HAMPDEN, Maine — Two of the best defensive teams in Class A North squared off at the Hampden Academy gym on Monday afternoon.
And it was the Camden Hills High School girls basketball team from Rockport and its swarming full-court press that prevailed as the Windjammers earned a 44-30 victory over the Broncos.
The game was tied 17-17 at the half and 23-23 with 2:41 left in the third period before the Windjammers went on a decisive 14-0 run spanning the third and fourth quarters to break the game open.
The win was Camden Hills’ second over Hampden Academy and the Broncos had won 10 in a row between the losses to the Windjammers. Camden Hills beat the Broncos 48-33 in Rockport on Dec. 9.
The Windjammers have now won five in a row.
Both teams are 11-2.
The Broncos were without dominant 6-foot-4 senior center Grace LaBree due to a concussion. LaBree leads the Broncos in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage and blocked shots.
Senior guard Leah Jones paced the Windjammers with a game-high 15 points to go with six rebounds and four steals. Junior guard Thea Laukka had 11 points, five rebounds and four steals. Senior guard Maren Johnson had five points and four rebounds and sophomore forward Gabrielle Martin came off the bench to produce four points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
Junior guard Kate Adams hit three 3-pointers and paced the Broncos with 13 points, six rebounds and two steals. Fellow junior guard Aubrey Shaw had seven points, three rebounds and two steals.
Senior forward Zoe Higgins came off the bench to provide four points and seven rebounds and junior guard Eve Wiles produced four points, four rebounds and two steals. Sophomore guard Chloe Watson had five rebounds.
“The first half was really slow so, in the second half, we knew we had to come out and really put the pressure on their guards to force turnovers,” said Camden Hills coach Samantha Bragg. “Defense is the way we have gotten things done all year.
“We harp on defense. We want to get after it so we can score some easy baskets,” Bragg added.
It was the ninth time this season Camden Hills has held a team to 33 points or less.
“We stepped it up in the second half,” said Laukka with Jones in agreement.
“Our defense was a little iffy in the first half on our rotations and on the help in stopping their drives into the middle,” Jones said. “After halftime, we stepped it up a lot to force them to take outside shots rather than easy wide-open layups.”
Laukka noted that their defense fuels their energy on offense and also said they are able to apply relentless full-court pressure from start to finish because they have a strong bench “and we’re all in shape.”
“We handled their pressure well but we just couldn’t make shots. We shot 25 percent,” said Hampden Academy coach Nick Winchester. “They sped us up and when you get sped up, you can’t get into a rhythm.”
He also pointed out that the Windjammers took advantage of LaBree’s absence by grabbing 18 offensive rebounds.
“That wouldn’t have happened as easily if Grace was playing. That’s 18 less possessions and 18 fewer shots we would have had to defend,” Winchester said. “But we still had plenty of good looks. We just couldn’t convert them.”
The Windjammers began to pull away by scoring the last seven points of the third quarter on a pair of free throws by Hannah Stowe, one by Alison Sylvester, Martin’s basket off an offensive rebound and Laukka’s jumper.
Jones scored the first seven points in the fourth quarter with a 10-foot runner, a steal and traditional three-point play and another steal which eventually led to her foul line jump shot.
Both teams are on the road on Friday as Hampden Academy visits Edward Little of Auburn at 6:30 p.m. and Camden Hills is at Brunswick at 6.