Lady Vikings Stun Eddies

by Chris Marston
     
     
     AUBURN- “It was a typical Oxford Hills versus Edward Little style of game. First one to 30 wins,” Oxford Hills girls varsity basketball coach Nate Pelletier stated.
     
     Last Tuesday, January 26, the Lady Vikings and Eddies squared off in another one of their trademark defensive juggernauts, with the Vikings emerging with a 30 to 28 victory in a KVAC regular season showdown.
     
     The Eddies came into the game as the number one seed in the Eastern Maine Class A heal point standings. The Lady Vikings came into the game looking for a leg up on Hampden Academy and Cony for one of the final spots in the top eight, and a trip to the playoffs at the Augusta Civic Center.
     
     The win over the highly seeded Eddies catapults the Lady Vikings into seventh place in the standings with three games to play.
     
     “Without this win we would have had to win all of our remaining games to get into the playoffs. This win gives us a little room for error. But our goal is to win out,” Pelletier pointed out. The teams went to the locker room at the half with the Eddies clinging to a two point lead 16 to 14.
     
     The Eddies (12-3) were the first team to score in double-digits in a quarter when they outscored the Lady Vikings 10 to 6 in the third quarter, to take a 26 to 20 lead into the final quarter. Oxford Hills clamped down defensively in the fourth quarter. Combining that with six for 10 shooting from the foul line allowed the Lady Vikings to steal the lead in the closing minutes with a 10 to 2 advantage in the quarter.
     
     “On the last play of the game we had a defensive breakdown and they got an uncontested lay-up attempt. But they missed. So, somewhere the basketball gods were smiling down on us on that one,” Pelletier mentioned.
     
     Senior Lindsay Fox scored 10 points to lead the Lady Vikings (9-6) in the win, and senior Ali Nolan ripped down 10 rebounds.