ANDOVER — If anyone thought there would be complacency from the Andover High girls hoop program or a step back after a run to the Division 1 state final four this past winter, forget it.
The Warriors, hungrier than ever for greatness, finished the job in the Reggies Summer Showdown on Tuesday night with a pair of wins including a 69-54 decision in the championship final over Salem, N.H.
The title and the trophies are no accident.
“Determination, hard work. We’re putting in a lot of work over the summer. We’ve been working out every morning, afternoons, these games,” said incoming senior Haley Magenheim. “We’ll be back here in the fall, too. We’re just going to do all we can to be ready for winter.”
Magenheim, who didn’t miss a summer league game and played a full slate of AAU ball as well, terrorized Salem in the paint and on the boards in the title game, helping the Warriors to build a 35-22 halftime lead, one they would not give up.
Morgan Raskow and Shae O’Loughlin started to cook in the third quarter for Salem, and Andover saw its advantage shrink to as few as three before Warriors Lexi Linsey and Kallie Martin ignited from deep to put a very game and scrappy bunch of Blue Devils away.
“We’re definitely really good. I’m looking forward to the regular season. We had a good feeling coming off the final four. We fell short, but we had a good feeling for what we brought back. We want to win it all next year. And we are coming for it,” said Magenheim. “We’re all just so connected. We’re best friends. We all have each other’s back. We know we can rely on each other, and we really use that to our advantage (when things get tight like they did).”
It’s been a huge couple months for the returning Eagle-Tribune All-Star Magenheim, who most recently picked up a handful of college offers as senior year approaches.
The hard work and effort are paying off.
Recently, Magenheim received a Division 2 offer from St. Michael’s, along with offers from Trinity, Southern Maine and Roger Williams.
“There’s been a lot of basketball this summer … AAU, this summer league, and I’ve been traveling a lot,” she said. “It’s been a lot of fun.”