The Hermon Hawks faced off against the Maine Central Institute (MCI) Huskies in a class B semi-final matchup. The Hawks defeated the Presque Isle Wildcats to advance, while the MCI Huskies outlasted Oceanside in an overtime thriller to advance to this matchup.
Both teams came out fired up and ready to play. The first quarter featured a strong defensive performance by both teams, and the quarter ended with everything tied up at 11. Gavin McArthur led the scoring with seven points for MCI, while Garrett Trask chipped in four points in the first quarter for Hermon. The second quarter continued the theme from the first quarter, defense. After an intense quarter and half of basketball, Hermon narrowly held onto the lead at a 21-18 advantage over MCI.
The third quarter was where the game defining run was made. The Hawks came out sharp led by Isaac Varney, and their relentless defense. Varney chipped in eight third quarter points to give him 14 total through three quarters of play. The Hawks smothering defense was too much for the Huskies in the third as they could only score four points in the quarter, and the Hawks led 35-22 at the end of the third.
The fourth quarter featured more of the same, with a mixture of Hermon being able to handle the half court trap presented by the Huskies. Hermon cruised to the victory led by Isaac Varney who had 22 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. Cody Hawes also helped fill up the stat sheet with 10 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, and a steal for the Hawks. Gavin McArthur led the way for the Huskies with 12 points, while Jaroslav Ruta chipped in 7 points and 9 rebounds.
Cody Hawes (22) goes up high to get a rebound in a Hermon win over MCI on Saturday afternoon. Photo courtesy of Lisa Prescott
This game marks win number 42 in a row for Hermon, as they will advance to the Regional Final to take on the Caribou Vikings. The game is scheduled for Saturday afternoon at 3:45.
