Hampden Academy junior guard Aubrey Shaw knows that sometimes how you start a basketball game is more important than how you finish it.
Shaw asserted herself from the outset of Friday night’s Class A North quarterfinal against Lewiston, sandwiching two 3-point shots around a pair of free throws to give Hampden Academy an 8-0 lead less than two minutes into the game.
The Broncos held Lewiston scoreless with smothering defense and dominant rebounding, taking a 13-0 lead after one quarter.
Shaw buried a right baseline jumpshot to make it 15-0 at the start of the second period and the Broncos cruised the rest of the way, rolling to a 35-18 victory over the Blue Devils at the Augusta Civic Center. Shaw led all scorers in the game with 16 points.
“We knew we had to come out aggressive on defense and look for our shots,’’ Shaw said.
No. 2 Hampden (15-4) advanced to face No. 3 Camden Hills, a 59-31 winner over Brunswick, in the semifinals.
No. 7 Lewiston finished with a 9-10 record. The Blue Devils were led by 6-foot-4 freshman center Emma Madore’s 6 points and 8 rebounds.
Hampden’s defense held Lewiston to 8-for-42 shooting in the game and helped force 19 turnovers.
Naia Studley chipped in with 8 points for the Broncos.