BANGOR, Maine — The undefeated streak continues for the top-ranked Ellsworth boys basketball team after the Eagles beat No. 8 Presque Isle 54-48 Saturday evening at the Cross Insurance Center.
The Eagles (19-0) advance to the Class B North semifinals, 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Cross Insurance Center, where they will face No. 4 Old Town (13-6), which won a thrilling 59-57 overtime game against No. 5 Mt. View.
Presque Isle gave Ellsworth all it could handle, keeping the game under double digits for much of the contest. The Wildcats cut the lead to 52-48 with a 3-pointer with 14 seconds remaining, but could not bridge the gap.
Chance Mercier led the Eagles with 25 points, while Gage Hardy chipped in eight points, Hunter Curtis added seven, Eamon MacDonald and Brett Bragdon both had four, and Brody Mercier and Michael Palmer each had two.
For Presque Isle, Malachi Cumming had 17 points, while Noah Yarema added 11, Xavier McAtee had nine, Jackson Maynard and Jack Hallet both scored four, and Dawson Beaulieu had three.
“We really felt that there was no way we were going to outscore Ellsworth if the game was in the 80s,” Presque Isle coach Terry Cumming said. “We tried to pack the zone in and force Ellsworth to shoot from the outside. [Hunter] Curtis was a tough matchup for us inside.”
Presque Isle’s Malachi Cummings played most of the game with a sore Achilles, which limited him, according to his coach.
“We had to be careful with him, and go by what the trainer said,” coach Cummings said of his son. “She told him not to jump. That’s tough, but we won’t use that as an excuse.”
The Eagles struggled from the free throw line, making just 13 of 24 foul shots (54 percent). But Ellsworth made them when they needed to down the stretch to keep Presque Isle at bay.
“I couldn’t be more proud of my boys, they played Ellsworth very tough and Ellsworth is one great basketball team,” coach Cummings said.
The Wildcats end their season at 10-9.