Ashland, Calais defeat unbeatens GHCA, Lee suffer first losses

Two more undefeated girls basketball teams went down Wednesday night as Calais and Ashland knocked off Lee and Greater Houlton Christian Academy, respectively, after losing to both teams earlier in the season.

The Blue Devils beat the Pandas 63-61 in an Eastern Maine Class C matchup, while it was a banner night for the 8-3 Hornets. They not only picked up a point-worthy win in Eastern Maine Class D by beating the Eagles 80-54 but also saw senior center Mindy Chasse score her 1,000th career point and senior guard Whitney Flint pour in 43 points, including 13 in the third quarter.

GHCA, now 11-1, was ranked No. 3 in the most recent Heal point standings.

The 26-point spread Wednesday looks big, but Ashland coach Bill Nemer recalled a game two years ago against the Eagles in which Ashland led 30-14 at halftime but wound up with a loss.

Ashland had a 38-24 lead at halftime Wednesday.

“[Current GHCA coach Terry Cummings’] kids don’t give up,” he said. “I knew they were going to keeping coming right at us. I didn’t feel comfortable until the final buzzer.”

Not only had Nemer experienced a GHCA comeback first hand, but he also was worried because Chasse had fouled out with 4:40 left in the third quarter. She needed just two points to reach her 1,000th, which she did in the first quarter, and she wound up with 15, all in the first half.

When Chasse picked up her fifth foul, Nemer went to backup center Jade Tilley, who starts on the junior varsity team, and relied on her for a while.

“She did a great job,” Nemer said. “She grabbed a ton of rebounds.”

Then there was Flint, who drained 18 of her 26 field-goal attempts, including five 3-pointers. Her 43 points were the most Nemer can recall from an Ashland girl since former Hornets standout Liz Coffin, who went on to star at the University of Maine, scored 54 in a game in 1983.

“I had no clue [during the game],” Nemer said of Flint’s final tally. “All I knew was that we had won the game. It was quite a feat.”

Senior guard Sarah Riopel and junior forward Kari Brewer each scored 17 points for GHCA, which made it to the Eastern Maine Class D semifinals last year.

The Eagles beat the Hornets 52-28 earlier this season. Nemer hadn’t been happy with how Ashland was playing early – which he theorizes may have been because of the long soccer season the Hornets underwent.

Ashland played soccer until Nov. 7, when the Hornets lost to Richmond 5-2 in the Class D state championship game.

Recently, Nemer said, his squad has found more intensity and has turned things around. But he doesn’t want the win over GHCA to be the pinnacle of the Hornets’ season.

“We were very excited,” he said. “But we don’t want this to be the most exciting thing that happens all year.”

Lee, the team that went on to win the Class D state title in 2007, was 7-0 before falling to Calais Wednesday. The Pandas were atop the most recent EM Class C standings.

Coach Bob McShane’s Blue Devils (6-4) rallied from a 51-42 deficit at the end of the third quarter thanks in part to Courtney Hill, who scored eight of her 15 points in the fourth quarter.

Hill, a 5-4 junior guard, scored 10 points in the teams’ first meeting, a 62-32 Lee victory on the first Saturday of the season.

Kelli Cross, a 5-8 junior forward who had just one free throw in the first matchup, led all scorers with 19 points while Nicole Osborne, a 6-foot sophomore center, had 18.

The Pandas had four players in double figures Wednesday, including a team-high 18 points from 5-9 senior forward Karin Bird.

It was Lee’s first loss since Feb. 9, 2007, when Washington Academy of East Machias beat the Pandas 67-60 in the final game of the regular season. Lee went 15-3 before rolling through the tournament to the state title.

jbloch@bangordailynews.net

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