New Plymouth Boys' High and New Plymouth Girls' High are both out of semifinal contention at the national secondary schools tournament in Nelson.

Both teams lost their quarterfinal matches last night - Girls' High going down by more than 40 points in losing to Rangitoto College 68-25, and Boys' High losing 70-62 to Hutt Valley High School.

The boys' match was locked at 43-43 at halftime, and Boys' High led by five points with five minutes to play. But Hutt Valley finished strongly to win by eight.

Leading scorers for Boys' High were Jordan Harries (18), Dane Brooks (12) and Aaron Ransfield. Lachie Fenwick scored 11 points and pulled down 13 rebounds.

New Plymouth lost their final game in pool play 88-87 to last year's national champions Rosmini College, a side featuring four national under-18 and under-19 representatives.

The match was played with the intensity of a final, and the scores were level at 71-71 at fulltime, forcing the game into overtime.

Boys' High led by one with only seconds left, only to lose by one when 2.06m New Zealand under-18 representative Tohi Smith-Milner popped a two-point shot to clinch the win for Rosmini.

Top scorers for Boys' High were Brooks 23, Derek Albertsen 23 and Harries with 17 points. Harries also collected 16 rebounds.

Today, Boys' High play Tauranga Boys' College and Girls' High meet Wellington Girls.

Hawera High School moved a step closer to a top-10 finish in the girls' division with an upset win over Christchurch's Cashmere High School yesterday.

After leading by 21 points, Hawera had to withstand a late comeback before eventually winning 61-59. It was Hawera's second win of the tournament.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/sport/7772163/Semis-hopes-dashed