Lady Shires on three-game winning streak

Pioneer Times photograph/Gloria Austin
BEHIND THE ARC — Houlton’s Marina Cameron fires up a 3-pointer as Caribou’s Katelynn Tardie contests the shot.
By Gloria Austin
Staff Writer
    The Houlton Lady Shires picked up three wins last week, as they are seventh in the recent Class C girls Heal Point standings, with a 6-2 record.
    On Monday, the Lady Shires avenged an earlier season loss to Stearns with a 59-39 victory. In the teams’ first meeting, Stearns won 56-38 on Dec. 27 in Millinocket.
    A big difference in Monday’s game was that Stearns’ Austrian exchange student Sigrid Koizar didn’t play due to sickness.
    “Without her, they are an average team,” said Houlton coach Shawn Graham. “With her, they are a contender.”
    Stearns led 12-11 to start the game, as Graham thought it took his players a little time to make adjustments to the missing Koizar.
    “We were unaware she wasn’t playing until almost game time,” he explained. “We made some quick adjustments both offensively and defensively as we had prepared for a completely different look solely for her.”
    After tweaking the game plan, the Lady Shires controlled the contest through the second and third periods, outscoring Stearns 34-14.
    “We were able to utilize a 1-3-1 full-court trap and caused many turnovers that resulted in some easy transition baskets,” said Graham. “We also rotated back into a diamond-and-one on Alexa Mooney, who is their best 3-point threat, causing some confusion on their part in the second half.”
    Graham noted that Sam Keegan did “an excellent job defending Mooney,” while Makala Folsom “played well with her defensive duties” of containing Stearns’ other guards.
    The Lady Shires had a well-balanced scoring attack, as “we got an overall team effort from everyone,” said Graham.
    Leading scorers were Tori Hanson with 23 points, including 7-for-9 from the foul line and 11 rebounds. Amanda Fogarty and Marina Cameron both were in double digits with 14 and 13, respectively.
    “Overall, it was a great week for us as Schenck and Stearns were both worth lots of Heal Points,” said Graham. “I really like the way the team is playing  approaching the midpoint of our season.”
    Last Thursday, the Lady Shires marred the Schenck Wolverines’ undefeated record, taking a 55-42 win on the road.
    The Lady Shires built a 27-18 halftime lead, but Schenck cut the lead to seven by the end of third, but Houlton held them off in the final quarter, outscoring the Wolverines 18-12.
    Fogarty led the way with 19 points, including 10-of-13 from the charity stripe, while Hanson racked up 16 points and Cameron finished with 13 points and eight steals.
    Free-throw shooting was the difference in last Tuesday’s game against visiting Caribou, as the Lady Shires dodged the bullet, holding on for a 49-42 win.
    The Lady Shires led the entire game, taking a 33-21 halftime advantage. Caribou cut the lead to six points after the third, putting pressure on the Houlton girls.
    “I thought we did a great job the first half with our 1-3-1 full court press and 1-2-2 half-court trap,” Graham said. “We were able to force Caribou into a number of turnovers and easy transition baskets.”
    In the final eight minutes, Houlton did not score a field goal, but held Caribou at bay from the free throw line, making 10-of-14 shots. Overall the Lady Shires shot 20-for-28 in the game, including Cameron’s 6-for-6 effort in the fourth and 10-for-12 effort for the game.
    “Caribou came out in a diamond-and-one defense on Amanda Fogarty, and although it was effective, other players really stepped up and provided some balanced scoring,” explained Graham.
     Cameron posted 20 points, while Hanson netted 17 and grabbed eight rebounds. Keegan added eight points and six rebounds.
    “Caribou made some good adjustments the second half and closed within a point with about a minute to go,” said Graham. “But they were unable to convert a couple of free throws before sending Cameron to the line (4/4) in the last 30 seconds.”
    Rebecca McDougal had 20 points for Caribou, 13 coming in the second quarter. Alexa Massey finished with 13 with six of those coming in the final quarter.
    “Massey’s points all were on nice left-handed drop steps off the glass,” noted Graham.
    Yesterday, the Lady Shires were scheduled to play at Mattanawcook Academy, while playing in Presque Isle on Thursday at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 16, the Houlton girls will host Fort Kent at 2:30 p.m.