Ellsworth went undefeated in Class B North the last two regular seasons, and on Monday night the Eagles made sure Old Town wasn’t going to do the same this year.
Playing in front of their ever-zealous home crowd, the Eagles (10-2) broke the Coyotes’ (12-1) undefeated streak to start the 2023-24 season, staving off a vicious second half comeback bid to hold on 62-58 and reassert themselves as a tournament favorite a few weeks from now.
Paced by 19 first half points from all-Mainer Chance Mercier, the Ellsworth Eagles took a 40-23 lead at halftime, which was quickly cut into by the Coyotes. By the end of the third, it was 47-39 Ellsworth, and three minutes later it was 49-44.
“Good teams are going to make a run on you, and they did,” Ellsworth head coach Peter Austin said. “They battled, and I like games like that. We pulled through, that’s all I can say.”
As Old Town progressively clawed back, tensions inevitably rose, finally boiling over with 20 seconds remaining in the fourth when Old Town senior Brendan Mahaney fouled Ellsworth sophomore Dawson Curtis at half court.
Down 59-56 and desperate for possession of the ball, Old Town was controversially whistled for an intentional foul rather than a common foul — giving the Eagles two foul shots plus possession — and effectively lost all hope for a comeback. Livid, Old Town head coach Garrett Libby was then called for a technical foul, sending Ellsworth’s fanbase into a frenzy.
“It wasn’t pretty, but a win’s a win.” Austin said.
Chance Mercier led all scorers Monday night, with 10 field goals and 27 points. Junior forward Hollis Grindal added nine points and three offensive rebounds for Ellsworth, and junior forward Brayden King contributed eight points, two assists and an offensive rebound off the bench.
Old Town won the 3-point shooting battle handily, nailing 10 from beyond the arc compared with Ellsworth’s five. Mahaney led all Coyotes with 21 points (four threes) plus three assists, three offensive boards and a steal. Junior forward Emmitt Byther tacked on 14 points.
After Monday night’s result, Old Town still owns Class B North’s No. 1 seed, with Ellsworth and Orono (10-3) right behind at 2 and 3. The Coyotes beat the Eagles 64-52 at home on Jan. 4.
“It feels good beating Old Town. This is our gym, and we protected home court,” Mercier said. “Going forward we can’t let up. We gotta step on that gas all the way to states.”
