OLD TOWN- Sage Evans scored 21 points, and Makayla Emerson poured in all 19 of her points in the second half on Tuesday evening as the Old Town Coyotes rallied from behind to defeat the Ellsworth Eagles 61-58 at MacKenzie Gymnasium in a matchup of Class B North girls basketball unbeatens.
Old Town (5-0) only enjoyed one lead in the entire first half, and that was an easy layup by Taylor Loring after the opening tipoff. A three-pointer by Lily Bean for the first points for Ellsworth sparked a 7-0 run, and the Eagles led 16-11 after one quarter and then built it to a 29-19 halftime advantage behind 15 points from Grace Jaffray. Ellsworth still had a 10 point lead in the third before Old Town made their first second half push. Three-pointers by Loring and Alexis Degrasse pulled them within 35-31, and a late Emerson three-pointer her third of the period sliced it to 44-42 headed to the fourth quarter. The Eagles regained some momentum scoring six of the first seven points of the fourth to extend their lead to 50-43, and that is when the game turned and the Coyotes took over for what was an eventual win. The rally was started by a Evans three-point play, followed by another three-pointer by Emerson, and then a fast break three-point play by Gabrielle Cody to cap off a 9-0 run and push the hosts in front for the first time since it was 2-0 at 52-50 with 2:52 left. After the teams traded some turnovers, Jaffray put her team back ahead with one from long distance with 1:45 remaining 53-52. Emerson dialed another one up from three-point range that put Old Town ahead for good with 1:18 to go. A steal by Emerson and two free throws extended it to 57-53 with 1:02 showing on the clock. Jaffray made 1-2 from the line to get Ellsworth within one possession with just under 40 seconds, but Emerson would then ice it with two more from the line. The Coyotes shot 23 foul shots in the game (17-23), while the Eagles had just three attempts (1-3).
Evans added 10 rebounds and three assists to her team high 21 points in the Old Town win. Emerson had nine in the third quarter and 10 points in the fourth on the strength of five three-pointers on the evening. Loring also had 12 points. Jaffray finished with 24 points and eight rebounds in the defeat for 4-1 Ellsworth. Elizabeth Boles put in nine points and grabbed five rebounds, while Abby Radel and Addison Atherton contributed eight points a piece. The Coyotes return to action Thursday when they host MCI at 7 p.m., while the Eagles also are at home Thursday when they battle Orono at 3:30.
ELLSW (4-1) 16 13 15 14- 58
OTOWN (5-0) 11 8 23 19- 61
Rebounds- Ellsworth 23, Old Town 24
Free throws- Ellsworth 1-3, Old Town 17-23
Three-point goals- Ellsworth: Jaffray 3, Bean, Boles/Old Town: Emerson 5, Loring 2, Degrasse
Recap and photos courtesy of Chris Lessner
