There are lots of Heal Points still on the line for local high school hoop teams, as they pass the midway point of the season.
In Class C boys, the Shiretowners remain the No. 1 seed with an 11-0 record, followed by Penquis Valley, 11-1; Dexter, 7-5; Lee Academy, 7-3; Stearns, 8-2; Bucksport, 6-6; Sumner, 4-5; Calais, 7-1; Fort Kent, 4-5; PCHS, 2-9 and in the final spot, for now, George Stevens Academy, 5-7.
In Class D, the teams continue jockeying for position, but as of Tuesday morning, Central Aroostook was the top seed with a 9-1 record, followed by Jonesport-Beals, 9-0; Deer Isle-Stonington, 8-2; Washburn, 10-0; Bangor Christian, 8-4; Hodgdon, 8-2; Machias, 6-2; Fort Fairfield, 5-6; Easton, 8-2; Southern Aroostook, 6-4; Katahdin, 4-7; Van Buren, 4-6; Limestone/MSSM, 4-7; Woodland, 4-5 and Penobscot Valley, 2-7.
Pioneer Times photograph/Joseph Cyr
SOARING — Deyrell Vargas takes the ball strong to the hoop against Southern Aroostook in a Jan. 9 basketball game in Dyer Brook. To the right is SACS’ Trent Cullinan, while Mason Caron tries to swat the ball.
Katahdin earned a huge win on Monday, as they overpowered host Fort Fairfield, 60-47, in Class D action.
“It’s a big win for us, not only as far as Heal Points, but for some confidence moving forward,” said Katahdin coach Cliff Urquhart.
Urquhart said he has seen Colton Bivighouse “elevate his game” in the last three weeks.
“I think he is understanding that not having Billy means that he needs to carry us on the offensive end for our team to be competitive,” he explained. “He is doing this the right way, too. He is taking good shots, letting the game come to him and not forcing the action.”
Though the Cougars are struggling to win, Urquhart can’t say enough good things about his senior leader.
“As good as he looks on paper, the best things he is doing are the little things that don’t show up on the stat sheet — like blocking cuts, altering shots on penetration, tip outs, communicating and leading his teammates on the defensive side of the ball. He is really starting to become the player that I envisioned he could be,” said Urquhart.
The victory over the Tigers will go far for the Cougars.
“It was a good team win,” Urquhart said. “The kids started to find their roles on the team. We are so inexperienced on the varsity level, I think the transition has been a tough one for some at times, but every day I see improvement and that is really all you can ask.”
The Cougars are ranked 11th in the current Class D standings, just inside the playoff cutoff.
“ We realize that at some point in the season we needed to beat a top-10 team to have a shot at a preliminary round,” said Urquhart. “That is what we accomplished Monday.”
Fort Fairfield’s Andrew Lewis was hurt with foul trouble early in the game, which Urquhart said, “opened things up for us down low against their man-to-man.”
Urquhart said Fort Fairfield is a different team when Lewis isn’t on the floor.
“We gained an lead early and were able to survive a few Fort Fairfield runs late,” he said. “Some younger guys hit some big shots down the stretch that really helped us.”
In other action during last week:
Houlton 69, Mattanawcook Academy 37 — The Houlton boys remain undefeated at 11-0, as they overpowered visiting Mattanawcook Academy on Monday.
Nick Guiod was high-point man for the Shires with 19 points, while Kyle Bouchard scored 10 points and Kole Buzzeo added nine for Houlton.
Rounding out Houlton scoring were: Daniel Howe, seven points; Elyjah Crockett and Dan Swallow with six points each; Garrett Putnam, five; Noah Holmes, three; Isaac Cone and Jake Condon both with two.
Brady Hawkins led Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln with seven points.
Houlton led through the game, with the score at the breaks: 22-7; 36-13; and 57-24.
In the junior varsity game, Houlton toppled Mattanawcook Academy, 58-27.
The Shiretowners also raced by visiting Madawaska 51-22 last Friday night in Houlton.
Greater Houlton Christian Academy 62, Washburn 88 — Washburn’s Mitch Worcester poured in 38 points and hauled down 17 rebounds to keep his team undefeated on Monday night. Nick Bragg netted 14 more points for the winners.
For the visiting Eagles, Deyrell Vargas knocked down 31 points, while Russell Socoby tossed in 15; Caleb Lincoln scored 12 and Aaron Holmes added four.
Washburn jumped to a 24-11 first-quarter lead and by halftime, the Beavers held a comfortable 46-28 cushion.
GHCA 49, Madawaska 51 — On Saturday at the University of Maine at Presque Isle, the teams went down to the wire before a victor was declared. Ian Lee of Madawaska scored on an offensive rebound at the buzzer. Lee led the Owls with a game-high 36 points.
For the Eagles, the tandem of Socoby and Vargas had 17 and 11 points, respectively. Other Eagle scorers were Lincoln with eight points; Holmes, seven and Dana Brown, six.
Madawaska led 16-11 to open the game, but the Eagles came back for a basket lead at halftime, 26-24. After three, GHCA held a 39-35 advantage.
Southern Aroostook 48, Woodland 37 — Last Saturday in Dyer Brook, the Warriors outscored Woodland 17-9 in the final quarter to pull away for the win.
Jesse Boulier led the Warriors with a game-high 23 points, while Cameron Landry netted 13 and Cody Lassonde added eight.
Southern Aroostook 71, GHCA 49 — The Warriors raced by the Eagles last Wednesday in Dyer Brook behind Boulier’s 23-point effort. Landry pumped in 20 points, while Lassonde knocked down 16 more for the winners. Will McGary also netted seven points in the game.
For GHCA, Vargas and Socoby each tallied 16 points. Lincoln had seven and Holmes another five for the Eagles.
At the breaks, SACS led 20-11; 37-19 and 51-32.
Katahdin 52, Bangor Christian 65 — Last Saturday in Bangor, Colton Bivighouse’s 25-point effort wasn’t enough for the Cougars to overtake their hosts.
Wyatt Morse added 11 more points for Katahdin.
For Bangor Christian, Seth Pearson led a well-balanced scoring attack with 18 points and eight rebounds, while Jeremy Miller added 15 points and nine rebounds off the bench and Ben Bragg had 14 points and eight rebounds.
East Grand 33, Shead 73 — Last Saturday in Danforth, the Tigers overpowered the Vikings.
Alex Brittain scored eight points for East Grand, along with Kenneth Winiarski’s seven.
Shead’s Nic Bradbury scored 16 points and Mark Clossey added 13.
The scoring favored Shead in each of the breaks: 18-12; 34-16 and 55-25.
Hodgdon 74, East Grand 31 — Last Tuesday, Josh Hudson scored 20 points, as the Hawks easily defeated the Vikings.
Tyler Sherman tossed in 15 points and Chris Hudson netted 12 for Hodgdon.
Winiarski had 11 points, while Logan Crone scored eight and Neil Noble added five for East Grand.
