BANGOR – The Ashland girls basketball team fought off the pressure of its own expectations as well as a feisty Katahdin of Stacyville team Thursday night to advance to the Eastern Maine Class D girls basketball final for the second time in four years.

The fourth-ranked Hornets built a lead of as much as 19 points midway through the third quarter, then endured an inspired Katahdin rally before earning a 45-35 victory in a regional semifinal at the Bangor Auditorium.

“There was a little added pressure on us today,” admitted Ashland coach Bill Nemer, “because we were the team as far as I was concerned that should be here and win this game.”

The victory advances the 16-5 Hornets to Saturday’s EM championship game at 9:05 a.m. against No. 2 Woodland, a 42-33 winner over No. 3 Central Aroostook of Mars Hill.

No. 9 Katahdin, which upset No. 1 Washburn in the quarterfinals, ends its season at 9-12.

Ashland’s 2-3 zone defense focused on Katahdin’s outside shooters, and held the Cougars to 23 percent (14 of 62) shooting from the field overall and just 17 percent in the first half as the Hornets built a 25-12 lead.

Katahdin had hoped to work its offense through center Kayla Stevens, but Ashland’s defense made it difficult for the lone senior on the Cougars’ roster to get the ball in position to pass it out to primary perimeter shooters Olivia McNally and JaLisa Moore.

“We just couldn’t get the ball inside to Kayla so she could dish it back out like she did in the second half and that hurt us,” said Katahdin coach Dick Barstow, “and we had some baskets that rimmed and went out and some layups that didn’t go in.”

Katahdin, meanwhile, used a triangle-and-two defense to slow Ashland stars Whitney Flint and Mindy Chasse, the Hornets’ lone seniors.

That duo combined for 30 points, but additional contributions by the likes of Suzanne Poulin and Taylor Baker also aided Ashland’s cause.

“We didn’t count on their role players coming through like they did, and that hurt us in the first half,” said Barstow.

Chasse led Ashland with 17 points and nine rebounds before fouling out in the fourth quarter, while Flint – who scored 35 points in the Hornets’ double-overtime quarterfinal survival of Greater Houlton Christian Academy – had 13 points and nine rebounds.

Olivia McNally led Katahdin with 12 points, 11 after intermission to spark the Cougars’ comeback. Stevens had 11 points and 11 rebounds, while point guard Melissa Duffy chipped in with six points and four steals.

Ashland outscored Katahdin 8-2 to open the third quarter and took its largest lead at 33-14 when Flint scored on a give-and-go pass from Chasse with 4:54 left in the period.

But Katahdin wasn’t done.

McNally twice took inside-out feeds from Stevens and made 3-pointers from the left wing to spark the comeback, initially to within 37-23 by the end of the quarter.

McNally’s outside shots opened up the inside for Stevens, who scored twice before the 5-foot Duffy scored after grabbing an offensive rebound to draw Katahdin within 39-33 with 3:39 left.

That was as close as the Cougars got, as Ashland’s defense stiffened and Chasse made four consecutive free throws to restore the Hornets to a double-digit lead.

“Mindy hit some big free throws,” said Nemer, “because if we don’t hit those it could have been scary.”

eclark@bangordailynews.net

990-8045

HORNETS 45, KATAHDIN 35

Katahdin (9-12) Ashland (16-5)

Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG AF TP

Rush 0 1 0 0 0 Good 0 0 0 0

Majkowski 2 4 0 0 4 Chasse 4 7 17

Duffy 3 10 0 0 6 Flint 4 11 13

McNally 4 15 2 4 12 Pelkey 1 2 3

Cyr 0 2 0 0 0 Jimmo 0 0 0 0

Moore 0 10 2 2 2 C. Cook 0 2 3

Heath 0 0 0 0 0 D’Ozier 0 0 0

Smallwood 0 0 0 0 0 Baker 0 3 0

Lane 0 0 0 0 0 M. Cook 0 1 0 0

Stevens 5 20 1 2 11 Tilley 1 2 2

Poulin 3 9 0 7

M.Donovn 0 0 0

Graham 0 0 0 0

W.Donovn 0 0 0

Orcutt 0 0 0 0

Totals 14 62 5 8 35 Totals 13 37 17 24 45

Katahdin 9 12 23 35

Ashland 16 25 37 45

3-pt. goals – Katahdin (2-12): McNally 2-7, Rush 0-1, Duffy 0-1, Moore 0-3; Ashland (2-11): Flint 1-4, Poulin 1-5, Pelkey 0-1, C. Cook 0-1