Deer Isle-Stonington’s Lily Gray takes advantage of a screen set by Riley Eaton during a game against George Stevens Academy on December 7. By Jack Scott
Deer Isle—The girls basketball team beat George Stevens 55-42 on Friday, December 7, in Blue Hill. It was a game of two halves as we dominated in the first half with good shooting and full-court press to lead 31-10 at the half. About halfway through the third period, GSA started to pressure us and dropped in a couple threes to trail 44-30.
In the fourth period, GSA heaved in several threes to make it an eight-point game, but with a minute and a half left, we settled the ball and scored the last five points for the win. We kept our composure but our foul shooting in the last quarter left a lot to be desired, as we were only 5 of 12. We had balanced scoring with Kaylee Morey (12), Rylee Eaton (11), Brienna Limeburner (nine), Katie Hutchinson (eight), Lily Gray (seven), and Taylor Hardy (six).
The girls won a squeaker against Searsport on Monday, December 10, 41-39. We had a sluggish first half, not passing well and we trailed by five at the half. We pressed Searsport, but they were able to handle it without too many turnovers. We battled back in the second half to take the lead. We led by five points with a couple minutes left, so Searsport had to foul to get the ball back. Searsport cut the lead to three and got to the foul line with one second left. They made the first shot and missed the second on purpose but Brienna Limeburner grabbed the rebound—game over. We did not play our best but battled back and hung on for the win. Lily Gray led us with 13 points, Taylor Hardy 12, Rylee Eaton had seven, and Katie Hutchinson had five.
The girls get off to a good start with a couple wins. We are playing well with a lot of energy, but we need to keep our focus for all four quarters if we are going to be a top contender. I feel we have the talent and the motivation, so we just have to put it all together, especially in our offensive execution and foul shooting. This is a fun team to watch, so come out this Saturday and watch the game against Machias at 1 p.m.
The boys basketball team played against George Stevens Academy on December 11, losing 27-75. They play five games in the next week and a half, so we will have plenty of tests before Christmas. The only home game is against Machias this Saturday. With so little varsity experience, we will be a work in progress as we find our identity as a team. We need to use our hustle and energy to compete until we find our stride.