Gold was mined by the Houlton girls basketball team Saturday as the Shires played a thrilling Class C state championship against Maranacook of Readfield at the Cross Insurance Center.
The Houlton squad withstood a ferocious Maranacook pressure defense and used a balanced scoring attack to slowly pull away from the Black Bears in the game’s waning moments for a 59-51 victory. Maranacook was undefeated on the year coming into the game.
Saturday night’s win capped an amazing season for the young Shire squad and 11-year veteran coach Shawn Graham. It was Graham’s first state championship with the team and Houlton’s first girls state title since a 1991 victory when Houlton competed in Class B. It is also the Shires’ first girls gold ball in the Class C division.
The game featured many memorable moments, culminating with the joyous celebration as the final buzzer sounded. The elation on the players’ faces as they stormed the court is one that will remain etched in many people’s memories for many days to come. There were bountiful hugs, with a few players leaping into the arms of a teammate, there were a few tears and plenty of cheers.
Houlton was well represented by fans in Saturday’s championship. A large student section was on hand to spark the team on, as the band and cheerleaders once again helped lead in many cheers. The band also broke out the words to the school song for people to sing along with. Numerous children in the stands passed out slips of paper with the lyrics on them and the cheerleaders unveiled a large banner with the words to encourage folks to sing-a-long. It was a nice moment as the present paid tribute to the past that was surely enjoyed by older alumi at the game.
On Sunday, the team arrived home to a champions’ welcome as the bus was greeted on the Interstate by a number of police vehicles. That escort blossomed into a caravan once the bus reached the Houlton Shopping Plaza as family and friends joined in the parade.
A reception was held at the high school’s auditorium with coach Graham, assistant coach Ben Drew and some of the players speaking to a gathering of well over 100 fans and family members. The reception featured a touching video slide show put together by Matt McCluskey, showing many of the varsity players from their time as hoopsters with coach Drew and Marty Bouchard competing in various basketball tournaments in their younger days to action shots of them as current players to enjoying a post state game meal at a restaurant.
Congratulations to the Houlton girls basketball team for setting your sights high and accomplishing your goal of winning a gold ball.
Joseph Cyr is a staff writer for the Houlton Pioneer Times. His opinions are his own and do not necessarily reflect that of the newspaper. He can be reached at pioneertimes@nepublish.com or 532-2281.
