NEWTON SOUTH: Long shot sparks Lion boys

Miles Bellinger's 3-pointer from halfcourt to end the third quarter served as the shot in the arm the Newton South boys basketball team needed as the Lions turned a 44-40 deficit into a Dual County League 74-63 victory over host Tyngsboro Friday night.

Bellinger's trey - only the second Lion field goal of the third quarter - pulled the Lions within one (44-43) and snapped them out of the lethargy that had plagued them in the first three quarters. Tyngsboro shot well in the early going, punching holes in South's zone defense. Colin Halloran had 21 points and Ross Kendall added 17 with three treys each as the Tigers forged a 31-31 tie at halftime and maintained a one-point lead after three.

But the Lions owned the fourth quarter, clamping down on Tyngsboro with strong defense. Bellinger had 13 points, all in the second half, off the bench while junior forward Tarik Wilson exploited his height advantage in the post with a season-high 16 points and 13 rebounds. South coach Joe Killilea praised the defense effort, particularly Keilan Jackson, Cheech Foster and Mattie Shockett.

But his highest praise was reserved for Bellinger.

``Miles carried us in the second half,'' said Killilea. ``He wasn't expected to play a ton this year, but he's given us life all season, especially (Friday night). He gave us great energy when we needed it.''

Following an 0-3 start, South (7-5, 5-4 DCL) has won seven of nine and is three wins shy of Killilea's 25th tournament appearance in 28 years. The Lions travel to Wayland tomorrow at 6 p.m. looking for revenge a ``giveaway'' loss to the Warriors in the first meeting. South had an eight-point lead with 45 seconds left before losing 69-68.

Girls Track
South second at State Relays
Performing without its top-scoring athlete, senior Candace Bailey, South came within two-hundredths of a second of tying for first place, ultimately placing in second, two points behind winner Andover in the Division 1 State Relays Saturday afternoon at the Reggie Lewis Center.

One of three Dual County League teams in the top five, the Lions finished with 56 points, while Andover compiled 58. South led by two points going into the long jump relay and placed third, but Andover came up huge with a first-place finish and meet record take the win. The Lions had another near-miss in the 4 x 50 shuttle relay, finishing in third place, two hundredths of a second out of second.

South won the high jump (14 feet, 9inches) and shot put relays as Diana Braver (5-1) Ellie Ellis (4-11), Kathryn Ellis (4-9) each tied or set their personal best. In the shot, Elisabeth Jeyaraj, Nalis Mbianda, Ashley Dennis combined for a winning mark of 87 feet, 2 inches.

The Lions' most impressive display, however, came in a second-place finish as the 4x800 relay of junior Juliet Ryan-Davis, seniors Diana Braver and Julia Frieze and junior Bridget Dahlberg broke the old meet record of 9:31.1 - set by Waltham in 1982 - and clocked the third-best time in the nation this year (9:30.33). But DCL rival Lincoln-Sudbury blew away all comers in that event, shattering the All-Class record of 9:22.9 set by Seekonk in 1980 with a time of 9:16.79.

But South ultimately won that battle between DCL foes on the strength of its depth. The Lions went 2-3 in the distance medley as the quartet of Ryan-Davis (1200 meters), Frieze (400), Braver (800) and Dahlberg (mile) finished second in 12:35.03 and the team of Kathy O'Keefe (1200), Dani Pensack (400), Kyle Remy (800) and Kelsey Karys (mile) was third in 12:49.79.

In the 4x50 shuttle, Azeezah Gray, Katie Sandson, Dani Pensack and Pebbles Banks came in third (25.47), while the long jump relay of Sarah Marquis, Ellie Ellis and Christie Lee also took third (45-10.5). The 4x200 of Pebbles Banks, Ellie Ellis, Sarah Marquis and Azeezah Gray claimed fifth in 1:50.77).

``To do what we did without our top scoring athlete says a lot about the character of this team,'' said South coach Steve McChesney. ``If we continue to compete as a team in this fashion we will be a contender for the All-State title. This meet highlighted our depth and balance on the statewide stage. These kids are on a roll and I feel very good about where we are as a team now and even better about our chances in the state meets. Our kids have shown now to be a great dual meet team and also to be a very dangerous big-meet team.''

Boys Hockey
Wayland 4, South 0
Thanks to three third-period goals, visiting Wayland pulled away for a 4-0 victory over South in a DCL/MVC contest Saturday night.

Sophomore defenseman Phil Rosenberg returned from a broken hand to give the Lions a lift on defense, while freshman forward Danny Ramin and sophmore forward Kevin Guariglia each had key scoring opportunities but were unable to get it past the Wayland goaltender.

Sophomore goalie Gabe Feldstein made 44 saves in net as Wayland owned a 48-19 edge in shots.

South (1-11) hosts Trinity Catholic today at Watertown's Ryan Arena (1 p.m.).