Pirates right the ship to defeat top-ranked George Stevens

GUILFORD — Trailing 31-21 in the third quarter, Piscataquis Community High School used an 11-0 run to get back into a Jan. 14 Class C North girls basketball game vs. George Stevens Academy of Blue Hill. The Pirates then used a 11-4 scoring advantage in the fourth to earn a 45-41 victory over the top team in the regional Heal Point standings.
PCHS, who moved up from fourth to second place in the standings after Saturday evening, avenged a 52-33 loss to the Eagles in Hancock County on Dec. 13 and won the team’s seventh consecutive game to improve to 9-2. The Pirates also became the second team to hand George Stevens (9-2) a defeat in 2016-17, with the other being Class B Ellsworth High School.
After the Eagles went ahead 31-21 just over three minutes into the third quarter, PCHS head coach Brian Gaw called a 30-second timeout to settle his team. The break in the action worked as the defense kept George Stevens from finding the basket and soon Pirate junior Erin Speed sank a 3-pointer.
On the ensuing possession sophomore Sara Almirante stole the ball in the backcourt and she took it the other way for a layup. Almirante was fouled on the play and she sank the resulting free throw to complete the 3-point play as the George Stevens advantage quickly shrunk to four points.
Almirante kept the pressure on for another steal she turned into two to make the game 31-29.
“Those steals were kind of a gut punch,” Gaw said, as what was a manageable lead for George Stevens quickly fell apart.
The lead disappeared entirely behind another Speed three to give her team a 32-31 advantage behind the 11-0 run to close out the third quarter.
While PCHS had climbed out of the double-digit deficit, the game still had eight minutes to go. The Pirates and Eagles traded baskets to start the quarter before Speed again connected from beyond the line for her third three of the second half and fourth of the game.
Another field goal exchange kept the home team’s lead at four before Almirante made yet another steal. She dribbled up the court and found Speed under the basket for two and a 41-35 lead.
After a pair of stops at the other end of the court, PCHS spread the floor and ran about 60 seconds off the clock before a Speed layup provided a 43-35 advantage with 1:49 to go.
Speed would finish with a game-high 25 points, picking up 15 in the second half. “I just shot and it went in and I kept shooting,” she said, crediting her teammates for their ball movement.
Both teams would get points off of offensive rebounds, sophomore Alivia Hunt had the put-back for the Pirates for the team’s last two points of the night and to give her double-figures with 10 points scored, as the PCHS lead remained at six.
The Eagles went into a full-court press and Speed ended up getting fouled on a reach-in as the defense tried to swipe the ball away. Foul No. 7 put PCHS in the bonus as Speed walked across the court for the 1-and-1 with the clock paused at 24.3 seconds.
The free throw bounced off the rim but the Pirates returned the favor by going into a press to hurry the already harried George Stevens five. The rebound led to a jump shot to make the game 45-41 as an Eagle timeout stopped play with 13 seconds to go.
Speed was again fouled and awarded a trip to the line. The shot missed the mark but Hunt came down with the rebound. She passed to Speed who then got tied up with George Stevens sophomore Julianna Allen. The possession arrow was pointing in the Pirates’ direction with 2.6 seconds to go as the ensuing in-bounds ended play.
“They’re an excellent team, No. 1 for a reason,” Gaw said, as his players held George Stevens senior Morgan Dauk to just three points and one field goal in the second half after Dauk scored 15 in the first 16 minutes.
“It gives us a tremendous amount of confidence,” he said. “We played with everyone on our schedule and just knowing if you play well you can play with anyone.”
“The Heal Points are what they are,” Gaw added, as PCHS still has seven games remaining on the regular season season schedule.
“We know what we can do well and we know what we struggle at we need to work on,” Speed said.
On Friday, Jan. 20 PCHS is scheduled to host Greenville High School in a girls/boys doubleheader starting at 5:30 p.m. The evening will be the fourth annual “Fill the Gym For Childhood Cancer” event to benefit the Aliza Jean Family Cancer Foundation (http://www.alizajeanjustone.org and on Facebook). The organization has a mission to provide financial support for local families who have a child fighting cancer, and a goal of spreading awareness about pediatric cancer and to advocate for advancements in research and treatment.

GIRLS BASKETBALL
PCHS 45,
George Stevens 41
GSA 8 18 5 10 | 41
PCHS 8 11 13 13 | 45
PCHS: Speed 25,
Hunt 10, Almirante 8
and Harris 2.
George Stevens: Dauk
18, Crosby 7, Allen 6,
Smallidge 6, Charette 2
and Hutchinson 2.
Records: PCHS 9-2,
George Stevens 9-2.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
RAINING THREES — PCHS junior Erin Speed launches a shot from beyond the line over the reach of George Stevens junior Emma Crosby during a showdown between two of the top four teams in the Class C North Heal Point standings on Jan. 14 in Guilford. Speed had four 3-pointers, with three coming in the second half, for a contest-best 25 points to help the Pirates win 45-41 and move from fourth to second place in the standings behind only George Stevens following the victory.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
SKYHOOK — Sophomore Sara Almirante looks to shoot over George Stevens junior Marie Smallidge during Saturday’s contest. Almirante would make a pair of steals in the third quarter that both led to layups as part of an 11-0 run to help PCHS go from trailing 31-21 to leading 32-31 by quarter’s end.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
CAREFUL DRIBBLING — Pirate junior Bailey Lemieux finds some space in the George Stevens defense during the opening quarter.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
POINTS IN THE PAINT — Going up for two in quarter No. 2 is PCHS sophomore Alivia Hunt. Hunt would reach double figures with 10 points scored, all coming on shots from the low post.

Observer photo/Stuart Hedstrom
MEASURE OF REVENGE — Junior Lexi Harris shoots a jumper over George Stevens senior Morgan Dauk during the third quarter of the Jan. 14 game with her teammate sophomore Sara Almirante in the background. After falling at Blue Hill last month, the Pirates won the rematch on the team’s home court. For the moment the two teams are ranked at the top of the Class C North Heal Point standings, and a third 2016-17 meeting in the postseason could be a possibility.