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BOSTON CITY LEAGUE GIRLS’ BASKETBALL FINAL | FENWAY 85, LATIN ACADEMY 53

Fenway girls roll to third straight Boston City League basketball championship

Fenway girls show off T-shirts, medals and other hardware they collected when they won the Boston City League basketball championship.NATE ROLLINS FOR THE GLOBE

Behind a combined 41 points from senior guards Dasiah Thornton (tournament MVP) and Colby Upchurch (all-tournament team selection), Fenway girls’ basketball team (14-1) cruised to an 85-53 victory over Latin Academy on Thursday at Madison Park Vocational Technical High School to claim its third consecutive Boston City League crown and sixth in the past eight years.

“This is an expectation,” said Panthers coach John Rice, who has won 19 Boston City League titles. “It feels great to win. It’s like the same feeling every time.”

In a rematch from a little over two weeks ago, a 78-44 Fenway rout of Latin Academy, the Dragons were able to hang around for a little longer in this one.

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“I thought they played good, I really did.” said Rice of Latin Academy.

This one was tight in the opening 3:30, but that was it. After five lead changes by the 4:30 mark, the sixth one proved decisive. After a Nattaly David jumper put Fenway ahead, a 10-4 run ensued as the Panthers opened up a 7-point lead.

Super guards Dasiah Thornton and Colby Upchurch (right) wouldn’t let Fenway lose, combining for 41 points. JIM DAVID/GLOBESTAFF/Globe Staff

Leading, 19-14, after one period, Fenway blew the game open. A 5-0 spurt by Thornton (21 points), keyed by a triple from the right side of the arc, gave the Panthers a 30-18 lead. Later in the frame, Upchurch’s drive to the hoop put Fenway up by 16, 38-22.

“It was a big win,” said Thornton. “During the season we’ve had a lot of games where we didn’t get a lot of runs, so coming into the playoffs, it was big.”

The Panthers picked up where they left off in the third quarter, outscoring the Dragons, 19-7, to pull away.

“We got a group of 18-year olds,” said Rice. “They’re seasoned veterans and we were ready for this game.”

Upchurch poured in 8 of her 20 points in the fourth quarter.

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Junior forward Fiona Mannion led the Dragons with 26 points.

After defending the City League title, Fenway now has its sights on defending its Division 4 North crown.

“You just got to keep preparing,” said Rice. “You got to keep them in the mindset and being ready to play. You can’t let up.”

Fenway's Janyah Gulley beat Latin Academy's Aisling Mannion (left) to a first-half loose ball and while seated on the floor hits open teammte Imani Terry (No. 2) with a pass.JIM DAVIS/GLOBESTAFF/Globe Staff

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