The Houlton 5-6 grade Shires captured first place in the Shire Invitational Tourney March 30 to April 1 at the Houlton Recreation Department.
The Houlton Black basketball team defeated the Holden Thunder in the championship game, 49-35.
According to coach Paul Cleary, the Houlton boys found themselves down at one point, 19-2, to Holden before they started hitting shots and playing tougher defense to bring the score to within five at halftime, 26-21.
The Houlton boys came out in the third on a mission and ready to play, said Cleary. The Shires took the lead and held a 12-point cushion, 43-31.
In the final period, both teams played equally, with the Shires holding on for the victory.
Houlton Black finishes the tourney 6-0 and the season 32-2.
On Friday, Lincoln topped Houlton White, 50-40 and Presque Isle bested Oakfield, 41-30.
In a full slate of games Saturday, Houlton White edged Oakfield, 44-36; Caribou raced away from Fort Kent, 47-21; Houlton Black routed Presque Isle, 59-37; and Holden double upped Oakfield, 53-21.
Also, Lincoln defeated Fort Kent, 62-30; Holden took a slim 49-44 win over Caribou; Houlton Black overpowered Fort Kent, 63-31; Caribou overtook Presque Isle, 74-35; Lincoln toppled Holden, 50-35; and Houlton Black beat Houlton White, 53-33.
On Sunday, No. 4 Caribou ousted No. 5 Houlton White, 72-30, while No. 1 Houlton Black toppled No. 8 Fort Kent, 65-28; No. 2 Lincoln picked up a 41-33 win over No. 7 Oakfield and No. 3 Holden raced by No. 6 Presque Isle, 56-21.
In other action, No. 1 Houlton Black edged No. 4 Caribou, 39-34, while No. 3 Holden got by No. 2 Lincoln, 38-31, setting up the consolation finals and championship game.
No. 4 Caribou defeated No. 2 Lincoln, 50-35, and Houlton Black won the tournament with a 49-35 win over Holden.
The final standings were: Houlton Black, 6-0; Holden Thunder, 4-2; Caribou Vikings, 4-2; Lincoln All-Stars, 4-2; Houlton White, 1-3; Presque Isle, 1-3; Oakfield, 0-4 and Fort Kent, 0-4.
The Houlton White team coached by Joe Porter includes Nick Brewer, Keegan Gentle, Nolan Porter, Pat Howe, Andrew Tuttle, Matt Tuttle, Cameron Callnan, Cole Winslow, Ben Grant and Colby Callnan.
The Houlton Black team coached by Paul Cleary and assisted by Paula and Chris Mooers includes Isia Bouchard, Dylan Carmichael, Mitchell Turner, Zach Hagan, Daniel McNally, Nathan Mooers, Cameron Cleary and Nick Perfitt.
The Oakfield All-stars, coached by Joe White, includes Dylan Crockett, Jonathan Hardy, Logan Markie, Gage Nelson, Stephen Radcliff, Gavin Caron, Jayden Burpee, Garrett Siltz, Vern Anderson, Jakob Malone and Morgan Kinney.
