By Abigail Hunt
Staff Writer
On March 17, nominated basketball players from Aroostook County convened in Caribou to face off against each other in the 2009 Aroostook County All-Star Basketball Classic. The players were selected by the Aroostook County media based on their performances during the season. The girls, who played at 5:30 p.m., were divided into the white and pink teams.
BLACK TEAM – Playing for the All-Aroostook Black team were, from left, front, Chandler Brewer, Eric Brown, Jeremy Tarr, Tyler Robinson and Brad Trask; back, coach Bill McAvoy, Porter Gervais, Brandon Hopkins, Sam Robertson, Phil St. Peter, James Bates and Matt Harvey. Chosen for the team but not playing that night was Kaleb Dicker of East Grand.
Both the boys and girls games were divided into two 20-minute halves and players were rotated in every 10 minutes, five at a time. As the girls took the court, both teams seemed evenly matched but as the second half began, Team White pulled away. Neither team played too aggressively, though Kristen Espling of Team White sent her regular season Viking teammate Amanda Cyr of Team Pink to the foul line. At game’s end, Team White won 80-51.
The boys took the floor at 7 p.m. and were divided into the white and black teams. 
PINK GIRLS – Playing for the All-Aroostook Pink girls’ team were, from left, front Whitney Clark, Amanda Cyr, Kelsey Daoust and JaLisa Moore; back, Katie Ouellette, Taylor Hovey, Kaitlyn McLaughlin, Kallie Pelletier and coach Jim Carter. Absent from the photograph were Lainey Herring, who did play in the game, and Desiree Dow, who was unable to make the game.
There were less smiles and more fouls during the boys game, although both teams had a few laughs throughout the night. But concentration and drive motivated both the white and black team to play a good game, and the score remained tight heading into the second half. With two minutes left in playing time, Team Black led 84-81 but a 3-pointer from Bosse tied the game. Neither team would score again until the game moved into a two-minute overtime. Fouled by Team Black’s Bates, Martinez stepped up to the free throw line and netted both shots, pulling Team White ahead by two. With 20 seconds remaining, Bates put in a basket of his own and evened the score. But another last second 3-point goal from Bosse sealed the deal for Team White, who walked away with an 89-86 win.
WHITE TEAM – Playing for the All-Aroostook White team were, from left, front, Manny Martinez, Evan Richards, Nick McIntosh, Evan McCarthy and Andrew Forsman; back, Matthew Cresenzo, Russ Mortland, Andrew Dufour, Adam Derosiers, Brandon Bosse and coach Matt Rossignol.
WHITE GIRLS – Playing for the All-Aroostook White girls’ team were, from left, front, Jamie Pelletier, Emily Pelletier, Kari Brewer and Kellie Peers; back, coach Larry Worcester., Kasi Parker, Caitlin Escancy, Rachel Palmer, Hannah Cheney, Sarah Porter and Kristen Espling. Selected for the team but not playing that night was Brittany Charette.
