Old Town’s Evans, Dexter’s Peach, SA’s Cami Shields top girls All-Tourney teams
By Larry Mahoney, Bangor Daily News Staff
Old Town High School senior forward Saige Evans, whose 26 points and 16 rebounds led her Coyotes to a 58-42 victory over defending state champ and undefeated Ellsworth in the Class B North championship game, was an overwhelming choice as the recipient of the Owen Osborne Most Valuable Player award in the 2024 B North tournament.
Dexter senior center Mazie Peach edged out senior teammate Hannah Dean to repeat as the C North MVP and Southern Aroostook senior guard Cami Shields was a decisive Osborne winner for Class D North.
The award was established in 1994 in memory of the late former Bangor Daily News sports editor and columnist.
Joining Evans on the B North all-tourney team were her teammate, senior guard Makayla Emerson, Caribou junior guard Madelynn Deprey, Ellsworth junior forward Grace Jaffray and Mount Desert Island senior guard Mollie Gray.
Peach and Dean were accompanied on the C team by teammate Abby Corson, the Tigers’ junior point guard, Penobscot Valley of Howland junior guard Ellie Austin and Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln sophomore center Addison Cyr.
Shields was joined on the D team by her sophomore sister Ally Shields, Southern Aroostook senior forward Emmalee Landry, Wisdom senior guard Lilly Roy and Katahdin High of Stacyville senior guard Hunter Hartsgrove.
The teams were selected by media members and tournament officials.
Class B
Evans was a first-team selection a year ago and averaged 16.3 points and 10 rebounds per game in the Coyotes’ three victories.
Her performance in the final was critical because sophomore guard Taylor Loring, an all-tourney pick a year ago, couldn’t play due to a knee injury.
The athletic Evans ran the court and attacked the rim and was also a tenacious defender.
Evans led the Coyotes to their first Class B North championship and second regional title. The 1980 team won the Class A North title.
Emerson had nine points and five rebounds in the title game after being the hero in the come-from-behind 37-35 victory over Mount Desert Island in the semifinals. Her foul shot tied the game and her driving layup with 2.5 seconds left was the game-winner. She finished with 15 points and six rebounds.
Jaffray and Deprey each had outstanding tournaments to earn their second straight all-tourney berths.
Jaffray averaged 14.7 points per game and had 14 points and 11 rebounds in the semi final win over Caribou. She scored in double figures in all three games. She was also an effective defender on the inside.
Deprey, a sleek guard who can score from anywhere and is also a good distributor, produced 25 points in a quarterfinal win over Belfast and had 20 points and 11 rebounds in the loss to Old Town.
Gray also had an exceptional tournament as the talented guard had 15 points and five rebounds in the loss to Old Town after notching 19 points, eight rebounds and two assists in the quarterfinal win over Maranacook of Readfield.
Class C
Peach, Corson and Austin are repeat selections.
The 6-foot-2 Peach averaged nine points, 8.7 rebounds and 4.3 blocks to lead the Tigers to their second straight regional championship.
Peach had 12 points, seven rebounds and two blocked shots in the 28-23 victory over Penobscot Valley High School in the title game.
She had nine blocked shots in the quarterfinal win over Mount View of Thorndike and her post presence and shot-blocking ability altered shots and keyed a stellar Dexter defensive showing in which the Tigers’ limited their three opponents to an average of just 23 points per game.
The hard-working Dean complemented Peach nicely in the paint, crashing the boards aggressively. She averaged 11.3 points and six rebounds per game. She had a team-high 18 points and seven rebounds in a semifinal win over Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln.
Corson averaged six points and four rebounds per game while also turning in three outstanding performances directing the Dexter offense as the point guard. She was also an efficient defender.
Austin was the catalyst for the Howlers as she averaged 9.3 points, 10 rebounds and three steals per game. She had double-doubles in their wins over Hodgdon and Fort Kent and was also a top-notch defender with her long reach and anticipation.
Cyr was a force in the paint.
She averaged 23 points and 10 rebounds per game. She poured in 28 points in a quarterfinal victory over Machias and followed that up with 18 points and 12 rebounds in a semifinal setback to Dexter.
Like Peach, she also altered shots with her defensive presence.
Class D
Cami Shields, an all-tourney choice last year, did it all for the Warriors in leading them to a sixth consecutive regional championship.
She averaged 24.7 points per game to go with 6.7 rebounds, 6.3 steals and 3.3 assists.
Several of her steals turned into easy transition baskets as the Warriors’ swarming pressure defense forced tons of turnovers.
She was one of two repeat selections along with Roy.
Sister Ally also had a memorable tournament as she produced 18.3 points per game along with 3.3 rebounds, three steals and three assists.
She had 23 points in the title game win over Katahdin and did a terrific job guarding Hartsgrove, limiting her to four points.
Hartsgrove had poured in 36 points in the quarterfinal win over Central Aroostook of Mars Hill and 22 in the semi final triumph over Wisdom en route to her all-tourney berth. She was also a quality ball handler and a good rebounder.
Landry complemented the Shields sisters with her all-around play.
She averaged 10 points per game and was a good rebounder, averaging 4.3 boards. She also averaged two steals.
Roy scored 18 points and also had six steals and three assists in Wisdom’s quarterfinal win over Bangor Christian with seven of her points coming in the fourth quarter to help give the Pioneers some valuable breathing room in the 38-28 win.
Roy scored a game-high 23 points and added four steals and eight offensive rebounds in a loss to Katahdin in the semifinals. She also turned in an outstanding floor game.
Full list of 2024 girls B,C,D North high school basketball all-tourney teams|
Class B
Saige Evans, Sr., F, Old Town (MVP)
Makayla Emerson, Sr., G, Old Town
Madelynn Deprey, Sr., G, Caribou
Grace Jaffray, Jr., F, Ellsworth
Mollie Gray, Sr., G, MDI
Honorable mentions: Lizzie Boles, Ellsworth; Abby Radel, Ellsworth; Alexis Degrasse, Old Town
Class C
Mazie Peach, Sr., C, Dexter
Hannah Dean, Sr., F, Dexter
Abby Corson, Jr., G, Dexter
Ellie Austin, Jr., G, PVHS
Addison Cyr, So., C, Mattanawcook
Honorable mentions: Cally Gudroe, Dexter; Lily Oliver, Fort Kent; Lila Cummings, Penobscot Valley
Class D
Cami Shields, Sr., G, Southern Aroostook
Ally Shields, So., G, Southern Aroostook
Emmalee Landry, Sr., F, Southern Aroostook
Lilly Roy, Sr., G, Wisdom
Hunter Hartsgrove, Sr., G, Katahdin
Honorable mentions: Mia Mills, Jonesport-Beals; Ayanna Lester, Katahdin; Madison Shields, Southern Aroostook