WATERBURY — Naugatuck advanced to the Naugatuck Valley League girls basketball tournament semifinals with a 52-45 overtime win against Ansonia on Saturday.
Naugatuck’s Kaylee Jackson forced overtime with a 3-point field goal at the end of regulation and Sarah Wisniewski scored eight points in the extra period as the No. 5-seeded Greyhounds rallied to stun the No. 4-seeded Chargers in the tourney opener.
“I don’t know,” Jackson said. “I just felt like I was making all my shots before, and I can do one more. Why not just shoot the three? I knew it was going in because I couldn’t think it was going to miss.”
Wisniewski turned back-to-back steals into hoops in overtime and sank four free throws, too. Sara Macary blocked a shot by Liz Wilson on Ansonia’s final possession of the fourth quarter to also get the team to OT.
“We went into the first half all timid, but we went into the second half knowing that we got this,” Wisniewski said.
Wisniewski led with 20 points and five rebounds, Jackson added 13 points, and Macary had six boards.
Naugatuck will face No. 1 St. Paul in the semifinals on Monday at Kennedy High School. The game is scheduled to tip off at about 7:15 p.m.
Naugatuck is looking to go to back-to-back championship games, while St. Paul is trying to get back into the NVL final for first time since 2017.
St. Paul defeated Naugatuck twice in the regular season — 53-36 on Jan. 18 and 55-41 on Feb. 8.
“We’ve already played Naugatuck twice,” St. Paul coach Joe Mone said. “They know what we’re doing, we know what they’re doing. You know how that works. Whoever plays the best wins.”
Naugy’s Sarah Wisniewski amplified that point. Old news is no news now.
“After today, we showed what we can do,” said the senior guard following the first-round OT win over Ansonia. “We showed what we are made of. We started the season unsure of ourselves, not sure when to shoot, when to pass. Now, I think we’re all clicking.”
The winner will play the victor of the first semifinal game between No. 3 Holy Cross and No. 7 Watertown. The final is scheduled for Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Kennedy High.
