Girls’ basketball: Dirigo takes down Wiscasset

The Cougars played with the necessary high energy on Thursday, and pulled together when they needed to, scoring nine unanswered points to start the second quarter. Conant was the catalyst with two baskets, and fellow senior Olivia Noyes started the run with a basket and a free throw. Ashley Perrault (nine points, five rebounds) scored from inside to give Dirigo a 16-5 lead.

“It was our energy that kept us going,” Conant said. “We ran floor well tonight and had good ball movement.”

Dirigo made seven of its 12 shots, while holding Wiscasset without a shot in the second quarter. The Wolverines made just seven of 25 shots in the entire game.

Wiscasset made 4-of-8 from the free-throw line, but not much else and trailed 24-9 at halftime.

“Our intensity really helped,” Dirigo coach Rebecca Fletcher said. “We were able to press and (contest) them. The girls were not tentative like we have been. They didn’t hesitate.”

The results of the third period were almost the direct opposite of what happened in the first half. Wiscasset put together a 7-0 run and found itself back in striking distance. Gordon scored the first and last basket of the run, while Hayhlee Craig made a basket and free throw to pull the Wolverines within 10.

Dirigo made the first shot of the quarter, but then missed nine shots and turned the ball over eight times. The Cougars were held without a field goal until Sophia Jacques scored with 2:50 to go. Alexa Varnum (eight rebounds) and Perrault scored baskets with less than one minute left in the game.

Wiscasset (1-8) maintained its own pressure and pulled to within nine in the early stages of the fourth quarter. Webber stole the ball and went coast to-coast.

“In the first half we had come out flat. But, in the second half we stayed right after (Dirigo),” Wiscassett coach Ben Clark said. “We hadn’t been executing. This team has been Jekyll and Hyde; just when I think we are getting better, then we make mistakes. That’s what happens with a young team. We are undisciplined.”

Dirigo managed eight assists, but a glaring shortcoming was going just 13-for-35 from the free-throw line, including just 6-for-15 in the fourth.

“We have got to shoot free throws better, and several of the misses came on the front end of one-and-ones,” Fletcher said.

In turnovers, the Wolverines had 28 and the Cougars had 26.