Compiled by Bangor Daily News sports staff
Over, the years, the Bangor Daily News has chronicled many high school basketball tourney memories of coaches and players.
We went into our archives to share some of those memories. Some good, some not so good.
But, memories nonetheless.
Van Buren’s Matt Rossignol:
“It would probably have to be when we beat Schenck in 1985 to make it to the Eastern Maine [Class B] final. It put Van Buren in the Eastern Maine final for the first time,” said Rossignol. “Schenck [of East Millinocket] had a good ballclub and I remember our coach [Bob Hebert] worried that Schenck would slow the ball down on us. They knew I scored a lot and we had a high-scoring team.
“But that was the last thing Schenck wanted to do. I was lucky enough to keep hitting that night. I finished with 51 points. It was one of those cliches you’ve heard Michael Jordan use about the basket looking so big. But it did that night.”
Rossignol said, “My coach and my team had confidence in me and my teammates did a good job screening for me and getting me the ball in position where I could score.”
Cony of Augusta’s Kissy Walker:
Walker recalled a double-overtime loss to Presque Isle in the Class A semifinals in 1981.
“It was an exciting game. Presque Isle had Debbie Lennon that year. I wasn’t really a scorer, but I think I had 24 in that game,” said Walker, who was a point guard. “It was a Thursday night game and Bangor and Old Town was waiting to play after we did. The game went back and forth. Afterward, I thought about what we could have done to win.”
“I was so exhausted after the game,” added Walker. “We didn’t get home until 3 a.m. and we had to go to school the next day. We wanted to skip, but we all made the effort and went to school.”
Central Aroostook of Mars Hill’s Julie Bradstreet:
Bradstreet recalled losing to Schenck in the Eastern Maine Class C final in 1988. It was Bradstreet’s senior year.
“I remember sitting there watching them cut the nets down after the game. People talked about it being me against Stephanie Carter. That was the big thing. Stephanie scored eight million points in that game. I played OK, but I didn’t play better than she did. The Auditorium was packed. Both sides were full. It was crazy.”
Bradstreet added, “It was a great experience looking back at it now.”
Late Stearns of Millinocket coach George Wentworth:
One season — 1962-63 — stood out from the other 30 for Wentworth. That was the only year a team from Maine won the New England Regional Championship.
“That was probably the peak for me,” said Wentworth. “We lost to Bath in the state finals in double overtime, but two teams from Maine got to go that year.”
As fate would have it, Connecticut was unable to send a team, so Stearns was extended an invitation to take its spot.
“We beat Newport, Rhode Island, [Rogers High] in the first round and then had to play Rindge Tech [from Cambridge, Mass.] next,” said Wentworth. “We got permission to go and see the Celtics practice.”
Wentworth and his previous teams had raised money to travel to Boston and attend the tourney in previous years, and had gotten to know late Celtics coach and general manager Arnold “Red” Auerbach pretty well.
“He said, ‘It’s too bad you have to play Rindge. You’ve got a good little team, but nobody’s going to beat them,’ ” recalled Wentworth, chuckling. “After we beat Rindge, I had a great time talking to him.”
Late Mount Desert Island coach Bernard Parady:
Parady retired in 1980 after compiling a record of 340-178 over a 26-year coaching career which spanned four state crowns and nine Eastern Maine titles.
Amusing tourney memories? He has a lot, but one in particular still brings a laugh as he recalls it.
“Our JV and varsity teams always traveled together on bus trips and my managers, who were pretty efficient, always took roll call. They’d say `All present and accounted for!’ when I got on.
“Well, one day, we were going to the tourney and we didn’t have the JV team with us. I don’t know what happened, but we got beyond Ellsworth and I got up and looked around. I couldn’t find [starting guard] Jeff Hall. I thought he was taking a rest and laying down.
“I said, `Where’s Jeff Hall?’ Nobody answered. I asked a few more times and one of the guys finally said, `Last time I saw him, he was in the bathroom in the gym.’ I said, `Why didn’t anyone say anything?’ and they said, `Well, after we got going, we didn’t dare to tell you.”
Parady called the gym and talked to a custodian.
“He said, `There’s a kid who’s gone around the building three times and he’s going nuts.’ [Hall] thought it was a joke. He was pretty red-faced when he arrived. Either his family or someone got him up there. I never did find out, but we never left anyone behind again.”