DYER BROOK, Maine — Two weeks ago, the Southern Aroostook and Hodgdon girls basketball teams played a spirited, and extremely close game when both squads were sporting undefeated records.
Thursday evening, the two teams met again, this time in the Warriors home gym at Dyer Brook, and at first it appeared that another close contest was in the works.
After a back-and-forth first half that featured six lead changes, the Southern Aroostook girls took over in the second half, outscoring Hodgdon 22-9 in the third quarter, en route to a 72-43 blowout victory.
“We made some adjustments offensively,” SA coach Cliff Urquhart said. “We put in a couple sets against the zone they played in the first meeting. And we got huge contributions from the bench from Ally Shields and Callie Russell.”
Cami Shields led the Warriors with 18 points, while Ally Shields chipped in 16 points, including four 3-pointers. Maddie Russell added 13 points and Madison Shields had 12 for the Warriors (14-0).
“It’s always a little easier to shoot the ball at home,” coach Urquhart said. “Defensively, we just tried to contain (Anna) Oliver as much as possible. We gave them multiple (zone) looks and then went entirely man-to-man in the second half.”
Oliver led all players with 21 points, while Marissa Dow chipped in 10 points for Hodgdon (11-2). The Hawks’ only two losses on the year are to Southern Aroostook.
DYER BROOK, Maine — January 28, 2022 — Hodgdon’s Monique Polchies comes down with a rebound during a Jan. 27 game against Southern Aroostook. The Hawks fell to SA 72-43. (Joseph Cyr | Houlton Pioneer Times)
DYER BROOK, Maine — January 28, 2022 — Hodgdon’s Marissa Dow (right) and Southern Aroostook’s Emmalee Landry grapple for control of the ball during a Jan. 27 game. Southern Aroostook beat Hodgdon 72-43. (Joseph Cyr | Houlton Pioneer Times)
