Lady Cougars Win Busline League D2 Crown

Great Salt Bay School girls’ basketball team won the Division II Small School championship Tuesday with a 47-37 win over Thomaston in Lincolnville. The Lady Cougars finished the season undefeated.

Thomaston jumped out to a 16-12 first quarter lead, before GSB buckled down on defense in the second frame, holding them scoreless to take a 22-16 lead into the half. The Cougars led 38-25 at the end of three, and led by 20 in the final period, before emptying their bench.

The Cougars didn’t press, but went with a tight man-to-man defense. “We struggled trying to press them the first time around. We did a better job the second period. We tried a 1-3-1 zone, but went back to man-to-man and did a better job with our help defense and sagging,” coach Dave Wilbur commented.

“Brianna Genthner, Isabel Carlson, Lauren Hunt and Bailey Plourde did a really good job inside, defending and rebounding. Our guards really handled their full court pressure. They [Thomaston] pressed almost the entire game, except for the third quarter.

“We had pretty good composure and were patient in the fourth quarter working the ball around and going into a semi-stall. It worked so well we got some easy baskets and extended the lead a little bit,” Wilbur said.

“We held them to 17 points in the last three quarters. We really stepped up our defense. Almost every one of our baskets was inside, from 10-12 feet. Our bench did a very nice job on defense,” Wilbur said.

“Brie Wajer was a force. Her and Sophie Schumacher did a nice job handling the ball. They did a really nice job containing MacKenna Brooks. Kalin Grover is a pretty strong player. Lauren Hunt, Brianna Genthner and Isabel Carlson did a nice job on her in the second half,” Wilbur added.

The Cougars’ team contains five sixth graders, including four starters. “This is the most talented group of kids I’ve coached. I’ve been able to do some things with them I’ve never been able to do in junior high,” Wilbur commented.

Scoring for GSB were Wajer 15, Schumacher 10, Plourde 8, Hunt 8, Genthner 4 and Christine Hilton 2. Scoring for Thomaston were Brooks 14, Grover 13, Mary Allen 8 and Jamie Brown 2.

GSB 38 – Hope 31GSB girls won their opening Busline League playoff game over Hope on Dec. 8. The Cougars jumped out to a 26-8 halftime lead and cruised to victory. Scoring for GSB were Brie Wajer 12, Sophie Schumacher 10, Bailey Plourde 8, Brianna Genthner 4 and Lauren Hunt 4. Leading Hope were Paige Morgridge 11 and Caity Agnor 4. GSB 37 – Appleton 31GSB edged Appleton 37-31 in the semifinals of Division 2 of the Busline League. The Cougars opened up a 10 point lead in the first half, before Appleton charged back to tie the score in the third frame. GSB retook the lead at the end of the third and maintained in the final quarter. Scoring for the Cougars were Wajer 15, Plourde 8, Schumacher 5, Isabella Carlson 4, Hunt 3, and Genthner 2. Scoring for Appleton were Katie Moody 13, Rachel Pease 8, Kristen Kiesan 5, Makayla Maxwell 2, Paige Widdercomb 2 and Brianna Flynn 1.