The County Youth Basketball of America 14-and 16-year-old teams won their respective divisions last weekend at the Harbor House Shootout in MDI.
The older division swept through their south division of nine teams undefeated at 4-0 to claim the title.
In their opening game against George Stevens Academy, the county team started slow, as they held a 25-22 halftime advantage. Going 9-for-10 from the foul line in the fourth quarter, the county girls pulled out a 51-47 win.
Emily Pelletier (Fort Kent) tossed in 16 points, while Houlton’s Vanessa Sanderson netted 11 points and Caitlyn Escancy (Presque Isle) tallied 10 points to lead the county squad.
In the next contest, the county squad posted a 75-54 triumph over Lincoln behind Escancy’s 23 points. Taylor Boucher (Fort Kent) netted 15, while Pelletier added 12, as the top scorers.
The Lady Raiders of Washington Academy proved to be no match for the county girls, losing 69-50.
Sanderson led the team with 19 points, while Boucher tossed in 15. Houlton’s Desiree Dow finished with 11 and Pelletier 10.
With that win, the county girls were headed to the championship against north division champion MDI. Hot 3-point shooting put the county team ahead at intermission, 33-21. In the second half, the 3’s kept coming from the Fort Kent girls, and the county girls captured the title, 69-54.
Pelletier’s 22 points, including six 3-pointers and Boucher’s 19 points, including three 3-pointers, along with Breanna Thibodeau’s 3-pointer were the top bombers from long range. But, supporting players added to a balanced scoring effort leading to a championship.
Katahdin’s Olivia McNally had 8 points, while Houlton’s Martha McPartland grabbed nine rebounds and scored three points. Houlton’s Dow chipped in with four points and Escancy’s basket, all played key roles in the championship game.
This is the second year in a row an Aroostook County 16-year-old team has won the high school division, said coach Dave DeMerchant. Nineteen teams participated in the division, and the county girls improved their record to 7-1.
County 14-year-olds pick up second straight title
Not to be outdone, the County 14-year-old squad won the junior high division, winning four straight games in relatively easy fashion, said coach DeMerchant.
After winning the Sheriff’s Cup last weekend in Ellsworth, the county team came out running and pressing their opponents to death.
In game one against a young Jonesport-Beals team, the 14-year-old squad cruised to a 45-23 win behind Presque Isle’s Chelsea Nickerson (15 points), Houlton’s Amanda Fogarty (14 points) and Presque Isle’s Casey Bonville (10 points).
In their next game against Lincoln, the county team picked up a lopsided, 55-21 win.
Nickerson fired in 17 points, while Mars Hill’s Vicki McIntyre scored a dozen more for the county team.
In a battle of the two unbeaten squads — the county and Bangor — the local girls avenged their earlier season loss with a 52-35 victory.
Nickerson again led the way with 16 points, with McIntyre finishing with 14, as the top guns.
In a rematch of the semifinals in the championship round, the Bangor girls got a taste of the county’s best basketball, said coach DeMerchant.
The northern girls jumped out to a 33-6 halftime lead and cruised to a 60-19 win.
In one of the best team efforts, all six players scored at least six points for the county team. Presque Isle’s Kayla Richards paced the offense with 14 points; Fort Fairfield’s Danielle Tracy tossed in 13; McIntyre scored 11; Fogarty chipped in with 10, while Nickerson and Bonville each had six points. The local girls improved their record to 14 -1.
The 13-year-old county team won three games in a row after losing their first game, but were eliminated from the tournament in their fifth game.
After an opening loss to the Huskies, the county team started a string of wins, with the first one coming against the Windjammers, 45-23.
Fort Fairfield’s Amanda Hotham poured in 18 points, while Caribou’s Alexa Massey netted 14 more to pace the team in the scoring department.
Jonesport was their next victim, as the locals won 45-23.
Hotham again led the offense with 13 points, while Massey tossed in 11; Mars Hill’s Rachael Grew and Ashland’s Brooke LaBelle each chipped in with 10 points. Rounding out the scoring, Woodland’s Katelyn Bubar had six points and Caribou’s Rebecca McDougall finished with four points.
In game four against the Presque Isle Wildcats, the county team jumped out to a 13-7 halftime lead en route to a 42-26 victory.
Grew keyed the win with 13 points, while Massey added 10 and Hotham posted eight points to move the county team to the next game.
Against the Lady Eagles, the county team led 18-16 at the half, only to go very cold from the free throw line (3-for-11) and suffered a 40-33 loss.
Hotham had 16 points, with 12-of-14 from the line to pace the county to a fifth-place finish and an overall record to10-4.
