The Central Aroostook Panthers picked up a major victory Friday, using the late heroics of junior forward Brayden Bradbury to upend Fort Kent on the road.
Meanwhile, the Fort Fairfield girls kept up their torrid start to the season by winning two more games to move to 8-0.
The Ashland boys experienced a win for the first time this season when they beat Washburn by a five-point margin Thursday.
The Presque Isle boys came away with three consecutive wins following a tough loss to Mount Desert Island to take a 6-3 record heading into a key showdown against Caribou Wednesday evening on the Wildcats’ home floor.
Summaries of several games played between Dec. 28 and Jan. 5 are as follows:
Boys
Presque Isle 38, Belfast 36 — The Wildcats trailed Saturday’s home game for most of the first three quarters before rallying late to prevent the upset. Caleb Wheaton (13 points) and Jonah Hudson hit some clutch baskets during the rally and Sam Beaulieu made some huge defensive contributions off the bench for PI.
Central Aroostook 68, Ashland 36 — The Panthers defeated the Hornets for the second time in a week, this time winning in Mars Hill Saturday. Drew Belmain totaled 20 points as CA’s bench players saw plenty of playing time.
Central Aroostook 59, Fort Kent 58 — Brayden Bradbury hit the first of two free throws with 1.5 seconds left to tie the game, and then gathered in the offensive rebound off his second miss, was fouled again, and hit his first free throw attempt with no time on the clock to win it for CA Friday. He finished with 14 points, while Ben Thomas and Ethan Pryor added 18 and 16, respectively.
“We controlled the tempo for a majority of the game. We talked before the game about being patient on offense and not getting out of control and playing more maturely, and that’s what we did,” said Panther coach Jason Woodworth. “Our commitment to not letting them get out in transition and shutting off the middle of the floor were huge on the defensive end.”
Fort Fairfield 73, Hodgdon 52 — Juniors Dawson Watson and Chase Griffeth both hit five 3-pointers in the Tigers win on Friday at Hodgdon. Watson notched a career-high 30 points and Griffeth had 19 for Fort Fairfield.
Easton 67, Wisdom 42 — Austin Carver powered Easton with 17 points, while Kyle Flewelling and Camden Michaud had 14 and 13, respectively, in Friday’s victory at Easton.
Presque Isle 53, John Bapst 37 — At the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor Thursday, the Wildcats limited the Crusaders to 13 points in the second and third quarters combined to come out on top. Jonah Hudson scored 23 points and Caleb Wheaton put in 17 more for the Wildcats.
Ashland 44, Washburn 39 — Dylan Haley’s 24 points helped the Hornets win for the first time this season Thursday in Ashland. Zakk Tracy scored nine points for the Beavers.
Central Aroostook 68, Easton 50 — The Panthers captured their fifth consecutive win Jan. 2, taking the home game against Easton. Brayden Bradbury put in 16 points and Stetson Nicholas had 12 for CA, while Austin Carver’s 16 points were tops for Easton.
Fort Fairfield 61, Wisdom 39 — The Tigers outscored Wisdom in the second quarter, 25-5, and went on to the home win Jan. 2. Wyatt Keegan scored 15, Colby Langner 12 and Kobe West 10 for Fort Fairfield.
Easton 62, Washburn 31 — The Bears’ road victory on Dec. 31 was fueled by Austin Carver’s 17-point performance. Patrick Saucier and Beckham Vaughn were Washburn’s high scorers with seven each.
Presque Isle 69, Old Town 46 — The Wildcats won at home on New Year’s Eve as Caleb Wheaton and Jonah Hudson struck for 21 points each.
Fort Fairfield 61, Washburn 39 — The Tigers claimed the win Dec. 29 in Washburn as Dawson Watson tallied 20 points and Colby Langner 16 to lead the offensive attack. Aidan Churchill’s 11 points paced the Beavers.
Central Aroostook 75, Ashland 26 — The Panthers won the first of two meetings against the Hornets, this one in Ashland Dec. 29, as Ben Thomas fired in 17 and Brayden Bradbury and Hunter Wardwell notched 11 each. For the Hornets, Drew Doughty led with seven points.
MDI 48, Presque Isle 42 — On Dec. 28 in Bar Harbor, the Wildcats held the lead at halftime but could not hold on as they were outscored 30-15 after intermission. Caleb Wheaton (13) and Jonah Hudson (11) were the leading scorers for PI.
Girls
Central Aroostook 74, Ashland 33 — On Saturday in Mars Hill, Libby Grass poured in a game-high and career-best 19 points as the Panthers rolled past the Hornets. Katie Levesque and Maci Beals tallied 11 each for CA and Jamie Poulin led Ashland with nine points.
Presque Isle 74, Belfast 27 — Senior Madison Jandreau connected on six of eight attempts from 3-point land and those 18 points led the way as the Wildcats topped the Lions in Presque Isle Saturday.
Fort Kent 35, Washburn 33 — The Warriors avenged an early-season loss to the Beavers, winning Saturday’s game at Fort Kent behind Desirae Hafford’s 15 points. Kassie Farley totaled 26 for Washburn.
Wisdom 50, Easton 20 — The Pioneers handed the Bears their seventh consecutive loss to begin the season Friday in Easton. Cecilia Morin led the Bears with 10 points.
John Bapst 46, Presque Isle 37 — The Crusaders fought back from a four-point deficit at halftime by outscoring the Wildcats 26-13 in the second half Thursday at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor. Madison Michaud scored 12 and Molly Kingsbury had eight in the loss.
Washburn 52, Ashland 40 — Four players hit double figures for the Beavers Thursday in the triumph at Ashland. Raegyn Chavez hit four 3-pointers and tallied 15 to lead the way, while Kyli Farley (13), Kassie Farley (12) and Emma Johnston (10) were the other top scorers. Jamie Poulin tossed in 10 for the Hornets.
Central Aroostook 85, Easton 21 — The Panthers outscored the host Bears 26-5 in the first quarter Jan. 2 and cruised to the win. Breann Bradbury scored 20, Kayla Martin 13, Libby Grass 11 and Maci Beals 10 for CA, while Cecilia Morin’s 13 paced Easton.
Fort Fairfield 70, Wisdom 30 — The Tigers stayed hot by thrashing the Pioneers Jan. 2 in Fort Fairfield. Twelve players scored points for the Tigers, with Amber Sherwood’s 19 and Brenna LeVasseur’s 10 leading the charge.
Presque Isle 52, Old Town 39 — On Dec. 31 in Presque Isle, the Wildcats registered their biggest win of the season by stopping the Coyotes, which entered as the No. 3 team in Class B North. Faith Sjoberg hit six 3-pointers and finished with 20 points and Maggie Castonguay netted 15, including four 3-pointers, for the winners.
Fort Fairfield 43, Shead 32 — In a battle of the Tigers Dec. 29, host Fort Fairfield prevailed behind freshman Camryn Ala’s 11 points.
Central Aroostook 70, Ashland 32 — The Panthers broke open the close game at Ashland Dec. 29 with a dominating performance in the second half. Breann Bradbury’s 14 points keyed CA’s attack, while Kayla Martin came off the bench to contribute 13 more. The Hornets were led by Olivia Tardie’s 15 points.
Hodgdon 66, Easton 23 — On Dec. 28 in Easton, the Hawks won big to keep the Bears winless. Cecilia Morin had 18 of Easton’s points.
MDI 67, Presque Isle 36 — The host Trojans dominated the Dec. 28 matchup in Bar Harbor. Madison Jandreau was PI’s lone double-figure scorer with 10 points.
