The Medfield JV boys team took home a hard fought victory on the Mass Premier courts to win the JV summer league title over Dedham, 49-43. It was their second championship in the last three summers. After a 5-2 summer season, the JV boys entered the weekend as the No. 2 seed for the playoffs. Led by Coach Rob Hanna, who was managing some vacation impacts on the roster, the team pulled together for a three-game playoff run on their way to the championship.
The team started by dispatching Medway, 70-37, in the quarterfinals, with a balanced team effort led by Colby Guarnagia, Johnny Bochiechio, Joey Sabra, and Peter Tzanetos. In the semis, Medfield ran away from a Sharon team in a game that was never really in doubt. Reis Hanna had a hot shooting hand with big contributions from Andy Cochran, Aidan Fedor, Owen Manuel, and James Layden in a game spearheaded by a stifling defensive effort.
In the final, Medfield JV faced an aggressive Dedham team that didn’t have a lot of size, but played a very physical style of game. Both teams came out of the tip with a strong defensive effort and baskets were hard to come by in the early going. Reis Hanna’s shooting kept Medfield in the game early, but Dedham then turned up the defensive intensity. Medfield went cold from the field and found themselves facing a double-digit first half deficit. Coach Hanna called a much-needed timeout to adjust, and Medfield responded. A strong defensive effort from Medfield slowed the Dedham attack, while the offense got out into their running game. Medfield managed to cut the deficit to 19-15 at the half.
The second half proved a back-and-forth battle as Medfield tied the game early, only to have Dedham go on a 6-0 run to retake the lead. Down 25-19 closing in on the midway point of the second, Coach Hanna used another timely TO. Medfield stepped up its game, led by Aidan Clarke blocking shots and scoring in the post. Aidan’s huge second-half effort, combined with some fast-break baskets and a couple of big three-pointers from Teddy Ariel, sparked a 15-0 run. This allowed Medfield to take a 34-25 lead with under 8:00 to go. Dedham’s aggressive D got them into foul trouble and the entire Medfield team responded with a clutch performance at the free throw line to keep the lead for the rest of the way. Dedham got to within one point on a contested three-pointer late in the game, but Medfield wouldn’t be denied. The JV team closed out the game with strong defense and rebounding to take the 49-43 victory.
“This is a great group of young men who play really well as a team," Coach Hanna said after the game. "It’s great to see how they root for each other and even better to see their strong effort rewarded with a much-coveted Mass Premier 'Champions' tee shirt.”
