BANGOR — It’s been happening for years, and will probably happen again this coming week: Sometimes basketball teams walk into the Bangor Auditorium and are simply overwhelmed by the experience.
The Gardiner girls were the victim Saturday afternoon. Although the Tigers played their game in the second half against top-ranked Presque Isle, there was no overcoming a disastrous first half. Presque Isle led by 25 at halftime and eased to a 48-27 victory in an Eastern Class B quarterfinal.
“Once we got past the first quarter, we played a lot more comfortable,” Gardiner Coach Mike Gray said. “And we still made mistakes we don’t normally make and missed shots we don’t normally miss. We were just overwhelmed. I kind of feared that might happen.”
The Tigers finished their season 12-8 after going 5-13 last season. It was the first appearance in the quarterfinals for Gardiner since 2004, when the Tigers played in Eastern Class A.
Gardiner committed five straight turnovers to open the game and trailed 6-0 before getting off a shot. Presque Isle forced 18 turnovers in the first half, with many of them leading to layups. The score was 20-3 after one quarter and 33-8 at halftime.
“I thought the whole first half we played awesome,” said Presque Isle Coach Jeff Hudson, whose team is 18-1 and will face No. 4 Nokomis in the semifinals at 3:35 p.m. Wednesday. “I thought they were quick when I saw them in person, but we were very quick today, and we attacked the basket like we needed to.”
Presque Isle sophomore Meredith Stewart scored 12 points on inside baskets and free throws, and Karlee Bernier hit three 3-pointers and finished the game with 11 points.
Gardiner’s leading scorer was Jenna Moore with eight points. Kelly Macomber and Carly Pelletier each pulled down seven rebounds for the Tigers.
The Wildcats pushed their lead to 41-10 at the beginning of the second half but didn’t play well the rest of the day despite having some starters on the floor until the final minute.
Gardiner ended the game on a 17-7 run and, with Pelletier the only senior on the roster, the Tigers are hoping that the end of the game will be a stepping stone to next season.
“I’ve been saying since the middle of the season, when we were 4-5: I couldn’t be happier,” Gray said.
“This is the most fun I’ve had with a group of kids. I couldn’t be prouder of how hard they’ve worked. I really couldn’t be any happier with the progress we’ve made.”
Matt DiFilippo — 861-9243
mdifilippo@centralmaine.com
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