Late Handsworth Royals Surge Can’t Topple Dover Bay in Girls Semifinal Battle

Handsworth vs Dover Bay Sr Girls

December 12, 2025

Handsworth Sr Girls take on Dover Bay in semi-final action at Handsworth this Friday evening, in hopes of earning a spot in their second consecutive No Regrets final. 

Dover Bay's #2 Slater opens up scoring followed by their #8 putting one in down low against two Handsworth defenders. Both teams are in a man-to-man defense-Handsworth's #10 Schmidt opens up scoring for the Royals after being fouled and heads to the line, going 1 for 2. She puts in another nice lay-in on a subsequent possession-she appears to be the tallest on the floor for the Royals but she isn't afraid to shoot the long ball. Teams traded several back to back scoreless possessions, and with 4 minutes to go in the first quarter, the game is tied 5-5. 

Royal's #8, Adefowokan, ends the drought with a lay-in-she handles the ball well up the court. Dover's #8, Linder (that name sounds awfully familiar...), ends Dover's drought with a three pointer, and as a result, Handsworth's coach calls a timeout. 

Dover came out of that timeout ready to roll, as #2, Slater,  is fouled in an And-1 and finishes the three point play from the free throw line. On the next possession she then gets a steal and capitalizes off of it, giving Dover their biggest lead of 8 points. Dover Bay seems to be frustrating the home team this evening, with  Handsworth moving into a zone defense to try to stop Dover's scoring. 

Q1 score: Dover Bay 17-Handsworth 8

Dover's #8 Linder attempts a nice looking three to open up the second quarter but it doesn't drop. Dover puts on a full-court press to see if they can lengthen their lead, but Handsworth's #10 Schmidt opens up scoring for the Royals this quarter followed by a three from #12 Shannon to reduce Dover's lead to 4; Linder, however, had other plans as she drains a long ball on Dover's next possession. 

Dover takes their full court press off and in doing so, Dover's #8 Linder gets a steal, goes full length of the court, and tries to help her team but appears to be padding her offensive rebound stats after several misses-and rebounds-down low...this is only speculation, though. 

Dover Bay is playing a running game and their guards don't appear to be slowing down. Slater goes end to end, is fouled, and goes 2 for 2 from the line, followed by again taking the ball end to end, pulling up for a 3, and sinking it. Dover now leads the Royals 28-15 with 4 minutes left in the first half. 

Did I blink? Dover's #2, Slater, is again at the line shooting nothing-but-net free throws. Dover earn's the first offensive foul of the game as #14, Nakajima, makes a beautiful pass to #4, Stranberg, who then runs through a Royal's defender. The Royals are having challenges on offense-Dover Bay is now in a zone defense, but Royal's #10 earns a spot at the free throw line and makes 1-of-2 to end Handsworth's scoreless few minutes. 

Score at the half: Dover  Bay 35-Handsworth 20

The Royals start the second half in a zone defense, forcing Dover Bay to take some outside shots. Handsworth's #8, Adefowokan, appears to be dealing with a hand injury as she is subbed off early in the third quarter. Dover Bay's #8 Linder sinks a three from the top of the key-she now has what appears to be 25 of Dover's 45 points in the game. Handsworth's #8, Adefowokan, recovered from her hand issue, heads to the line and goes 1 for 2. On a subsequent possession, she again finds herself at the line trying to complete a three-point And-1 play, but can't finish it off. But wait..I'm not done with Adefowokan-she, once again, heads to the line on the next possession, misses her second free throw, gets her own rebound (was that a set up?), and puts it in. What happened in that Royals locker room at halftime?! Royal's Adefowokan must have 10 or 12 points this quarter and it's only been 6 minutes! 

With three minutes to go in the third quarter, Dover Bay leads 48-35.  Dover Bay seems to be getting some of their younger players in as the third quarter comes to an end, but Slater and Linder are still fixtures on the floor. 

Q3 score: Dover Bay 53-Handsworth 39

Handsworth opens up the fourth quarter in a zone defense again, getting a stop and scoring at the other end. After another Royal's stop on defense, their #10 Schmidt drains a three to re-energize their squad. Dover returns with two points of their own, but on the next Royals possession, #8 Adefowokan puts a nice pass into #10 Schmidt who again is able to score under the hoop. Royal's #6, Aaker, gets the hoop and the harm-and makes it a three point play. Handsworth brings the game to within 6 points. Dover's bench erupts in a "defense" chant to further inspire their players, and with 6 minutes left in the game, Dover leads 60-53...this late surge from Handsworth is appearing to be a challenge for Dover Bay. 

A nice back-door pass from Dover's #14, Nakajima, starts a play that finishes with Dover scoring-and on the next opsession, Nakajima rolls in a beautiful off-balance layup against a much taller Royals defender. With just 3 minutes remaining in the first girls semi-final game this evening, Handsworth is down 9 points-can they make a comeback? They aren't giving up, that's for sure. Royal’s coach, L. Reble, is encouraging his players to play "up" defensively and put more pressure on Dover's guards. However, #8 Linder shoots a bomb of a three pointer, sinking it...and possibly sealing their spot in tomorrow's tournament final. 

Handsworth's surge in the fourth quarter was inspiring to say the least, but was not enough to take them to the finals. 

Final score: Dover Bay 70-Handsworth 59

Player of the Game: Dover Bay’s #8 B. Linder