Eaton keys ’Cat victory over Vikes
By Kevin Sjoberg
Sports Reporter
CARIBOU — An unexpected source provided plenty of firepower for the Wildcats in Friday’s regular-season finale.
KARSON EATON 
of the Presque Isle Wildcats gets inside of Caribou’s Cody Herbert for a layup attempt during Friday’s game. Eaton scored 21 points in PI’s 60-47 victory.
Junior Karson Eaton, who had entered the game against the Vikings averaging less than four points per game, torched Caribou for 21 in a 60-47 come-from-behind victory.
Eaton nailed six three-point field goals and helped give Presque Isle a huge advantage in bench points.
“Our bench came up big,” Cummings said. “Karson was huge and continues to improve and gain confidence.”
The Wildcat reserves scored 19 of their team’s 22 first-half points to stay within striking distance.
With senior forward Tyler Brooks and junior center Brad Shields both on the bench throughout the second quarter with foul trouble, Caribou was able to take a four-point lead into intermission.
The Viking lead grew to seven midway through the third quarter before PI coach Terry Cummings called a time-out. The momentum shifted dramatically from that point on.
“We used that timeout to refocus on the task at hand,” Cummings said. “We knew that we had to turn up the intensity on the defensive end.
“The guys answered the call.”
Presque Isle outscored Caribou 34-14 the rest of the way to earn a huge victory in a game that matched two of the top five teams in Eastern Maine Class B.
Wildcat substitutes ended up outscoring Caribou’s by a 33-5 margin, which was key as PI battled foul trouble throughout.
Brooks had a big second-half for the Wildcats after sitting a majority of the first 16 minutes of play. He tallied 13 of his 15 points after intermission.
“Tyler showed why he is considered one of the best players around,” Cummings said. “He had some great moves on the low block and showed tremendous amounts of heart and desire.”
Senior point guard Jonah Stephenson was held to just nine points, but he still played a major role in the contest by handing out 12 assists.
Cummings said the team’s defense came through with a huge effort, especially in the late stages of the game.
“Our ability to contain [Dayne] Savage and hold him to only two points in the fourth quarter was huge,” he said.
“Dayne creates so many things on the floor, but I thought we mixed things up just enough to keep them a little off balance.”
Savage ended up with 15 points to lead Caribou, which fell to 13-5.
