Rindge youth basketball team wins Manchester Suburban League

A team from Rindge made up of players from Jaffrey, Rindge and New Ipswich recently won the fifth- and sixth-grade Division 2 championship of the Manchester Suburban League, beating Derry 54-32 in the final.

Nine players scored in the final, led by Landon Ayotte, who scored a game-high 16 points, including 12 in the first half. The team led 18-11 after the first quarter, and the score was 31-20 at the half before Rindge’s depth and defense slowed Derry down in the second half.

Mason Nordahl scored eight points, and Sean Gallagher had a season high of seven points. Joe Pressman contributed six points, along with strong rebounding and defense.

The Rindge team finished 10-3 in the regular season, with the only losses coming to Amherst and Merrimack (twice). The team finished the season with a seven-game winning streak to go into the playoffs as the top seed.

To make the finals, Rindge came out of their pool by beating Goffstown and Litchfield in back-to-back days. Every player scored in the 51-38 win over  Goffstown, led by Nordahl, who scored a game-high 14 points, 10 in the first half. Ayotte contributed 11 points, and Danny McNeil added six points. Gallagher and Chad McGee provided excellent rebounding.

Against Litchfield, Rindge pulled away for a 55-21 victory. Nordahl led the scoring with 16 points, while Gabe Matson and Ayotte both had. eight. Carter Bergeron added seven points. Rindge started a little slow, but turned it on in the second quarter for a 27-11 lead at the half. They then only allowed 11 points in the second half, and continued the hot shooting to cruise to victory.