6-foot-6 Bunten provides big boost as Eagles defeat Devils for crown

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BANGOR – When the George Stevens Academy Eagles found themselves without a big gun (Lora Trenkle) just minutes into Saturday’s big game (the Eastern Maine Class C championship), there were some who shook their heads and predicted big trouble (a loss).

See a common theme emerging?

Everyone else did.

Because after point guard Trenkle picked up her third foul 6:57 into the first quarter of what would turn into a 59-50 GSA win over four-time defending champion Calais, things took a distinct change … for the bigger.

Bigger as in Michala Bunten – Kayla to some, Kay to others, and a 6-foot-6 helping of Uh-Oh to any Calais Blue Devil player who tried to drive the lane.

Bigger as in 13 points from Bunten, largely the result of lobs that were undefendable by a Calais squad on which 5-8 is tall. Bigger as in 13 rebounds. And bigger as in the stat of the night: Six blocked shots that spelled the demise of the Calais inside game.

The No. 2 Eagles (19-2), last year’s Class B champ, will face Western Maine champ Dirigo of Dixfield (21-0) at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Augusta Civic Center for the state title. No. 1 Calais finishes at 17-4.

After Trenkle joined him on the bench, GSA coach Larry Gray reined in the high-octane Eagles and got ready for a rough stretch.

“I think we go into survival mode at that point,” Gray said. “I got Kay off the bench as fast as I could and tried to get her to clog the middle, and then [I] put Nikki Allen at point guard.

“And then you just try to slow the pace down and get the ball inside as much as you can.”

With Bunten offering an inviting target for lobs from the perimeter and the rest of the Eagles crashing the backboards, GSA did the unthinkable without Trenkle manning the attack: They extended a one-point lead into an eight-point halftime cushion.

GSA never trailed after that and withstood the lone Blue Devil run, a 13-3 skein that peaked when Lanna Martin scored a layup on the opening play of the fourth quarter to make it 44-41.

GSA promptly reeled off the next nine points to put the Devils away.

The Eagles’ team effort on the glass resulted in a whopping 44-24 rebounding edge.

Nikki Allen said the Eagles hadn’t rebounded especially well at times this season, but knew that could be the key to winning a title in a “C” field that features several small, skilled teams.

“We knew when we went to the tournament every team we’d play is small, and if we went to the glass it would be good,” she said.

Nikki Allen finished with 13 points and seven rebounds, Mandi Allen added 10 points and six rebounds, and Trenkle finished with 10 points and six assists.

Ironically, the departure of Trenkle may have opened up the Blue Devils to the one thing Calais coach Bob McShane feared most: more Bunten.

With more minutes available, Bunten was on the court more than she’d been all tourney long as she made here return from a stress fracture.

“We knew Bunten – if she were able to play a lot of minutes – we knew that would be tough for us. And she was the difference inside.”

The sophomore-laden Blue Devils got 14 points from Morgan Drew, 13 from Katie Frost, nine points and nine rebounds from Lanna Martin and nine points from Nancy Feck. All four are sophs.

McShane said that despite the Blue Devils’ top seed in the tourney, he considered his team underdogs.

“George Stevens has been the team to beat all year,” McShane said. “We may have finished No. 1, but they’ve been my pick for the whole year.”

Eagles 59, Blue Devils 50

George Stevens (19-2) Calais girls (17-4)

Name G AG F AF TP Name G AG F AF TP

Clapp 0 1 0 0 0 Frost 4 11 4 4 13

N. Allen 3 15 6 7 13 L. Martin 4 13 0 2 9

M. Allen 5 12 0 0 10 Feck 4 5 0 0 9

Ashe 2 5 0 1 4 Redding 0 2 0 0 0

Wood 2 2 0 0 4 Drew 5 12 4 4 14

K. Horton 2 2 0 0 5 Welch 0 0 0 0 0

Trenkle 3 8 3 4 10 C. Martin 2 9 0 2 5

Bunten 6 10 1 2 13

Totals 23 55 10 14 59 Totals 19 52 8 12 50

George Stevens 11 30 44 59

Calais 11 22 39 50

3-pt. goals: George Stevens (3-11): N. Allen 1-7, K. Horton 1-1, Trenkle 1-3; Calais (4-17): Frost 1-4, L. Martin 1-4, FEck 1-2, Redding 0-1, Drew 0-2, C. Martin 1-4