The Houlton boys picked up a big Heal Point worthy victory over Caribou Wednesday evening with a 68-57 victory over the Vikings. Houlton is now 13-3 on the season and is ranked seventh in Class C North.
The regular season is rapidly winding to a close, with the final games to be completed by Thursday, Feb. 8. The playoffs begin Tuesday, Feb. 13 and Wednesday, Feb. 14 with preliminary round contests, while the tournament in Bangor begins Friday, Feb. 16 with quarterfinal action.
Thursday night is a relatively quiet with only three games on the docket. They include the Washburn girls at Easton, the Easton boys at Washburn and the Hodgdon boys at Southern Aroostook. All three games tip off at 7 p.m.
Summaries of Wednesday’s games are as follows:
Boys basketball
Houlton 68, Caribou 57 — The Shiretowners battled to an 11-point halftime lead and had to hold off a late charge by the host Vikings to garner the win.
Nolan Porter paced Houlton with 20 points, including a pair of clutch 3-pointers in the second half. Nick Perfitt added 14 points, while Keegan Gentle and Cameron Cleary each chipped in with 11.
Isaac Marker scored 15 points, including three 3-point field goals, to lead 5-11 Caribou while Nick Allen and Parker Deprey each added 11 and Alex Bouchard netted 10.
Madawaska 42, Ashland 27 — At Ashland, Tristan Cyr connected for 19 points, including three 3-pointers, to lead the Owls to their 10th win of the season and a sweep of the season series against the Hornets.
Isaac Marker of the Vikings drives along the baseline past Houlton’s Cam Cleary for a layup in the fourth quarter of Wednesday’s game at Caribou High School. (Kevin Sjoberg)
Lance Lavoie added 10 points for the winners, who improved to 10-5.
Steven Bellanceau scored 13 points as the only double-digit scorer for Ashland, now 4-13.
Presque Isle 67, John Bapst 50 — Griffin Guerrette and Jonah Hudson combined for 46 points and Trace Cyr hauled in 16 rebounds as the Wildcats improved to 12-4 with the home win.
Guerrette scored 25 points and also grabbed nine rebounds, while Hudson had 21 points and drained four 3-pointers along the way.
Nathan Smith netted 13 points for the 3-12 Crusaders.
GHCA 80, East Grand 47 — At Danforth Wednesday, the visiting Eagles of GHCA soared to the big win over East Grand as five players scored in double figures. Will Austin led GHCA with 18 points, including four 3-pointers, while Parker Brewer added 16, Austin Winslow had 12, Isaac Potter chipped in 11 and Joel Carmichael added 10.
Thomas Gilman led East Grand with 29 points.
Fort Fairfield 75, Katahdin 47 — At Stacyville, Fort Fairfield used a hot shooting start and used a 23-8 first quarter to take the lead for good. Isaac Cyr led all scorers with 31 points for the Tigers. Jared Harvey netted 13 points and Malcolm Langner added 10.
Brody Guiggey paced Katahdin of Stacyville with 13 points and Hunter Craig tossed in 12.
Fort Fairfield led 23-8, 44-22 and 56-37 at the quarter breaks.
Girls basketball
Central Aroostook 56, Fort Kent 36 — The Panthers outscored the Warriors 34-16 in the second half to prevail in the Class C battle at Mars Hill.
Central Aroostook, which had lost by two points at Fort Kent Jan. 9, got huge games by Breanne Bradbury (11 points and 14 rebounds) and Annika Nicholas (16 rebounds and nine blocked shots). Ashlee Harris was the Panthers’ high scorer with 12 points and Maci Beals had 11. The duo combined for five 3-pointers. CA improved to 11-5.
Cassidy Lovley scored 15 points and Hannah Daigle 10 for the 11-6 Warriors.
Hodgdon 41, East Grand 37 — At Danforth, Sabra Scott scored 11 points to help the Hawks gain the win. Kylee Mooers and Sydney Howell tallied eight and seven points, respectively, for Hodgdon (8-7).
Hayliegh Shay poured in a game-high 21 points for East Grand (3-12).
East Grand led 12-9 in the first quarter, 20-14 at the half and 27-25 after three periods before the Hawks rallied for the win in the final frame.
Madawaska 54, Ashland 39 — Jenna Dugal dominated with 28 points and 15 rebounds as the Owls triumphed at Ashland and improved to 10-5.
Amber Chasse posted a statistical double-double for the 8-9 Hornets with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
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- Nick Allen of the Vikings gets ready to attempt a layup as Houlton’s Nick Perfitt, left, and Cam Cleary watch during Wednesday’s game at Caribou High School. (Kevin Sjoberg)
