Warriors escape Capers clutches

WELLS — The Wells girls basketball team is becoming known for having a flair for the dramatic.

The Warriors, down 21-16 at halftime, came back to defeat Cape Elizabeth 40-36 on Tuesday night.

Tuesday was not the only game this season where the Warriors have had to battle back in order to win.

“Our team is of the mindset that we’re never out of a game,” Wells head coach Don Abbott said. “Of our 11 wins, that’s nine of them now that we’ve either been trailing in the fourth (quarter) or trailing after halftime. We like the comebacks, I guess.”

“We just have this thing where we like to fight for it,” Wells forward Mariyah Heath said. “We just leave it on the line. ”¦ It’s interesting to watch, that’s for sure.”

With the win, Wells is now 11-4. As of Tuesday night, the Warriors were ranked No. 6 in Western Maine Class B.

The two teams are similar, which created the close game, Cape Elizabeth coach Chris Roberts said.

“We don’t have height, and they don’t really have height,” Roberts said. “I don’t know if it’s a motivational thing, they’re a great group of competitors. We respect what Don’s done with his kids, and for whatever reason, we match up well. They have some great post players and my kids take pride in shutting them down and you leave it up to the other kids to make shots.”

Heath, a senior, scored 10 points and grabbed nine rebounds for Wells. Wells sophomore forward Alison Furness scored 10 points. Furness is leading the team with an average of 13.6 points per game this season.

Wells ran into early trouble in the first half. Heath, who grabbed six rebounds in the first quarter, quickly found herself in foul trouble, and had to sit on the bench for much of the second quarter.

After clinging to a 14-12 lead at the end of the first quarter, the Warriors only scored one basket in the second, and missed Heath battling under the boards. The Capers (3-12) took advantage by outscoring Wells 9-2 in the quarter, heading into halftime with a 21-16 lead.

“We’re a different team without (Heath),” Abbott said. “She kind of anchors the floor out there for us. Mariyah brings that senior leadership to the table.”

The Warriors responded by outscoring Cape Elizabeth 10-5 in the third quarter. Heath helped shut the door on the Capers in the fourth, scoring five points, sealing the win.

“You could tell down the stretch that she wanted the ball in her hands,” Abbott said. “She had a couple of nice moves around the basket, made some free throws late.”

Also contributing offensively for Wells were the Moody sisters, Abby and Nicole. Abby scored eight points, while Nicole added six.

Kayla Raftice and Kate Miklavic each scored eight points to lead the Capers.

“The golden rule is to score in the 40s, you’ve got to hit 40 (points),” Roberts said. “We give such great effort, and the defense is pretty good. We just can’t put enough points on the board on offense. We missed some stuff that you wish you had a second look at. But it was a well-played game.”

The Warriors have three games left in the regular season, and still have opportunities to improve their ranking before the playoffs begin. Wells plays against Falmouth, Traip Academy and rival York to close the season.

Falmouth is just below Wells in the standings, while the Wildcats have the same number of wins as the Warriors. York won the first encounter between the two schools, 49-32, on Jan. 12.

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