staff writer
Last week, both Viking basketball teams came home with wins against the Shiretowners.
On Jan. 6, the Caribou boys’ team left Houlton with a narrow 41-40 win. The Shiretowners kept within two points of the Vikings during the first half, and fell behind in the third quarter.
Staff photo/Abigail Hunt
Tiger John McNamee avoids Panther opponents Kasey Brewer, left, and Manny Martinez, right, to make the shot in Fort Fairfield’s win against Central Aroostook.
Within eight minutes, however, they were almost able to match the Viking score, but fell short by one. For Caribou, Sam Roberston put away 16 points, with additional help from Cameron Anderson, who netted 14.
The Lady Shiretowners traveled to Caribou to take on the Lady Vikings, keeping a two-point lead as well until the second half, where Caribou crept ahead by 10. Amanda Cyr’s 16 points, two of which were 3-point goals, helped the Vikings to a 45-38 win.
On Saturday, the Viking teams went up against Foxcroft and lost. The boys’ 42-27 loss was gradual as Foxcroft Academy crept away from Caribou slowly, leading only by five at the end of the first quarter. But as the teams prepared for the last eight minutes of play, the Vikings were down 28-19. The Foxcroft Ponies defense limited Viking scorers Roberston and Anderson to seven points a piece.
The Lady Vikings had a closer attempt against Foxcroft’s girls’ varsity team. Emily Collins and Jenna Selander paced Caribou with six points each as the teams remained tied until the second half. From then on, it was a three point game, though the game’s only 3-pointer came from Cyr for Caribou. With three minutes on the clock, Foxcroft nailed two free throws, securing their win and Caribou’s loss.
In Fort Fairfield, the stands were filled to capacity as fans awaited to see how the undefeated Tigers would match up against the Central Aroostook Panthers, last year’s Class D EM Champions.
The Tigers took a 65-62 victory, but not without a fight. By the end of the first quarter, Panther senior Manny Martinez had banked two 3-pointers to tie the score 12-12 going into the second quarter. As both teams were given a bonus, they accumulated a majority of their points through fouls shots, but senior Douglas Sharpe knocked in a 3-pointer with one minute to go before the half, pulling the Tigers ahead 30-27. Moving into the third, Fort Fairfield was able to obtain a five-point lead from their opponent, as junior Josh Booth scored yet another 3-pointer.
With 1:17 to go before the buzzer, Fort Fairfield led by two. A foul on Tiger Travis Noyes allotted Fort Fairfield two free, successful, shots and though the Panthers refused to give up, making a free throw in the last few seconds of the game, the ‘ lead proved just enough to keep them at the top of Class D.
Leading offensively for the Tigers was Sharpe, with 13 total points, followed closely by Noyes with 12 and Booth with 11. In a night of repetitive 3-point attempts, Central Aroostook made seven, and Fort Fairfield put away five.
The Tigers traveled to Madawaska Thursday night, taking away a 58-45 victory. Fort Fairfield wasted no time jumping ahead, with a 13-point lead before the second quarter. Madawaska recovered though, bringing the game to a five-point difference moving into the fourth. Game-high points went to Noyes, who put away 24 for Fort Fairfield, and Austin Dufour and Sharpe added two 3-pointers to the score.
With a 51-44 win against Easton, the Tigers are still at the head of their class. Saturday’s game was relatively close with the Bears attempting to close the gap in the third quarter. But Booth dominated on the court, shooting three 3-point goals and surprising Easton with six steals throughout the game. Noyes was on fire with rebounds as he grabbed 10 from underneath the basket and put 10 points away for the Tigers as well.
In Monday night’s game at Limestone, the Tigers kept the Eagles under 20 before the half, only allowing a combined 10 points in the final two quarters. In the 79-30 win for Fort Fairfield, Sharpe had 17 points and Noyes put in 13. The Tigers were busy from the 3-point line as well, putting in seven total with help from A. Dufour, Dereck Dufour and Josh Churchill. For the Eagles, Brandon Hopkins led with three baskets for a total of 6 game points.
The Lady Tigers have also kept their undefeated title this week, playing Hodgdon last Wednesday and Limestone/MSSM on Saturday.
At Hodgdon, the Tigers held the Hawks off immediately and consistently, creating a 13-point gap before halftime and a final score of 54-31. Whitney Clark ended the game with 22 points, shooting four 3-point goals in the process, and Amanda Hotham followed with 11 points.
Closing out their week in Limestone, the Lady Tigers ended that game with a 39-16 victory.
In Washburn, the Beavers overtook the Eagles of Limestone/MSSM 52-40, with help from Nick McIntosh, who scored 22 points throughout the course of the night. Brandon Hopkins secured 21 points for Limestone, bringing the game to an eight-point difference as the teams moved into the fourth quarter. With help from Cody Frank and Matt Howe, the Beavers jumped ahead by 12 points before the final buzzer.
Washburn finished off Hodgdon 71-54 Friday night as McIntosh led the Beavers again with 28 points whose offense was reinforced by teammates Jordan McLaughlin and Connor Fitzpatrick who had 12 and 10 points respectively.
The Lady Beavers defeated the Lady Hornets of Ashland 44-22 on Saturday. Ashland’s defensive abilities limited Beaver Rachel Palmer to only 9 game points, but the Beavers remained ahead 20-14 at the half. Washburn sophomore Rebecca Campbell led the Beavers both offensively and defensively. With 28 points and 24 rebounds, Campbell was unstoppable, and Washburn limited Ashland’s high scorers Jessica Jimmo and Macie Pelkey to six points each.
Both Beaver teams traveled to the University of Maine, Presque Isle where they took on the Eagles from Greater Houlton Christian Academy Monday night. The girls started off the evening strong as Campbell and Palmer led Washburn with 22 and 12 points respectively. The Eagles played a strong defense, guarding Palmer until she was pulled in the third quarter. But she was put back in with minutes left to help the Lady Beavers take the 44-30 victory.
The boys took the court for Washburn following the girls’ win. Washburn led at the end of the first eight minutes, but struggled in the second quarter, giving up the lead to GHCA. McIntosh led the Beavers past the Eagles in the third, scoring 13 of 23 points and moving Washburn ahead by five. The Beavers overcame the Eagles 53-50.
Despite losing earlier in the week to Washburn and then again to Fort Fairfield, the Limestone Eagles came away with a 39-31 win over Van Buren Friday night. Van Buren had the lead at the end of the first with a score of 6-5 and although the two teams were tied at 26 heading into the final eight minutes, it was Limestone who came out on top with 15 points of help from Brandon Hopkins.
Staff photo/Abigail Hunt
Washburn sophomore Connor Fitzpatrick fights off Eagle Ted Bowers from stealing the ball in Monday night’s game.
