WMHS basketball

Wiscasset girls still putting in work during tough stretch

Wed, 01/10/2018 - 9:30am

With four games over six days, the Wiscasset Lady Wolverines knew they had their work cut out for them. With the first game of the week on the road against Boothbay, Wiscasset dug in.

The Jan. 3 game against Boothbay was a tough way to start the week, as Wiscasset (0-10) got down early, eventually losing 58-25. The Seahawks are out to an 8-0 start this season and stand fourth in Class C South girls varsity basketball. Led by senior center Page Brown, Boothbay ran off the first 16 points of the game, getting out to a 21-6 lead after one quarter. Brown scored 14 of her game high 16 in the first half, and Chloe Arsenault added 14, combining for a great inside-outside attack that Wiscasset couldn’t match or stop. 

After being outscored 38-8 in the first half, Wiscasset played a much more balanced second half, aided by some extended second unit time for the Lady Seahawks. Wiscasset’s Grace Webber scored all 11 of her points in the second half, as Wiscasset was only outscored 20-17 in the final two frames. Sydnie Thayer hauled in nine boards and had seven steals in the losing effort. Maeve Blodgett finished with six points, and Lindsey Gordon with four. For Boothbay, Glory Blethen finished with eight points, and older sister Faith chipped in seven. 

 Wiscasset’s Head Coach Ben Clark found positives in his team’s showing. 

“I was really pleased with our girls’ effort. They really never stopped playing, which is hard to do in a game like that. Boothbay is a really good team and to have our girls compete the way they did really made me proud.”

Friday night, Wiscasset hosted Class B Lisbon (3-5), hoping to snap the losing streak. However, Lisbon point guard Giana Russo had other ideas, going for 20 points en route to a 46-26 road win. Aided also by Carly Drischler’s 12 points and Webber’s early foul trouble, the Greyhounds got out to an 18-11 halftime lead. Webber had two fouls in the first two minutes of the first quarter, forcing Clark to take her out and significantly handicapping the team’s options given its limited depth. Wiscasset could not close the gap in the third despite having its best offensive output of the game, as Russo outscored Wiscasset on her own, 12-11. For the Wolverines, sophomore Jade Rego led the way with 10 points, while junior Sydnie Thayer finished with seven points, nine boards, and five steals. Webber added seven points and seven rebounds in the loss. 

“We simply turned the ball over too much and in critical times. We also committed some bad fouls and got into foul trouble leading to unfavorable matchups. Again, our girls never gave up and competed the entire game,” said Clark. 

After playing Friday night, Wiscasset was on the road Saturday morning by 10:30 a.m. to Jay for a makeup game with Class B Spruce Mountain (5-4). Wiscasset only trailed 14-6 at the half. However, the third quarter proved to be the decisive blow, as the Phoenix outscored 29-7, on their way to a 52-20 victory at home. Thayer led Wiscasset with five points, nine rebounds, and four steals, while Rego added four points and five steals. 

Finally, the Wolverines traveled to Class C Mt. Abram Tuesday night, Jan. 9, where they dropped their closest game of the week, 41-35. The Roadrunners (5-4) got up 25-11 at the end of the half, but Wiscasset outplayed them in the second, besting the home team 24-16 the rest of the way. However, Wiscasset couldn’t erase the early deficit. Thayer tried, scoring 14 points and grabbing seven rebounds, while Gordon added eight points and six rebounds, and Blodgett had six points.

It doesn’t get any easier for Wiscasset, as it hosts second ranked Monmouth (9-1) on Thursday night, Jan. 11 at 5:30 p.m. for junior varsity and 7 p.m. for varsity. They will then travel to Dirigo (0-9) Saturday night, with the same game times.