DISHS 2018-19 boys varsity basketball team. By Anne Berleant
The 2018-19 boys Deer Isle-Stonington boys basketball team includes, in front, from left, Thomas Thompson, Natha Thompson, Myles Brown and Sam Knowlton. In back are, Coach Donald Allen, Dakota Emerick, Dillan Steele, Alex Schmidt, Zachary Billings and Coleman Brown. Not pictured: Toby Snow and Tommy Hutchinson.
Deer Isle—The girls return all but one of the players from last year’s team that went undefeated and lost in the semifinals of the tournament. This means that expectations are high. We have to find the consistency that we struggled with at times last year.
The seniors are Lily Gray and Kaley Eaton, both who have played for several years.
The juniors are Katie Hutchinson, Brienna Limeburner, Brittany Gray, Ella Marshall, and Deja Benner. These players have been to the Bangor floor two years in a row.
The sophomores are Kaylee Morey, Riley Eaton, Taylor Hardy, Makayla Lebel, and Peyton Rice. As with the juniors, these players all contributed to last year’s team.
The lone freshman is Maggie Bubar. She will be helped by all the experienced players to get up to varsity speed.
This team should come out of the gate firing on all cylinders. Coach Randy Shepard will adapt a slightly different style of play without the inside height that we had last year with Orly Vaughn. We have inside players and a lot of speed to rotate players off the bench without sacrificing any quality.
Look for us to be aggressive on defense and press well. We have several good ball handlers and solid outside shooting which should open up the inside as well. We have been able to have a couple scrimmages, so that helps get battle tested. We need to be challenged more so that we don’t get lackadaisical against weaker opponents. This team will be fun to watch, so come on out to the games.
The boys basketball team gets a fresh start this season with a new coach and a young team. With only two players that saw major playing time last season, we will have to get up to speed quickly. Don Allen is the new coach with much experience coaching the George Stevens and Bucksport girls varsities amongst other coaching jobs. We will certainly have a new look this year.
The only senior is Tobey Snow, who is the captain and will play at forward.
The only junior is Thomas Hutchinson, who has not played on varsity but will play at forward.
Three quarters of the team are sophomores. Myles Brown did play a lot last year and looks to be point guard, Nathan Thompson will also spend time at point guard, Sam Knowlton and Coleman Brown will see time at guard, and Dakota Emrick, Zach Billings, and Dillan Steele will play at forward.
Freshmen are Thomas Thompson and Alex Schmidt.
These initial designations are subject to change as the season develops as will the players. Coach Allen is happy with our progress so far after only a couple weeks of practice and a scrimmage with Narraguagus. He feels the team is working hard and is playing well together under the leadership of captain Tobey Snow.
Because we have lost the strong inside game of Mason Oliver from last year’s team, Coach Allen will use our speed and depth to press hard and run fast in transition. We have a strong outside shooting game and should be able to shoot over any zone defenses we might see.
We rebounded well against a taller Narraguagus team and will have to get a big effort from everyone on the boards. We have until December 11 for our first game, so Coach Allen will keep working on the combinations that work well. This team will control their own destiny, and I think the chemistry in the large sophomore class will pull together as the season unfolds.
2018-19 DISHS girls basketball team. Courtesy of Tracie Morey
The 2018-19 Deer Isle-Stonington High School girls basketball team includes, in front from left, Brittany Gray, Kaylee Morey, Brienna Limeburner, Lily Gray, Maggie Bubar and Kaley Eaton. In back are Rylee Eaton, Ella Marshall, Katie Hutchinson, Sadie Rice, Peyton Rice, Taylor Hardy and Makayla Lebel.