Class A girls’ tourney is described as “wide open”

The South division of the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference has, over the course of the 2007-08 Eastern Maine Class A girls basketball season, proven the more powerful division of the league.

Powerful, that is, if you measure power in Heal points. Defending Class A state champion Cony of Augusta is the No. 3 seed for this year’s regional playoffs. Morse of Bath is No. 2. Oxford Hills of South Paris stays at the No. 5 spot. Brunswick and Edward Little are hosting prelim games.

But, as Bangor coach Tom Tennett said recently, no one wants to have to play a preliminary-round game against the likes of KVAC North teams such as Messalonskee of Oakland, Skowhegan, Nokomis of Newport, and Brewer.

Then there’s 17-1 Lawrence, the top-ranked team in EM Class A, and Tennett’s Rams, who are sitting in the No. 4 spot.

“I don’t think anyone wants to play a play-in game this year,” he said. “A team like Brewer, Nokomis, Edward Little [of Auburn], Certainly any of these teams could win. I think it’s the most wide-open tournament from top to bottom in a long time, not just 1-8 but 1-11.”

Until Cony loses, coach Paul Vachon’s Rams will probably be considered the favorite. They’re seeking their fifth straight EM title. Although Cony had to rebuild around senior center Rachael Mack after graduating two starters and losing another to injury, the Rams will take a 16-2 record into the postseason.

Cony is on a 10-game winning streak since a 36-31 loss to Oxford Hills on Jan. 4. In that run, the Rams have beaten Brunswick twice and Morse once, avenging an early-season loss to the Shipbuilders. Morse, which features stellar senior guard Jill Henrikson, wrapped up its regular season with a 15-3 record.

Jason Pellerin’s Lawrence squad is seeking its first regional title since 1994, which was Cindy Blodgett’s senior year. The Bulldogs have one of the top players in the state in Brogan Liberty along standout Alexa Bernatchez, and both have been among the top five scorers in the KVAC North.

Lawrence hasn’t lost since Dec. 21, when the Bulldogs fell to Morse 65-63.

Senior forward Amy Hackett has led the Bangor Rams in scoring, but things are spread out under her between senior guard Allie Clukey and sophomore forward Meagan Doucette. Senior guard Brooke Hackett has also come on strong lately.

Defense, however, is the Rams’ game. They’ve consistently held teams to less than 37-38 points per game and are comfortable in both zone and man-to-man.

Brewer, which beat Bangor in its last regular-season game, and a dangerous Nokomis team will need to win prelims to make it to the Augusta Civic Center.

But the talent is there for both teams. The Witches have two top front-court threats in junior Leah Jackson and senior Katie Kenney, along with sharpshooting point guard Meghan McLain. Warriors’ guard Kelley Paradis is one of the top players in the state and Nokomis has gotten strong play from Kara Batchelder and Jamie Lieberman.

Messalonskee, which will also play in a prelim, gives up a lot of points – but scores a lot, too, which makes the Eagles a threat. They’ve got a win over Bangor and two overtime wins over Brewer to their credit.