’Cat girls cruise into semis with win
By Kevin Sjoberg
Sports Reporter
BANGOR — The Presque Isle Wildcats proved on Saturday afternoon that they are on a serious mission to defend their Class B state title.
ON THE MOVE — Chandler Guerrette of the Presque Isle Wildcats dribbles through the Ellsworth defense during Saturday’s 75-26 victory in the Eastern Maine Class B quarterfinals. 
The undefeated and top-ranked ’Cats whipped fellow Big East Conference foe Ellsworth, 75-26, to make it into this afternoon’s semifinal round for a 3:35 p.m. date with No. 5 Mount Desert Island, who survived a scare against No. 13 Winslow earlier in the day.
“We wanted to play our style and showcase the type of game we want to play,” said PI coach Jeff Hudson. “We were out to show that we’re back again.”
Presque Isle established a new Eastern Maine Class B tournament record by connecting on 10 three-point field goals. The old record was nine, which was shared by Mount Desert Island (2003) and Nokomis (2011). Five of those three-pointers came in the first five minutes and 54 seconds of the game as the Wildcats broke out to a 26-6 lead at the quarter break.
Karlee Bernier ended up with four successful shots from long range in the contest, while Megan Ireland and Chandler Guerrette added two each and reserves Liza Buck and Laurin Ackerson had one each.
“I didn’t realize that we had set the record, so it was surprising,” Hudson said. “We’ve had some games where we’ve hit 11 or 12, so I thought it’d be higher. But it nice to be in the record books and it’s especially nice that it’s a team record.”
The Wildcats went on a 7-0 run early in the first quarter and added 18-0 and 11-0 runs later in the half. The result was a 39-12 halftime advantage. Presque Isle’s bench played the entire fourth quarter and still outscored the Eagles, 15-7.
Guerrette scored 17 points, while Ireland and Bernier had 12 each. Ireland also posted five steals and five assists. Meredith Stewart had eight of her team’s 32 rebounds. Ackerson and Krystal Kingsbury tallied seven points each off the bench.
The swarming Presque Isle defense forced Ellsworth into committing 32 turnovers and 30-percent shooting from the field. The Eagles’ leading scorer during the season, Morgan Card, was just one of nine from the floor and notched only two points – 11 below her average.
“I thought we played really well,” Hudson said. “Megan did a good job on Maddie Card (seven points) and Karlee and Krystal were the primary defenders on Morgan Card and held her down.”
Ellsworth also lost the two regular-season meetings against Presque Isle. The score was 79-38 on Dec. 28 at PIHS and 70-40 at Ellsworth Jan. 26.
The Wildcats meet up against another Hancock County school in the semis. The Trojans gave PI its two toughest games of the season. MDI led by four points at halftime of their 55-46 loss in Presque Isle Dec. 29, while the final score was 54-40 in Bar Harbor Jan. 25. No other regular season opponent got within 28 points of the ’Cats.
“We need to pick up the pace,” Hudson said of the strategy against MDI. “We have to contain Hannah Shaw. She’s a tough matchup and we have to do our best to control her.”
PRESQUE ISLE (75)
Ireland 5 0-0 12, Guerrette 5 5-6 17, Bernier 4 0-0 12, Ackerson 2 2-2 7, Williams 1 0-0 2, Buck 1 0-0 3, Graham 2 0-2 4, Girardin, Kingsbury 1 5-6 7, Nelson 3 0-0 6, Stewart 2 1-1 5. Totals: 26 13-17 75. 3-pointers — Ireland 2, Guerrette 2, Bernier 4, Ackerson, Buck.
ELLSWORTH (26)
Berry 1 1-2 3, Beal, Ma. Card 2 2-2 7, Langley 3 0-0 6, Firestone 1 0-0 2, White 2 2-4 6, Kinney, Mo. Card 1 0-2 2, Dow, Buzzell. Totals: 10 5-12 26. 3-pointers — Ma. Card.
Wildcats 26 13 21 15 — 75
Eagles 6 6 7 7 — 26
