AUGUSTA, Maine — The Houlton and Southern Aroostook girls basketball teams are one step away from achieving their dreams of bringing home the state championship gold ball for their respective schools.
The state championships take place Saturday, March 3, at the Augusta Civic Center for Class C and D. Southern Aroostook squares off against southern-division champ Vinalhaven at 1:05 p.m., while Houlton meets southern-titlist Monmouth Academy at 7:05 p.m.
Southern Aroostook (19-2) vs. Vinalhaven (21-0)
The Southern Aroostook girls are embarking on their first state title game since 1997. The Warriors last won a state title back in 1995.
“It’s been 21 years, so it is just great for the program, the school and the community to get this far and have a chance to win the state title,” Southern Aroostook coach Cliff Urquhart said. “The unique thing about this group is that we have always been together with the same group of kids. We haven’t graduated anyone for three years, so all the loses, the wins, we’ve gone through together. I am happy in the fact that we got here before we lost someone to graduation.”
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Southern Aroostook beat Jonesport-Beals 71-39 in the quarterfinals, defeated Katahdin 73-41 in the semifinals and beat Woodland 55-41 in the regional championship.
The Warriors have brought a team approach to their games this season, with different players stepping up each night. That strategy could bode well for the team as Vinalhaven will not be able to key on any one player defensively.
Leading the way for Southern Aroostook are juniors Kylie Vining (8.7 points, 3.5 steals, 1.6 assists, 5.1 rebounds), Katelyn Slauenwhite (3.6 points, 1 steal, 1 assist, 1.4 rebounds) and Kassidy Mathers (9.9 points, 4.1 steals, 3.5 assists, 4.2 rebounds).
Also playing significant roles this year are sophomores Sydney Brewer (9.9 points, 1 steal, 5 rebounds) and Makaelyn Porter (13.1 points, 2.7 steals, 4.2 assists, 3 rebounds) and freshman Kacy Daggett (10.6 points, 2.1 blocks, 3.1 steals, 1.5 assists, 6.6 rebounds).
The young Warrior squad will have a tall task ahead of them as Vinalhaven has one of the best players in the state on its roster.
Gilley Davis-Oakes is a 5-foot, 10-inch senior who is averaging 17 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.75 blocks, and 1.4 assist per game. Davis-Oakes is a two-time southern tournament MVP and is a finalist for the Miss Basketball title this year.
“Vinalhaven is a really good team,” coach Urquhart said. “They pass the ball as well as any team I’ve watched this year.”
The Vikings are senior-laden and have won 33 consecutive games following the team’s 59-49 win over Rangeley Saturday in the Class D South championship. The Vikings last loss was midseason last year at Richmond, a Class C school.
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“(Vinalhaven is) fundamentally sound,” coach Urquhart said. “They won’t beat themselves by foolish mistakes or forcing stuff.”
Other key players to watch for Vinalhaven include seniors Deja Doughty (8.45 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.2 assists), Ashlyn Littlefield (12.35 points, 1.8 rebounds), Paige Dennison (9.3 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists), Cheyenne Bickford (5.7 points, 4.6 rebounds) and Amber Shane (2 points, 3 rebounds). Shane missed 14 games this season due to injury.
“We are going to have to continue to play good interior defense and keep their shooters in check with hard closeouts,” Urquhart said. “They like to get up and down like we do, so this could be a high scoring affair.”
Since this group of Warriors has never played in Augusta, Southern Aroostook plans to travel with Houlton to the Augusta Civic Center Thursday for a joint practice.
Houlton (21-0) vs. Monmouth Academy (20-1)
The Class C championship features two teams that are no strangers to title games. Monmouth Academy is the defending Class C champs, while Houlton is appearing in its fourth straight state championship, having won two of the last three gold balls in two different classes.
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Last season, the Shires fell 48-35 to Gray-New Gloucester in the state Class B championship.
Houlton dropped to Class C this year, based on its enrollment, and rattled off an undefeated regular season (18-0) along the way. The Shires followed that up in the playoffs with wins over Piscataquis (65-26), Central (41-38) and Dexter (33-30 in overtime for the north championship.
The Shires won back-to-back state titles in 2016 (Class B) and 2015 (Class C) with wins over Gray-New Gloucester (48-35) and Maranacook (59-51).
“From what I understand they (Monmouth) return their entire team from a year ago,” Houlton coach Shawn Graham said. “They are a guard oriented team with quickness and are able to go deep off the bench with about 9-10 girls.”
Houlton has arguably the best player in the state with senior Kolleen Bouchard. The Miss Basketball semifinalist scored 27 of her team’s 33 points in last Saturday’s championship game, including scoring the 2,000th point of her career. Bouchard drained a 3-pointer with 24.1 seconds to go in regulation to tie the game. Through 22 games, Bouchard is averaging 27.5 points, 2.9 blocks, 3.2 steals, 5.3 assists, and 10 rebounds.
In order to be successful, the Shires will have to become more balanced offensively, Houlton coach Shawn Graham said.
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“We struggled a bit in the regionals to make shots, however, we need to credit both Central (semifinal game) and Dexter on their defensive efforts,” he said. “We really need (Aspen) Flewelling, (Teagan) Ewings, and (Abbie) Worthley to hit some open jump shots for us and we’ll need much of the same from Bouchard.”
Flewelling, a senior, is averaging 7.5 points, 1.1 assists and 3.4 rebounds and will need to play a larger role in the offense in the state game. Ewings, a sophomore, has hit some key shots and will need to do more of the same. She is averaging 9.3 points, 1 steal, 1.4 assists and 2.2 rebounds for the Shires. Worthley, another sophomore, is averaging 4 points and 2.8 rebounds for the Shires.
Houlton was dealt a huge blow, however, in last Saturday’s regional championship game when senior Kristen Graham (4 points, 1.8 steals, 2.1 assists, 6.1 rebounds) went down with a knee injury. She returned briefly to the game, before exiting a second time.
Graham, who missed last year’s playoff run with a torn ACL in her left knee, may have sustained a similar injury to her right knee.
“It isn’t looking good for Kristen,” her father, coach Graham said. “We will know more later in the week after the MRI. An ACL tear in the opposite knee is the big concern. If that is the case, we will have a number of issues to figure out before Saturday. As a coach and her dad, I feel really, really bad for her.”
Handling Monmouth’s pressure is a concern, as is fatigue as the Shires now have a much shorter bench.
“I think we have defended very well all year and we will need much of the same on Saturday,” coach Graham said. “Offensively, I’d also like to see us be a bit more patient, run the offense through and look for some quality shots rather that rushing. Nerves have been a bit of a factor for some of the girls and i’d like to see us relax a bit, try to stay focused and play the way they are capable of.”
