The Vineyard girls basketball team advances to the quarterfinals of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association’s division three south section tournament with a 54-41 win over Carver on Wednesday.

Molly deBettencourt faces tough Carver defense. — Mark Lovewell

Playing at home, the Vineyarders started post-season play strong with a 14-9 lead in the first quarter.

Carver clearly knew who the strong shooters on the Vineyard team were, Coach Maureen Hill said.

“They played man-on Erin [Hill], Molly [deBettencourt] and Whitney [Schroeder] and they played zone on the other people,” she said. “I thought the girls really persevered.”

Unruffled by the junk defense, the Vineyarders kept a steady lead throughout play.

The Vineyard had a good run into the half, ending in the lead 31-20. During the first two minutes of the second half both teams struggled to land a basket until Lily Pigott sank a three pointer, bringing the score to 34-20.

Whitney Schroeder helped team hold a steady lead throughout play. — Mark Lovewell

Pigott, a sophomore, stepped up in the absence of starter Sam Hargy and scored five points for the team, Coach Hill said.

The team sank into a lull during the third quarter, which Coach Hill attributed to a lack of depth. Carver scored four more points than the Vineyard in that quarter, but it was not enough to unseat the home team, which entered the fourth quarter leading by seven points.

In the final quarter, the Vineyarders focused on defense without losing their offensive edge. They limited Carver’s chances at the basket and forced them to run down the shot clock while managing to score 12 more points for the Vineyard.

Up next: quarterfinal game against Fontbonne. — Mark Lovewell

“Our defense really stepped up for us. We held them to six points in that quarter and that was really the difference in that,” said Coach Hill.

Coach Hill praised the team as well as their opponents.

“Carver was very scrappy, they wouldn’t go down easily,” she said. “It was good for the girls to face that kind of adversity.”

Coming off the win, Coach Hill said the team will work on rebounding for their next game.

“They can’t just rely on our tallest people to get rebounds,” she said. “Sometimes they get boxed out and our guards need to rebound.”

The quarterfinal game will take place on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. The Vineyard will play Fontbonne at Eastern Nazarene College. Fontbonne, seeded third, beat Bishop Stang on Wednesday.