EASTERN MAINE
Saturday, Feb. 21
Eastern Maine finals
at Bangor Auditorium, Bangor
Class D
D7: Girls, No. 1 Woodland 49, No. 3 Fort Fairfield 34
D7: Boys, No. 4 Woodland 48, No. 2 Central Aroostook 36
Class B
B7: Girls, No. 1 Waterville 59, No. 2 John Bapst 47
B7: Boys, No. 1 Camden Hills 62, No. 3 Rockland 37
Class C
C7: Girls, No. 3 George Stevens 51, No. 5 Washington Academy 41
C7: Boys, No. 2 Calais 71, No. 5 Stearns 45
WESTERN MAINE
Saturday, Feb. 21
Western Maine finals
At Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland
Class B
B7: Girls, No. 1 York, 49, No. 2 Greely 30
B7: Boys, No. 4 Cape Elizabeth 58, No. 2 Falmouth 48
Class A
A7: Girls, No. 1 Deering 56, No. 3 Biddeford 33
A7: Boys, No. 4 Thornton Academy 49, No. 6 Portland 46
At Augusta Civic Center
Class D
D7: Girls, No. 2 Valley 40, No. 5 Rangeley 39
D7: Boys, No. 2 Richmond 41, No. 1 Forest Hills 30
Class C
C7: Girls, No. 2 Jay 40, No. 1 Waynflete 38
C7: Boys, No. 1 Dirigo 64, No. 2 Wiscasset 44
* * *
George Stevens takes down Washington Academy
BY RYAN McLAUGHLIN
OF THE NEWS STAFF
BANGOR — Discipline. Clutch free-throw shooting. Tenacity on the backboards.
Those were the factors that delivered George Stevens Academy its first Eastern Maine schoolgirl basketball championship since 2000.
The third-ranked Eagles of Blue Hill shot a solid 24-for-35 clip from the foul line, forced 19 Washington Academy turnovers while placing three scorers in double figures en route to a 51-41 EM Class C regional victory over the fifth-ranked Raiders from East Machias at the Bangor Auditorium Friday night.
GSA (18-3) moves on to next Saturday’s 7:05 p.m. state title game in Bangor against Western Maine champ Jay while the Raiders, who only have two seniors on their roster, finish up 14-7.
Stevie Theoharidis had another solid offensive game for GSA, scoring a game-high 17 points while hitting 7-10 from the line. India Frazier hit 9-12 free throws en route to 15 points while Maddie Park scored 13 more.
The game was tantalizingly close throughout the first half, but the Raiders were victimized by foul trouble, as Breanna Nicely and Andi Flannery all picked up three fouls before halftime.
That allowed the Eagles to attack the basket and they were rewarded with several trips to the foul line, and they also kept the Raiders off the backboards, limiting their second- and third-chance opportunities.
After leading by five at intermission, Alida Peake’s 3-pointer from the top of the key jumpstarted a 7-0 run that gave the Eagles some breathing room, and they closed the quarter up seven.
The Raiders fought back to within four on Taylor Seeley’s follow-up shot with 1:47 remaining in the fourth, but the Eagles limited them to one field goal the rest of the way while hitting their foul shots.
Seeley led the Raiders with 14 points while Flannery added 12.
* * *
Camden Hill boys overpower Rockland 62-37
BY ERNIE CLARK
OF THE NEWS STAFF
BANGOR — Sophomore center Tyler McFarland anchored a stifling defense that had 11 blocked shots and limited Rockland to 25 percent shooting from the field as top-ranked and undefeated Camden Hills of Rockport boys basketball team rolled to a 62-37 win over the Tigers in the Eastern Maine Class B championship game at the Bangor Auditorium on Saturday afternoon.
The Windjammers (21-0) blocked nearly 20 percent of Rockland’s shot attempts, and allowed their Midcoast rivals to make just 12 of 48 tries.
The 6-foot-5 McFarland led the way with 15 points, 10 rebounds and six blocked shots, while 6-5 senior forward Gordon Fischer added 14 points, seven rebounds, three blocks and three assists as Camden Hills defeated Rockland for the third time in countable games this season.
Taylor Gartley added 10 points and Kiefer Lammi nine for the Windjammers, who will play Western Maine champion Cape Elizabeth for the state title next Friday night at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland.
Rockland (16-6) was within 26-20 on a jumper by Teel Ilvonen with 3:25 left in the first half, but the Tigers went the next 7 minutes, 20 seconds without a point and managed just one more field goal through the end of the third quarter.
Through that span, Camden Hills outscored Rockland 22-5 to take a 48-25 lead into the fourth quarter.
Ilvonen led Rockland with 10 points.
* * *
Woodland Dragons burn Central Aroostook 48-36
By Pete Warner
BDN Staff
BANGOR — One year ago, the Woodland High School boys basketball reached the Eastern Maine Class D championship game only to lose in overtime.
This time around, the veteran Dragons refused to be denied against Central Aroostook.
Senior Chad James went 6-for-6 from the foul line in the fourth quarter on his way to a team-high 14 points, lifting Woodland to a 48-36 victory over No. 2 Central Aroostook of Mars Hill at the Bangor Auditorium.
It was the first regional boys title for Woodland (15-7), which faces the winner of the Western Maine title game between Forest Hills and Richmond on Feb. 28 at approximately 2:35 p.m. at the Bangor Auditorium.
Coach Troy Cilley’s Woodland got off to a slow start, spotting the Panthers a 7-2 lead, but took the lead for good late in the first half and never relinquished it.
Senior Ben Sears posted 13 points and four rebounds for the winners, while James added five rebounds and three assists. Corey Rolfe contributed eight points and 11 rebounds, Eddie Flaherty provided six points and 10 rebounds and Aaron St. Pierre chipped in with seven points.
Manny Martinez led the way for Central Aroostook (17-4) with 14 points. Caleb Kelly added eight points.
* * *
Waterville girls retain B title 59-47 over Bapst
By Ryan McLaughlin
Of the NEWS staff
BANGOR — It was simply too much Morgan Frame, and too much Waterville.
The Purple Panthers senior held court on the Bangor Auditorium Friday afternoon, dropping in 36 points as top-ranked Waterville remained at the top of the Class B girls basketball kingdom with a 59-47 victory over second-ranked John Bapst of Bangor.
Coach Ted Rioux’s club won its 65th consecutive game, improved to 21-0 and advances to Friday’s 7:05 p.m. state final at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland against Western champ York in search of a third consecutive gold ball.
The Crusaders wrap up a remarkable season at 19-3.
It was all Waterville in the first half, as Frame showcased the power and grace that has many hoop followers pegging her as one of the favorites for Miss Maine Basketball.
The 6-foot-1 senior center scored 19 points in the first two quarters as the Purple Panthers built a 33-13 halftime lead.
But if Waterville thought it was going to cruise, Bapst wasn’t ready to cooperate with those plans, switching from a straight man-to-man defense to a half-court trap which forced many Panther mistakes.
Morgan Chasse’s 3-pointer from the right corner midway through the fourth quarter gave coach Mike Webb’s Crusaders some hope, bringing them back within nine.
But Bapst could not get any closer, with Waterville’s defense clamping down in the final minutes.
The Crusaders’ first-half shooting woes did them in, as they shot 3-for-20 from the floor (15 percent) in the first 16 minutes.
Jen Nale was the other Panther in double figures with 11 points. Frame also had eight rebounds and six steals.
Sam Gormley led Bapst with 12 points while Chasse and Sam Maquillan finished with 11 apiece.
* * *
Woodland girls top Fort Fairfield 49-34
BY ANDREW NEFF
OF THE NEWS STAFF
BANGOR — Maybe it was the fullcourt defensive pressure taking its toll, or perhaps it was just the veteran leadership and experience of a team that’s played in a regional championship game three of the last four years.
Whatever the reason, the end result was the same as the Woodland girls wore down a solid Fort Fairfield squad to post a 49-34 victory Saturday morning at the Bangor Auditorium.
The Eastern Maine Class D basketball title is Woodland’s third in the last four years. The 20-0 Dragons will take on either Valley of Bingham or Rangeley in a 1 p.m. state title game at the Bangor Auditorium Saturday.
Ashley Laking led a balanced offense with 12 points while three teammates scored eight or more. Tay-lor Cochran came off the bench to put up eight points, eight rebounds and three assists.
Freshman forward Amanda Hotham led the 20-2 Tigers, the tourney’s third seed, with 17 points and Brooke Beaulieu grabbed nine rebounds.
* * *
Calais claims Eastern C crown
BY ERNIE CLARK
OF THE NEWS STAFF
BANGOR — Senior center Cal Shorey had 27 points, 12 rebounds, four blocked shots and three assists as No. 2 Calais won its fourth consecutive Eastern Maine Class C boys basketball championship with a 71-45 win over No. 5 Stearns of Millinocket at the Bangor Auditorium on Saturday night.
The win advances the Blue Devils (16-4) to next Saturday’s state final against Western Maine champion Dirigo of Dixfield.
Stearns ends its season at 18-3.
Junior guard Jeremy Carr added 18 points while senior guard Jordan Leeman
finished with 13 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds.
Shorey scored 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting in the first half, and Leeman hit a pair of key 3-pointers as Calais outscored Stearns 14-2 over the final 5:06 of the first half to take a 38-30 lead at intermission.
The Blue Devils then clamped down defensively after the break, limiting Stearns to 6 of 28 shooting from the field over the final two periods.
Stearns was still within 47-39 entering the fourth quarter, but Calais then went on a 10-2 run to put the game away. Carr had a basket and a free throw, Leeman a drive through the lane, Josh Gillespie a layup on a nice feed from Ryan Cavanaugh, and Shorey a basket from the low post on a feed from Leeman and a free throw to give the Blue Devils a 57-41 lead midway
through the period.
Brandon McLaughlin came off the bench to lead Stearns offensively with 16 points, while center Tyler Richards had 12 points and eight rebounds and point guard Garen Manzo also scored 12 points.
***
WESTERN MAINE
BOYS BASKETBALL
Class C Final
Dirigo 64, Wiscasset 44
At the Augusta Civic Center, Thomas Knight scored 28 points to lead top-seeded Dirigo of Dixfield past No. 2 Wiscasset. Tyler Chaisson scored 13 points for Dirigo. Josh Sonia led Wiscasset with 19 points. Jason Dennison scored 11 points.
Class D Final
Richmond 41, Forest Hills 30
At the Augusta Civic Center, Nick Woods scored 19 points as No. 2 Richmond defeated No. 1 Forest Hills of Jackman. Michael Christie had 14 points for Richmond. Cody Gilboe paced Forest Hills with 15 points.
***
WESTERN MAINE
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Class C Final
Jay 40, Waynflete 38
At the Augusta Civic Center, Liz Leblanc scored 12 points as No. 2 Jay narrowly defeated No. 1 Waynflete of Portland. Hillary Deane added 11 points for Jay. Morgan Woodhouse paced Waynflete with 16 points while Mariam Qazi scored 15 points.
Class D Final
Valley 40, Rangeley 39
At Augusta Civic Center, No. 2 Valley of Bingham outscored No. 5 Rangeley 10-4 in the fourth quarter to earn the win. Cindy Schultz scored 18 points to pace Valley. Jacelyn Laweryson added 10 points. Angela White led Rangeley with 16 points.