County team falls short of finals

    The County Youth Basketball of America (YBOA) girls’ basketball team competed in the Husson Basketball Tournament in Bangor, and fell just shy of the finals with a 5-1 record.
    The team is made up of girls for all over the county, in the 12-14-year-old division.
    In game one against Bangor, the County trailed 16-14 at the half, but clutch free throws by Casey Bonville of Presque Isle and Alexa Massey of Caribou gave the County a comeback win, 26-25.
    Game two against the Sparks wasn’t even close, as the County won 51-13 with all 10 players scoring.
    In their third game of the tournament, the County picked up a lopsided 61-21 win over the Hampden Broncos. The County used a full-court press to derail their opponents. Jessica Walker of Fort Kent tossed in 13 points, while Rachel Grew of Mars Hill netted 12 and Houlton’s Amanda Fogarty added 11 points to pace the County squad.
    Against a very talented Lincoln team the County girls led at halftime, 13-12, and in the second half, the County slowly built the lead and took a 29-21 victory.         Holding an undefeated record, the County girls advanced to the quarterfinals of the tournament in a rematch with the Hampden Broncos. That game wasn’t close either, as the County was in full gear and won, 43-26.
    Moving to the semifinal, the County team had to contain Bangor’s 6-2 center to have a chance at advancing to the finals.     Trailing at halftime, 21-13, the game didn’t look like it favored the County squad. But again, clutch free throw shooting made the difference, as the County team went 8-of-9, and applying a hard-nosed press went ahead.
    With 12 seconds left, an Amanda  Hotham jumper and free throw shots by Massey put the County in the lead, 31-30. But, Bangor’s center came up big, as she sank a shot with three seconds left to sink the County, who had a last-second attempt that fell short.
    “The team played great all weekend, considering it was their first real games after only two practices,” said coach Dave DeMerchant. “There is a lot of talent on the team and they are only going to get better. They have nothing to be ashamed of, going 5-1.”