BANGOR– To win three straight titles, you need to have the heart and confidence of a champion, and of course a talented group of players.
The Houlton Shiretowners girls basketball team proved yet again that they have all of that. The Shiretowners went on a 10-0 run to end the game in a 42-31 victory over Foxcroft Academy in the Maine Principals’ Association class B North regional final on Saturday afternoon at the Cross Insurance Center. It is the third consecutive regional title for Houlton.
“This was the most difficult, we were stretched right to the max in the regular season right through the tournament. I felt coming in that any of six or seven teams that could win,”Houlton coach Shawn Graham said. “Each team showed that on a nightly basis. We had our hands full every game in the tournament.”
The Ponies never held a lead, but they tied the scored at 29 in the fourth quarter by going on a 12-2 run. Makayla Watson and Kolleen Bouchard combined to make three free throws to give Houlton a 32-29 lead.
Mackenzie Beaudry made a layup to cut the deficit to 32-31 with 3:40 remaining. The champs from Houlton took over from there. They scored the final 10 points of the game. Aspen Flewelling drilled a three pointer to start the rally.
Bouchard is one of the best players in the state, and she proved it again on the big stage. She recorded 16 points, 14 rebounds, and three assists.
“She (Bouchard) has a great basketball IQ. She plays a lot of basketball throughout the year,”Graham said. “We lean on her a lot. She can do just about anything offensively or defensively.”
The Shiretowners lost junior starter Kristen Graham near the end of the regular season with a season ending injury. Kristen is also the daughter of coach Graham. Houlton has needed others to step up with one of their leaders out. They have got that throughout the regional tournament.
“It was devastating. She (Graham) may not score a lot, but she does all the little things. She is a hustler, we needed someone off the bench to come in and hustle,”Bouchard said. “Last game, Abby Worthly came in and made some big shots. Today, Emma Peterson came in and made some nice hustle plays.”
Coach Graham added, “it changed everything, first and foremost the press break has really bothered us lately because she (Kristen Graham) was not only the in bounder, we also used her to reverse the ball.”
Rylee Warman put in eight points for the Shiretowners. Warman went 4-5 from the free throw line in the second quarter. Flewelling had six points (two 3-pointers) and seven rebounds. Makala Watson put in five points (5-6 FT) and five rebounds. Peterson had four points in the fourth quarter. Houlton (20-1) will play Gray-New Gloucester in the class B state title game at the Augusta Civic Center on Friday, March 3rd at 7:05 PM.
Grace Bickford led the Ponies with nine points, four rebounds, and two steals. Kendra Ewer added eight points, four rebounds, three assists, and three steals,while Abi Simpson scored six points and pulled down nine rebounds. Foxcroft finishes the season with a 16-5 record.
Thank you to the following businesses for sponsoring Eastern Maine Sports coverage of Tourney 2017.
