YBOA teams move on in states

The county Youth Basketball of America teams recently completed the first half of the two-weekend state tournament in the Waterville area.
    The 12-year-olds defeated the Central Maine Explosion in a close game, with a score of 31-28. Rachel Grew, of Mars Hill, and Alexa Massey, from Caribou, connected on foul shots with less than 30 seconds remaining to gain the win for the county. Grew led the team with 17 points; Massey scored five; Brake LaBelle, from Ashland, with four; Rebecca McDougall, of Caribou, had three; and Maegan Fitzpatrick, of Washburn, scored two points for the team.
In game two against the Miracle of Madison for the 12-year-olds, a dogfight exploded, as both teams traded baskets until the end. The county team went on a a 9-2 run and won 39-32. Grew scored 16 points; Massey had 8; LaBelle and McDougall both chipped in five points each; Olivia Garrison, of Mars Hill, scored four; Fitzpatrick aided the team with one point. Brea York, of Mars Hill had four steals in the win. These games improved the team’s record to 5-3.
For the 13-year-olds, in game one against the Central Maine Starzz, it was a thriller all the way. The local girls had a two-point lead with seven seconds left, but then the Starzz were given one shot from the foul line. The Starzz rebounded the missed shot and put the ball back in to tie it. With two seconds left on the clock, a shot from one of the county girls went around the rim and out to force overtime play.
The local girls only scored two foul shots during overtime and ended up with a 38-37 loss. This was the county girls’ third overtime game of the season. The top scorers for the game were Vicki McIntyre, of Mars Hill, with 14 points and Kayla Richards, of Presque Isle, with 12.
The girls knew that in order to advance, they had to pull out a win during game two against the Miracle of Madison. That was enough to really pull the girls together as they wound up with a 23-12 halftime lead. They secured the win with a final score of 46-30. Chelsea Nickerson, of Presque Isle and Richards both had 16 points each; McIntyre scored 10; Amanda Fogarty, of Houlton, scored two; while Becca Martin, of Fort Kent, and Kristen Long, of Mars Hill each threw in one point. This win pushed the county team into the championship round in the second half of the tourney. Their overall record is 4-4.
The 15-year-olds held on to an early lead in the first game against the Wave, and finished with a 42-31 win. Caitlyn Esancy, of Fort Fairfield, had an outstanding game, scoring 23 points. Vanessa Sanderson, of Houlton, helped by scoring 10 points; Suzie Poulin, of Ashland, chipped in three; and two points each were scored by Martha McPartland and Desiree Dow, both of Houlton, and Taylor Boucher, of Fort Kent.
In game two, the girls were against the Maine Hoops from the Portland area. The county girls were down 39-16 at the half and ended up on the short end, with a final score of 70-32. Esancy led the team with 18 points; Sanderson sunk in six points; McPartland scored four; while Dow and Boucher both had two points. The team was pushed to a 1-1 record and into the second weekend’s championship round.
Maine Hoops of Portland led the 16-year-old County girls 33-22 at the half and kept the pressure on throughout the game. The Portland team wound up winning 67-45. Although the local girls hit an amazing 17 of 22 foul shots, they could not contain the bigger Hoops team inside. Marissa Albert, of Fort Kent, and Alex Dame, of Mars Hill, both scored eight points each; six points were scored by Sarah Long, of Mars Hill, Erica McDougall, of Washburn, and Sarah Porter, of Presque Isle. Bringing in four points a piece were Kayla Day, from Mars Hill, and Amy Michaud, from Presque Isle; Rachel Torrey, of Woodland, scored 3 points.
The 16-year-olds found themselves in the same situation as the thirteen-year-olds, with a must win over the Falmouth Bombers in the round robin in order to advance. A constant full-court pressure was too much for the Bombers, and the county girls won with a great lead at 49-28. Albert had 16 points; Long scored 10; Michaud put in seven; Dame and Porter each had six; McDougall and Darryl Ann Girardin each sunk two points to help secure the victory. The win placed the county girls in the championship round and improved their record to 9-4.