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BANGOR – Based on the way Mount Desert Island guard Kara Horton calmly sank two clutch free throws in Friday evening’s Class B state championship basketball game, you’d think she was an old pro.
She’s not, the junior freely admits. In fact, Horton used the word “horrible” to describe her free-throw shooting.
But after coaching the Trojans against Gray-New Gloucester, MDI’s Burt Barker saw something else in her.
“Kara Horton’s a winner,” he said as the Trojans celebrated around him after winning their second straight state title. “She can shoot 25 percent all year long, and get in the big moment and shoot 80 percent. She’s a flat-out winner.”
Horton certainly didn’t show any free throw deficiencies in the matchup against Gray-New Gloucester. She made two shots from the line with about 15 seconds remaining to ice MDI’s 51-48 victory and lift the Trojans to the Class B state crown at the Bangor Auditorium.
Both MDI and Gray-NG entered the game, a rematch of last year’s Class B state final, with 21-1 records. And both teams were eager to face each other again.
“We wanted to come out strong,” MDI junior Shelley Gott said. “We listened to a lot of things they said about us on [an Internet message board] and we wanted to prove to them that we could beat them and we really were better than them.”
At times MDI looked better. But the Trojans let the Patriots back into the game late.
As it turned out, Horton’s free throws weren’t the winning shots. A Gott free throw with 26.7 left in the game was the difference because Gray’s Josalee Danieli scored with less than five seconds to go.
“We got down 10, we came back and it was a lot of fun,” Gray-New Gloucester coach Ken Butler said. “I think [Gray-NG] started moving more and realizing the court’s bigger, pass it around, take the 3, take the drive. They shot better. They really wanted to win.”
MDI had a 48-38 lead with 1:57 to go when Danieli put back a rebound, Dawn Ross hit a jumper, Danieli scored off a pass from Katie Skilling, and Skilling made a jump shot with 44.5 left to cap the surge and make it 48-46 MDI.
“Gray came back real well on defense,” Burt Barker said. “We went a little soft in the brain in the last minute or two. … I just thought we played tough, did what we had to do, made some big shots down the stretch, played with composure.”
A Skilling foul sent Gott to the line, where she made one of two with 26.7 left. Horton made her two shots about 11 seconds later.
“I don’t know,” she said with a shrug. “I never make them.”
The Trojans reeled off a 12-2 run in the fourth that eventually gave them a 44-33 lead. The difference in that surge? MDI, which has been struggling with outside shots lately, got a 3-pointer from Bracey Barker to start the run and another from Gott that ended it.
MDI was down early in the first quarter but got back into the game and had a two-point lead at the end of the first period. The Patriots took the lead briefly before Jenna Gordius put in a jumper to retake the advantage. An 11-2 run helped the Trojans get a 21-12 lead. Gray came back at the end of the half to cut the lead to four points.
In the third quarter the Patriots regained the advantage when Emily Baker hit a 3-pointer and Danieli put in a layup.
Tanya Kane responded with a jumper off a Horton pass, and MDI had the lead for good.
Eight Trojans scored at least two points. Point guard Barker, Burt Barker’s daughter, led MDI with 12 points. Gott added 11 points, six rebounds and four steals.
The Trojans played a 2-3 zone that bottled up the inside and made it tough for Gray-NG’s guards to get the ball to 6-2 center Katie Whittier. The UMaine-bound senior was 0-for-7 before she put in her first basket with 3:33 left in the second quarter. She scored eight points and had 10 rebounds.
Danieli, however, scored 16 points on 8-for-12 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds.
As expected, the Patriots played man defense, switching off to pay close attention to Barker. Baker opened the game guarding the 6-1 junior, and Whittier also guarded Barker at times.
“They face-guarded us so it was a little hard to get open, but once we had the ball and settled down it wasn’t too difficult to beat,” said Horton, who scored six points and was 4-for-4 from the line.
TROJANS 51, PATRIOTS 48
Gray-New Gloucester (21-2) Mount Desert Island (22-1)
Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG AF TP
Baker 3 8 0 0 8 Gordius 1 4 2
Young 2 5 0 0 4 Joy 2 5 6
Skilling 1 1 0 0 2 Horton 1 5 6
C. Whittier 0 2 0 0 0 Willson 1 1 3
Danieli 8 12 0 0 16 Gott 3 8 11
K. Whittier 4 13 0 0 8 Barker 5 12 12
Ross 4 8 1 2 10 Kane 4 7 0 8
Norwood 1 1 0 3
Totals 22 49 1 2 48 Totals 18 43 12 18 51
Gray-New Gloucester 6 18 31 48
MDI 8 22 32 51
3-pt. goals: Gray-New Gloucester (3-10): Baker 2-5, Ross 1-3, K. Whittier 0-2; MDI (3-5): Norwood 1-1, Gott 1-2, Barker 1-2
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