Girls Basketball Team Heads to Semifinals

The Eagles secured their spot in the Class M Semifinals Monday night with a 60-41 victory against Suffield.

The girls basketball team will now compete against Ellington in the semifinals on Friday, March 9. According to the CIAC website, the time and location of the game has not yet been announced.

Coach Rocco Sansone said that the team's victory on Monday depended on shutting down Suffield high scorer Brianna Bishop. Tolland's Allie Gallo and Jess Olson took turns covering the player, Sansone said.

"We decided that we weren't going to let her touch the ball," he said.

Bishop had scored four points by the start of the fourth quarter and increased her points to nine in the final four minutes, Sansone said.

Offensively, Jenna Lovett, Chelsea Domian and Jacqui Foreman led Tolland, shooting a combined 38 points in the paint. Kristin Schatzlein also scored 16 points, Sansone said.

And while the team will take a few moments to reflect on Monday's win, Sansone said that they will mainly focus on the upcoming game with Ellington.

"It's a big rivalry game," he said.

Tolland will also face pressure to perform well Friday since the team has reached the semifinals for the last three years, only to be knocked out of the tournament, Sansone said. In total, the girls basketball team has been to the semifinals five times in the last eight years.

Check the CIAC website for information on the semifinals time and location.