The Bangor Christian High School girls basketball team were the top seed in the Class D North Tournament a year ago only to get upset by fourth seed Schenck of East Millinocket in the semifinals.
But the Patriots didn’t have sisters Mary and Annie Allen, who transferred in from Central High of Corinth this season.
Mary Allen poured in 28 points in the first half and she also had four steals, three assists and two rebounds as the unbeaten Patriots went on to post a comfortable 87-27 victory in their Class D quarterfinal at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor on Monday afternoon.
Allen finished with a game-high 42 points which is the most in any of the girls tournament games, all classes, at the Cross Insurance Center so far this year. She also had five rebounds, five steals and three assists.
“My teammates were getting me shots,” said Allen, a 1,000-point career scorer who will play for Waterville’s Colby College next season. “We were moving the ball really well and I was getting a lot of wide-open looks.”
She said her teammates had extra motivation after losing to Schenck a year ago.
“They had a chip on their shoulders,” said Allen, who came two points shy of her career-high that she posted at Central last season.
“Mary is an incredible player,” said Bangor Christian first-year head coach Brock Bradford. “She can score, she can defend, she distributes. She does it all. That’s why she is a Miss Maine (Basketball) semifinalist. She’s a leader and a great person.”
Freshman guard Maris Kowalski had 16 points, five assists and two rebounds and sophomore guard Annie Allen had 12 points and two rebounds. Freshman guard Rivers Bradford had six points, three assists and three steals.
Senior Harlee Sprague finished with 10 points and six rebounds to conclude an outstanding career for Schenck. Ellora Peavey had seven points and four rebounds. Abigail Hutchins and Molly Lagasse had four points each.
Bangor Christian broke the game open with a 14-0 run in the first quarter and never looked back, taking a 43-16 lead into the halftime intermission.
The 19-0 Patriots will now look to beat fourth seed and defending state Class C champ Penobscot Valley of Howland, 14-5, for a fourth time this season in their semifinal on Wednesday morning at 11:30.
Eighth seed Schenck concluded a 7-12 campaign.
Sophomore Annie Allen had six points in the first half and Kowalski and Bradford had five and four points, respectively.
Bangor Christian’s swarming full-court press forced 21 first-half turnovers that produced several easy transition layups.
