Here's how Framingham High girls basketball team beat Natick for first time in nine years

NATICK — Nearly all of the Framingham High winter sports teams saw their seasons either delayed or paused for a week or more this winter due to a COVID-19 outbreak.

"We had that one week where we couldn't do anything," Framingham girls basketball coach Kristen Audet-Fucarile said. "No practice, no games. It kind of sucked the air out of the group coming off of a season in which they didn't have a season. These kids wanted it."

Well, it ended up being worth the wait as the Flyers came away with a 38-35 victory over rival Natick in their season opener Wednesday night. It was also Framingham's first win over the Redhawks since Dec. 18, 2012.

"It feels so great to be back out here," said sophomore guard Caroline Galvani, who scored 12 points.

"We all have so much potential," added junior guard Selina Monestime, who scored a game-high 17 points. "It was great to get the first win in the books and I'm really proud of all of us.

"We played this game like it was our last. We haven't beaten Natick in (at least) six years, so we knew that we had to show up."

The rust on the Flyers showed in the first half as Framingham trailed Natick, 16-11, at halftime.

"Coming into this game, I knew that we were all a little bit nervous," Galvani said. "Once we play the game and we know where we stand, then we were a little bit more comfortable playing."

Due to COVID-19, Framingham did not have winter sports last school year. As a result, the "off-year" has only compounded the Flyers' youth and inexperience. The team has only two seniors.

"We have a lot of young kids," the Framingham coach said. "Even our sophomores didn't play last year, so I pretty much have two groups of freshmen. So they are kind of learning their own way."

The young Flyers squad did a good job of frustrating Natick as they struggled to shoot from the field. The Redhawks had only one player record a field goal in the first half in junior Izzy Napier (14 points), who scored all three of Natick's made baskets in the game's first two quarters.

"We just came out stale," Redhawks coach Dan Hinnenkamp said. "I don't really know what it was. Framingham played good defense, we played good defense, but it was a slow start."

Framingham did an excellent job defending against Natick star junior forward Madi Forman, who was limited to five points and fouled out early in the fourth quarter.

"We knew coming into this game who she was," Galvani said. "We knew that we really needed to stop her."

Much of the success for the Framingham's team defense Wednesday night could be attributed to strong communication.

"Communication has always been No. 1 for us," Monestime said. "We talk, we push each other on defense and from the start, our defense was strong."

Forman's services were missed late in the game as the Redhawks had possession at least three times in the final minute but failed to score a bucket after holding a 35-32 lead.

"It was tough," Hinnenkamp said. "We rely on her post presence, but I got to say that the girls that played in that fourth quarter when she was out looked good."

Game play started to pick up, however, towards the end of the third quarter. After a three from Galvani extended the Flyers' lead to 23-18 with under a minute left to play in the third quarter, the Redhawks got back-to-back threes from junior Selene Homsey and senior Alana Ciccarelli to give Natick a 24-23 lead heading into the final frame.

"We started to get into a groove in the second half," Audet-Fucarile said. "I still think we have a lot of work to do."

Ethan Winter is a senior multimedia sports journalist at the Daily News. He can be reached at ewinter@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @EWints.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: MA girls basketball: Framingham beats Natick in season opener