PARIS — Oxford Hills exploded in the third quarter on the backs of big performances from Ella Pelletier and Sierra Carson en route to a 70-40 victory over Lewiston in Class AA North girls basketball action Wednesday.
The Vikings and Blue Devils both started out with cold shooting from the field.
Lewiston’s Natalie Beaudoin and Koral Morin both hit an early 3-pointer to take a quick 6-4 lead in the first quarter, but the Blue Devils struggled to shoot from the field for the rest of the period.
The Vikings finished the final four minutes of the first quarter on a 17-2 run thanks to aggressive defense that accumulated five steals and instant points on the other end.
Carson nearly finished the first half with a double-double, amassing eight points and nine rebounds. The junior playmaker also tallied three assists.
“We just got beat up on the boards,” Lewiston coach Craig Jipson said. “They’re a great team and they just got second, third and fourth shots. I don’t know what their shooting percentage was but they got second opportunities and they’re definitely stronger. I liked that we didn’t go away… The kids showed a lot of heart sticking with it.”
Lewiston outscored Oxford Hills in the second quarter 11-10 thanks in part to Masya Way’s six points in the period, making it 30-18 Vikings at halftime.
The Vikings, and Pelletier in particular, were fueled during the intermission.
“(Ella) got a bit of a tongue lashing at halftime,” Nate Pelletier, Ella’s father, said about his daughter. “She’s still young and I don’t think she knows how good she can be, but she came out strong in the third quarter.”
In the third, Oxford Hills looked to increase its lead. Pelletier helped make it happen.
The freshman forward scored nine points and pulled in seven rebounds in the third quarter alone on her way to a 12-point, 14-rebound performance and led the Vikings to a 53-28 lead after three quarters.
Carson loved watching Pelletier’s third-quarter performance, as well.
“At the beginning, no one’s shot was going in but at the end, how strong she is, it was awesome,” Carson said.
Carson scored seven points in the third while also dishing two of her seven assists. The junior finished with 15 points, 14 rebounds and five steals.
“She could come out and have 30 points some nights but where she can help our team is dishing the ball to open people, playing defense, and really essentially the pace we want to play at comes from her,” Pelletier said about Carson. “Her speed is incredible, she loves to move the ball and we talked about it in the locker room. What was great about this game was how many assists we had. We started out cold, but we still found the open player.”
Even though she got in the paint many times, Carson was able to consistently find better shots for her teammates.
“Obviously, first, I try to get myself but if it’s not me, then someone’s going to be open,” Carson said. “Really, the first option would be myself but I get other people open and that’s what happened today. Everyone had a spot and they all came in pretty well.”
Beaudoin hit another 3-pointer in the third quarter en route to eight points on the night, as did Morin, who finished with a team-high 11 points.
Lewiston’s Ellie Legare, a sophomore, scored all seven of her points in the fourth quarter.
“We start three sophomores and two juniors and that’s what we have,” Jipson said. “They showed a lot of heart and it’s a long season.”
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