Rec season ends with Lynx and Clippers winning titles

    PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — The fifth- and sixth-grade basketball leagues offered by the Presque Isle Recreation and Parks Department wrapped up recently with girls and boys champions being crowned.    In girls’ play, the No. 2 Sparks defeated the third-ranked Liberty, 16-14, to earn a berth into the finals against the Lynx.
Point guard Libby Moreau scored a bucket in each quarter, including what proved to be the game-winning layup with 10 seconds to play. Moreau finished with a game-high 10 points to pace the Sparks.
Destiny Carson, Alana Legassie and Anna Robinson chipped in with two points apiece.
Rebecca Rider scored eight points, including a buzzer-beating three-pointer which allowed for the slim two-point margin. Taylor Guerrette tossed in four points and Kamryn Gilmour added a hoop.
In the girls’ championship, Molly Kingsbury had a game-high 15 points, with teammate Elizabeth Collins recording eight and Paige McHatten adding a hoop, as the Lynx took the title with a 25-16 victory over the Sparks.
On the other side of the court, the Sparks played tough with Moreau leading the way with six points, Legassie adding five and Grace Bemis and Kacie Chapman both adding two. Anna Robinson chipped in with a foul shot.
In the boys’ quarterfinal, the No. 4 Heat matched up with No. 5 Celtics, with the Heat moving on with a hard-fought 33-32 triumph. This game came down to the final possession, but the Heat’s Jonah Hudson put the team on his back by recording a game-high 19 points. Ricky Goupille notched six more, Connor Albertson had four and Garrett Morneault and Zack Fletcher both added a hoop.
As for the Celtics, point guard Caleb Wheaton had 17 points to lead the way, with Brian Ellis adding his season-high seven, followed by Jacob Bonville with six and Iffy Sargent with two.
In the first of two semi-final games, the second-seeded Thunder raced past the No. 3 Bulls, 38-15.  The Thunder’s Erick Tompkins was just too much for the Bulls to handle as he scored 26, including 10 in the fourth quarter. Jacob Sjoberg added six points with Jacob Martin netting four and Ethan Jackson scoring on a layup.
For the Bulls, Colby Buckley led the way with six points, followed by Will Bridges with five and Carter Rice and Mark Graves with two each.
In the other semi-final game, the top-rated Clippers downed the Heat, 42-19. Clippers’ center Jason Dumais had a game-high 20 points, with Andrew Hewitt netting eight, Sam Beaulieu and Kyler Caron six each and Shane Baker a pair.
The Heat’s Hudson tried hard to prevent the loss by going 4 for 4 from the free throw line and canning three three-pointers in the fourth quarter, only to fall short. Hudson ended with 15 with teammates Goupille and Morneault both contributing hoops.
In the boys’ final, the Clippers’ Dumais recorded a game-high 23 points, seven of which came in the decisive fourth period, in a 35-28 win. Teammates Hewitt, Caron and Baker all added four points each.
For the Thunder, Tompkins led the charge with 14 points with Martin and Izack Sprowls both chipping in four points and Sjoberg recording a third-quarter hoop.
The game was a see-saw battle until the Thunder went on a 10-2 run in the third. Dumais stopped the burst by draining a pair of foul shots and stealing a pass on the Thunder’s next possession.
At the start of the final quarter, the Thunder enjoyed a three-point advantage until the Clippers’ stifling defense held the Thunder to two fourth-quarter points. Meanwhile, the Clippers added 12 points to their point total to be crowned the league champs.