By Sam Canfield, BDN Staff
Paced by 25 points from junior guard Madelynn Deprey, the No. 4 Caribou Vikings dispatched No. 5 Belfast 56-24 in a girls Class B North quarterfinal basketball game on Saturday at the Cross Insurance Center.
With the energetic, 5-foot-9 Deprey spearheading an intense full court press early on, the Vikings allowed just two first half field goals en route to a 26-9 lead at the break. Toward the end of the third quarter and into the fourth, Belfast gradually cut Caribou’s lead to 36-22, but Deprey promptly went off for 14 points — including three 3-pointers and an and-one play at the rim — as Caribou punched its ticket to its second consecutive regional semifinal appearance.
Deprey finished with nine field goals, four assists, four offensive rebounds and three blocks. She was named Big East Girls Player of the Year earlier this week.
Caribou (13-6) will play the winner of No. 1 Ellsworth and No. 9 Presque Isle at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 21, while Belfast heads home with a 12-7 record on the season.
Fellow Caribou starters senior guard Madelynn Morrow (eight points, two offensive rebounds), sophomore forward Liv Adams (seven points, two takeaways), junior guard Brianna Levesque (six points, two assists, two steals) and junior guard Ainsley Caron (two assists, three steals) combined for 11 baskets and just two free throw attempts.
Leading Belfast were senior guard Jaiden Philbrook (seven points, including an and-one play), junior forward Audri Goodwin (six points) and junior guard Danica Gray (four points, two offensive boards, two steals). Off the bench, sophomore Payton Wadsworth and sophomore Jordyn MacKay combined for two offensive boards and four takeaways.
