Skowhegan girls look to build on upset win vs. Cony

With two undefeated Class A girls basketball teams set to meet Wednesday in Newport, the coaches of the Nokomis and Hampden squads might look to a game between undefeated teams from last weekend.

The Skowhegan girls pulled off the biggest upset of the season so far with a 64-61 victory over Cony Saturday. Although the Indians have been eyed as one of the top teams in the state this year and the game was in Skowhegan, the Rams are the defending Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference champs and Eastern Maine runners-up, and hadn’t lost a regular-season contest since 1999-2000.

Hampden and Nokomis will be in a somewhat similar situation – the Broncos are expected to advance in the tournament this year, and the Warriors are the defending Class A state champions.

Skowhegan coach Paul True said he has emphasized that the Indians emphasize what they can do for themselves rather than worry about the opposition – no matter how strong the opposition is.

“Basically we try to get the kids to understand that the other team can’t beat us, we can only beat ourselves,” he said after Monday’s practice.

The keys for Skowhegan, True said, were outstanding ball movement and patience in finding good shots (which kept the Rams in a defensive mode and out of their high-tempo offensive game), and the play of unsung Indians like Carmen Ballard and Mary Berry.

“They really got a body on some people to set screens for our shooters,” he said.

The Indians came out in a three-quarter-court zone trap, of which the Rams immediately took advantage for an early lead. True had his team mix up man-to-man and zone defenses.

Several Cony players ran into foul trouble and Skowhegan responded at the free-throw line, going 16-for-21 in the game. A well-rounded offensive effort – Tiffany Jones scored 20 points, Ashley Hilton had 14 and Sarah Davis added 10 – certainly helped.

One thing True doesn’t want to see is a letdown in the Indians’ next game.

“We’re excited, but we’re ready to play Mt. Blue [Tuesday],” he said.

Serdjenian heading to Brown

Waterville High soccer standout Christine Serdjenian will take her offensive skills to Brown University next year. The striker was accepted early decision to the Providence, R.I., school and will play for the Bears.

“I’m really excited about it,” Serdjenian said. “I have relatives in Rhode Island and they really encouraged me to look there. I had a really good visit there. I really liked Providence, and I wanted to go someplace more urban.”

Serdjenian said she visited the University of South Carolina for a soccer camp but liked the feel of a smaller, more academic environment. She also looked at Tufts, Williams and Amherst colleges.

Serdjenian scored 25 goals and had 14 assists for the Panthers last fall. She is a three-time Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference all-star and has twice been named all-New England and All-America by the Maine High School Soccer Coaches Association.

The Bears are coached by Phil Pincince, who has skippered the team since 1977. Brown went 3-11-1 last season.

Stearns players suspended

Two starters for the Stearns of Millinocket girls basketball team have apparently been suspended for a few games.

Stearns principal Paul MacDonald would not comment on the situation other than to say the problem was dealt with and the girls will return to the lineup next week.

MPA news

Several spring and fall sports will face slight changes in 2002, approved by the membership of the Maine Principals’ Association recently.

The membership voted to increase from six to eight the number of baseball pitchers who may begin early workouts for the 2002 season. For softball, the membership approved a change that allows eight pitchers and two catchers to start practice one week earlier. Previously, all softball players reported on the same day for preseason workouts.

The MPA field hockey committee is recommending leagues throughout the state consider reducing the number of games scheduled during the season, which would eliminate the need for teams to schedule three or four games in one week.

The MPA membership voted to shorten the golf preseason from three weeks to two due to the lateness of the season.