ASHLAND, Maine – Coming back into the game in the fourth quarter despite a sprained ankle, Mindy Chasse helped the Ashland girls’ varsity basketball team squelch a comeback by Katahin and earn a 47-44 win Thursday night.
“If Mindy hadn’t returned, I think we’d have lost that game,” said head coach Bill Nemer.
Ashland opened up a 32-13 lead going into the second half, but Katahdin scored three straight baskets to cut the lead to 13. After calling a timeout, Ashland got possession and went for the long ball down court to Chasse, who went down in the rebounding action.
“We still had an 11-point lead going into the fourth,” Nemer said, “but [Katahdin] had the momentum and Mindy said she could go back in, so now I’m trying to tape her and they score another basket, and it’s down to five and I’m trying to get the assistant coach’s attention to call timeout and the fans are screaming to call timeout and I finally get the time out. Mindy comes back in the game, but they have enough momentum to cut the lead to four.”
The Lady Cougars came within one, but Ashland added a basket in the final seconds for the win.
“Mindy only scored one point from the free throw line after she went back in,” Nemer said, “but she does all the inbounds passes and helps run the offense, so it was a big boost for us to have her back in.”
Chasse led the way for Ashland with her 10th double-double of the season with 14 points and 14 rebounds. Whitney Flint added 10 and Suzie Poulin added eight. Crystal Cook earned all six of her points off three fast-breaks in the fourth quarter that helped keep the Lady Hornets in the lead.
Ashland improves to 12-5 on the season and moves into fourth place in Eastern Maine Class D girls’ basketball. The team travels to third ranked Limestone Community School/Maine School of Science and Mathematics for their final game of the season Friday. The preliminary round of the playoffs begins Tuesday. Should Ashland earn a home game in the first round, the game will be played at Presque Isle High School.
Washburn 49, Van Buren 30
In other girls’ hoop action, Washburn earned their eighth win on the season with a 19-point margin over Van Buren Monday night.
The Lady Beavers took a 12-3 edge on their home court in the first quarter and never looked back though the Lady Crusaders climbed back to within six by halftime. Kelsee McLaughlin led the way with 12 points and 13 boards followed by Alex Bird with nine points and five steals. Rachel Palmer netted eight.
Megan Lajoie led Van Buren with 15 points and Kristen Vaillancourt added 11.
The Lady Beavers improve to 8-7 on the season and into sixth place in Eastern Maine Class D. The team plays a pair of back-to-back games to end the season, traveling to Van Buren Thursday in a 6:30 p.m. start and hosting Hodgdon Friday night at 7.
Katahdin 50, Fort Fairfield 49
The Lady Tigers lost senior guard and point leader Kerri Cunningham to a knee injury in a close game at home against Katahdin.
Fort Fairfield jumped ahead 12-6 in the early going but fell behind in the second quarter when Cunningham went down with a season ending ACL injury. The Tigers were outscored 20-4 in the quarter and found themselves down 14 by the end of the third quarter. A furious comeback by the Lady Tigers saw the team pull within one but the Lady Cougars squeaked out with the win.
“The kids didn’t quit and we got it down to one and had a chance to go ahead but had a couple of turnovers in the last 20 seconds,” said Fort Fairfield head coach Larry Gardner. “It was a tough loss on both accounts … We’ve had more injuries this year than in all the years I’ve coached … We’ve had to have our freshmen and sophomores step up and that’s asking a lot at this point, but we need to keep working and competing. As I tell the kids, ‘Never give up!’”
Ronni Robinson paced Katahdin with 15 points followed by Kayla Stevens with 12.
Heather Hathaway led Fort Fairfield with 10 followed by Caitlyn Esancy with nine. Kaitlyn McLaughlin added seven.
The Lady Tigers went on to post a 72-44 win over Madawaska Monday night. Hathaway paced the team with 27 points including three from the three-point arc. McLaughlin chipped in with 10.
Ashley Cyr led Madawaska with 15 followed by Kallie Pelletier with 12.
Fort Fairfield moves to 9-8 on the season and into 12th place in Eastern Maine Class D. The team plays their final game at Washburn Wednesday starting at 7 p.m.
Presque Isle 43, Caribou 40
Angela Norsworthy sunk 13 of 19 free throws and the Lady Vikings in the second Presque Isle/Caribou game in Caribou last Tuesday. The senior center put up 21 points to pace Presque Isle.
The Lady Wildcats came back from a 7-2 first-quarter deficit to take a slim 13-11 halftime lead. Caribou stayed within three through the third quarter and that was as close as they’d come.
Sarah Porter added 13 for Presque isle.
Amanda Cyr led Caribou with 15 points and Kristen Espling added 13.
Presque Isle improves to 10-7 on the season and moves into eighth place in Eastern Maine Class B. The Lady Wildcats wrap up their season, hosting Fort Kent tonight at 7.
