and our guys.” Mill River freshman Ian Smith caught fire at the beginning of the fourth quarter and gave the Minutemen a 46-42 lead. Smith finished the game with an astounding 40 points. “He was a killer,” Springfield head coach Marc Thomas said. Jade Craft ended what was a 12-0 Mill River run with a steal and coast-to-coast layup. Kenny Skinner tied the game on the next Springfield possession with a 15-foot jumper and gave the Cosmos the lead again, this time for good, with a coast-to-coast layup off of a defensive rebound with 2:10 to go. With 1:25 to go Becca White banked in a mid-range jumper for her first points of the game to up the Cosmos’ lead to 50-46. Springfield started pressuring Smith and forcing him into tougher shots from the outside and he was unable to find the range in the final minutes of the game. Cam Colon hit the dagger with a minute left to put Springfield up six. White closed the game out with a pull-up three at the buzzer and she hit nothing but the bottom of the net to send the crowd into a frenzy. “She wanted that shot all game and it came at the buzzer,” said Thomas. Springfield's Lance Robinson goes up for a shot. — CHRIS DOHERTY Springfield's Lance Robinson goes up for a shot. — CHRIS DOHERTY Springfield began its inaugural season 0-2, but since then have won four straight games to earn a spot in the semifinals. The Cosmos await the winner of No. 1 Rutland and No. 5 Brattleboro, which will be played Tuesday. “Everyone seems really focused and focusing to listening to us and I think that’s what improves them; they take what we give them and go with it,” said Springfield assistant Margarent Gultekin. The game was tied at eight midway through the first quarter, but Springfield closed with a 10-2 run to lead 18-10. Seven different Cosmos scored in the first quarter and eight different players scored in the game. Colon and Lance Robinson led the way for Springfield with 12 points each. Skinner scored 10 and Craft scored eight.White, Gavin Glidden, Natalie Corliss, Falisha Maly and Miranda Gould also contributed to the scoring. Mill River led 25-24 at the half behind 12 points from Smith. Springfield found themselves behind 34-28 in the third quarter, but Colon scored six in a row to close out a 10-0 run to finish the quarter and gave Springfield a 38-34 lead. “It was a great, all-around team effort,” said Gultekin.