FOXBORO, Mass. — Foxboro's MIAA Division 3 title defense had gone smoothly this winter except for one blemish: a Jan. 3 loss to Hockomock League rival Oliver Ames.
The Warriors wanted to erase that defeat, and they did so in statement fashion Tuesday, cruising to a 67-41 home victory against the Tigers behind another highlight-reel performance from star senior Kailey Sullivan.
"Ever since we lost to them at the beginning of the season, we circled that day on our calendar for today," Sullivan said. "We were really excited to play them again."
After a game-opening Oliver Ames free throw, Foxboro (14-1) went on a stunning 23-0 run that blew the contest open from the beginning. The Warriors switched up their defense and the new approach worked, blanketing the Tigers' consistent cutters and pushing the ball relentlessly in transition.
"(Cutters) killed us the first game — that's where they were getting all their points against us, was in the middle of the paint," Foxboro coach Lisa Downs said. "So we went to a matchup 2-3 zone, which we never play, so I think that was a little bit off-setting, possibly. But the girls did a great job. After looking at hours of film and working really hard preparing this game, I couldn't have asked them to work for a better end result."
Here are five standouts from the matchup.
Kailey Sullivan, Foxboro
Class of 2025, 5-8 guard
One of the state's premier bucket-getters scored 33 points (plus five rebounds and five assists) with flair and fury. On a few of her five 3-point makes, Sullivan slow-played moments where she'd take her time going around a screen or switching sides, wait for the defense to step back and launch a deep pull-up attempt that looks effortless. She also hit a couple of floaters and even posted up two smaller guards for fadeaway makes, and she added a sweet no-look transition pass that didn't result in a bucket.
"I just felt confident," Sullivan said. "I feel like the last few games, I haven't, so it was nice."
Addie Ruter, Foxboro
Class of 2025, 6-3 center
Ruter (10 points) is one of my favorite post players to watch in MIAA because even though she is taller and longer than most of her competition, her game is grounded in skill and fluidity. She has superb mid-range touch and keeps the ball high on her shot, which makes her a dangerous face-up scorer (especially against a small Tigers lineup). Ruter isn't super mobile, but she was better this game with keeping her arms up and out of foul trouble, and she still registered some big-time blocks on drives. Foxboro becomes a more imposing team when she's healthy.
Ava Hill, Foxboro
Class of 2025, 5-10 forward
Adrianna Porazzo deserves a quick shoutout for her 15 points in Foxboro's win. But I want to give this last spot to Hill because even though she only scored two points, she was one of the best defenders in a really great team defensive performance. Hill (along with a few of the Warriors) did an awesome job of shutting off Oliver Ames' heavy dose of face-cut and 45-cut actions. She grabbed 13 rebounds and picked up a bunch of deflections defending off the ball. On offense, Hill had this great baseline drive-and-kick to the top of the key for a Porazzo 3-pointer and assisted Sullivan out of the high post for a cutting back-screen layup. It's these types of complimentary efforts that elevate Foxboro to title frontrunner status.
Avery Gamble, Oliver Ames
Class of 2026, 5-7 guard
Gamble faced the most pressure from the Foxboro defense and didn't have her shot falling, only making one 3-pointer. But I thought she adjusted her approach smartly as the night progressed and ended up with 11 points. Gamble became more decisive driving the ball and had a great attempt where she split two defenders on a step-through for a lefty layup. She's a smaller guard but defends with effort and picked up a drawn charge.
Maeve Horsman, Oliver Ames
Class of 2026, 5-8 guard/forward
This was my first time paying close attention to Horsman, and she's fun to watch because of her consistent motor. Horsman scored a team-high 14 points and showed off a versatile offensive game. She had a nice pass and immediate face cut that got rewarded for a layup, another great interior feed to a cutting Zoey Swanson (12 points) and was poised driving against closeouts.
