RallyNorth.net

They got there.

Now it's all about making the most of their once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

They refers to the Manchester Essex girls basketball team and there refers to Boston's TD Banknorth Garden, which is where the Hornets will play Cohasset tomorrow (2:30 p.m.) for the Division 4 state title. Manchester Essex (16-8) punched its ticket to the home of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and the rest of the first-place Celtics with a dramatic 59-56 overtime victory over No. 3 Mt. Alvernia on Friday in the North final at Salem State College. Meanwhile, Cohasset (22-2) gained entry to the Garden by knocking off Millis, 42-30, in the South final.

A goal was set at the beginning of the season by the Manchester Essex girls basketball team.

Albeit a lofty one, but as we learned last night at Salem State College's O'Keefe Center, a very doable one for these gritty Hornets.

Big players come to play in big games.

The saying may be a bit of a cliche, but for Manchester-Essex girls hoops players Danni Ciccone, Lizzy Ball and Elsa Keefe, it's indicative of their performance in the Hornets' 59-56 overtime win over Mt. Alvernia in the Division 4 North final.

What are you doing at 2:30 p.m. this Tuesday?

If you're the Manchester Essex girls basketball team, you're going to the TD Banknorth Garden to play in the Division 4 state championship game.

The No. 9 Hornets (16-8) advanced thanks to a heart-stopping 59-56 overtime win over No. 3 Mt. Alvernia (20-5) in front of a standing-room only crowd at Salem State's O'Keefe Center. They'll now meet the South winner | Millis/Cohasset | for the state title. Manchester Essex has won seven in a row and 10 of its last 11 games.

It seems as though the Manchester Essex girls basketball team has an unofficial, unspoken deal worked out with their state tournament opponents and the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA).

On average, 18 million youths each year will suffer some sort of injury related to athletics. Of those, roughly 3.5 million will be sustained by kids under the age of 15 years old.

That was the topic of discussion at a lecture on kids and sports injuries held at Merrimack College. The was sponsored by Eagle Tribune Publishing's RallyNorth.net, as well as Merrimack College and the Northeast Rehab Health Network.

In its first two victories in the Division 4 North girls basketball state tournament, Manchester Essex relied heavily on the rebounding and post presence of center Dani Ciccone, who had been gobbling up every rebound within a 10-foot radius of her.

At just the right time, the Manchester Essex girls basketball team is playing its best basketball of the season.

After a 69-46 win over Fenway (16-6) at Malden High School in the Division 4 North semifinals last night, the Hornets (15-8) advanced to face No. 3 Mt. Alvernia (17-2) in the North Final at Salem State on Friday (6 p.m.).

Going forward, perhaps the biggest obstacle for the Manchester Essex girls basketball team is preventing a let-down after their emotional win on Saturday over top-seeded New Mission, the defending Division 4 state champions.

It's official, there will be a new state champion in Division 4 girls basketball this season.

No. 9 seed Manchester Essex (14-8) made sure of that as they went to New Mission (19-3) -- the No. 1 seed and defending state champion -- and knocked off the Titans, 68-61, in a Saturday quarterfinal game before a lively, pro-Hornets crowd at the Tobin Community Center.

Rarely does a quarterfinal round game in the state basketball tournament have legit championship implications. But it would be fair to consider tomorrow's Division 4 North girls basketball quarterfinal between ninth-seeded Manchester Essex and No. 1 New Mission one of those rare exceptions. At least based on what happened last year.

It's an age-old question in basketball, which is more effective: Size or outside shooting?

There may not be a definitive answer. But if a team has both, it's usually a recipe for success and last night the Manchester Essex girls had both of those ingredients.

Last night the Gloucester girls basketball team was reminded that basketball is indeed a tall person's sport.

The young and relatively inexperienced 12th-seeded Fishermen, with Jill Lukegord as the team's lone senior, met No. 5 Belmont in the opening round of the Division 2 North state tournament. However, experience was not so much the issue in this contest. Height was.

Last night can be treated as a measuring stick for how much the Gloucester girls basketball team has improved over the past few weeks.

On Feb. 1, the Fishermen suffered their worst loss of the season against Winthrop, a 26-point defeat to the mighty Vikings. However, in last night's rematch, Gloucester proved once again that it can indeed play with a premier team, as the Fishermen took host Winthrop to overtime before falling 58-51.

When it comes to athletics, Rockport High School is fighting an uphill battle.

Rockport's total enrollment for all of its high school students is routinely less than 400 year-in and year-out, a number that is far less than some of the larger schools that play alongside the Vikings boys and girls basketball teams in the Cape Ann League. Thus, talent and depth is difficult to come by on the hardwood for Rockport, which sits in the basement of the CAL standings in both boys and girls hoops.