Houlton 5-6 grade boys undefeated: win AYBL title; outscore opponents

The 5-6 grade boys Houlton Black Aroostook Youth Basketball League (AYBL) team finished their season with a perfect 11-0 mark, as they defeated Presque Isle White, 32-26.
    Last Saturday, Presque Isle took a 5-0 lead early, but Houlton shook off the nerves for a 12-7 opening lead. The teams played evenly, according to Houlton coach Paul Cleary, through the second quarter with Presque Isle making two 3-pointers to keep the game close at halftime, 18-13. Presque Isle continued their hot shooting, making two more 3-pointers to close the scoring gap to a point, 22-21. In the last quarter, Houlton went on an 8-0 run behind Nate Mooers’ four points, building a 30-21 advantage. With the momentum, Houlton went on to win 32-26.
Pacing Houlton’s offense was Jacob Worthley with 11 points (two in the critical fourth quarter); Cameron Graham with eight points; Cameron Cleary, six points; Mooers four points; Joe Dobbins, two points and Colby Callnan, a point.
For Presque Isle, Hunter York and Grant Stewart each had six points, while Griffin Guerrette and R.J. Gross each had five points and Kyle Beaulieu, four points.
“Our team also played great defense in the game,” said coach Cleary.
This is the third straight AYBL championship for the Houlton boys, with the 3-4 grade players making it two in a row. The team’s record in three years is 29-2. The Houlton boys scored 517 points, which is 51.7 points per game versus their opponents, who scored 231 points or 23.1 points per game.