Old Rochester's remarkable run ends in Div. 3 state title game
LOWELL – One day Chase Besancon will look back on his senior year and realize how special it was helping Old Rochester reach a state final for just the second time in school history.
Saturday is not that day just yet.
“Making it here and playing in the state championship is nice, but we wished we walked away with the win,” said Besancon.
No. 1 Charlestown proved to be too much down the stretch for the second-seeded Bulldogs as the Townies won 61-40 on Saturday afternoon in the MIAA Div. 3 state final at the Tsongas Center in Lowell.
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It was Charlestown’s first state championship since 2005 when the Townies had won five titles over a six-year span and it came a day after head coach Hugh Coleman saw his sister-in-law laid to rest.
“It feels amazing,” an emotional Coleman said. “My sister-in-law passed away and we had a funeral yesterday. That’s why we’re wearing these outfits today. This is for my mother-in-law who is always on our bench.
“To come back to Charlestown and do it here, it means so much. It’s full circle.”
It was a family affair for Charlestown on Saturday as Coleman’s nephew, Jaylin Williams Crawford, led the Townies with a game-high 26 points and his son, Jaylen Hunter-Coleman, added 18.
“I was hoping not just for a different outcome, but a more competitive game in the fourth quarter, but they’re a big team,” Carvalho said. “We knew Crawford was going to be tough. He was their guy. He’s a lot to handle down there.”
Williams Crawford scored 20 points in the second half to blow the game open.
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Besancon was proud of how the Bulldogs battled throughout the game.
“Everybody went out there and gave it their all,” he said. “They were the better team today.”
“Coming down the stretch, they started making some mid-range shots and pressuring us, but I’m proud of the kids for their effort,” Carvalho said. “We played them tough in spots, but just not enough in the end.
“They’re disappointed. We all are. I told them it’s not sinking in right now, but when they reflect back on getting to this point, it was a great accomplishment.”
The Bulldogs, who only returned one starter from last year’s Final Four team, reeled off 13 straight wins to capture the South Coast Conference Blue Division title and reach the Div. 3 state title game.
“We finished as the second best team in Div. 3 and SCC champions,” Carvalho said. “They did things this year that not a lot of people expected them to, but I knew I had a good team. It's tough that we lost, but surely satisfying and I’m proud of this team.”
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Townies jumped out to a 12-3 lead midway through the first quarter, but the Bulldogs came storming back to pull within 13-11 on an inside basket by Besancon, who scored seven of his team-high 17 points in the game’s first eight minutes.
Charlestown extended its lead to 26-16 at halftime thanks to six points apiece from Hunter-Coleman and Williams Crawford in the second quarter.
Old Rochester went on a 7-0 run early in the third quarter to cut Charlestown’s lead to five (28-23), but the Townies outscored the Bulldogs 17-7 to enter the fourth quarter ahead by 15.
Charlestown led by as much as 23 points in the final quarter.
WHAT IT MEANS
With the loss, Old Rochester finished the year with a 21-5 record. … Charlestown wrapped up a 23-2 campaign. Both teams lost to Wareham this year.
Charlestown 61, Old Rochester 40
Old Rochester
Zack Mourao 4, Chase Besancon 17 (1), John Butler 13 (3), Gavin Martin 5 (1), Noah Mendes 1.
Charlestown
Jordany Mak 3 (1), Jaylen Hunter-Coleman 18, Damante Vanheyningen 10 (1), Jaylin Williams Crawford 26, Trevari Andrews 2, Francis Nelson 2.
Old Rochester;11;5;14;10 — 40
Charlestown;14;12;19;16 — 61
This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Charlestown beats Old Rochester to win 2024 MIAA Div. 3 state title
