BATH

The defending Class A South regional champion Brunswick Dragons started Friday’s Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference girls basketball opener slow against Morse at Bath Middle School.

Down 2-0 with 5:50 remaining in the opening quarter after committing three turnovers and missing its first four shots, Brunswick coach Sam Farrell called a timeout, raised his voice a little and sent his team right back out on the court.

One minute later, the Dragons had a 13-4 lead, an advantage that grew throughout in Brunswick’s 88-17 victory over the Shipbuilders.

“They just weren’t being aggressive, and I wanted them to go out there and be aggressive and do our thing,” said Farrell of his timeout. “For two minutes we didn’t do the gameplan. After that, we did.”

Alexis Guptill made Brunswick’s first basket, and four possessions later, the Dragons (1-0) had a nine-point lead as Sabrina Armstrong nailed three 3-pointers, all from the passing of newcomer Marley Groat, a transfer student from Texas.

“We came out, worked hard, and did our job,” said Groat, who dished out six assists in the opening quarter as the Dragons extended out to a 21-7 advantage. “We picked up our intensity and knew what we needed to do. We have such a great team and I can work with everybody. We want to do the same thing that we did last year.”

“They pressed us and they have experience, just a well-run machine,” said Morse (0- 1) first-year coach Jan Veinot, whose Shipbuilders visit Lincoln Academy tonight at 6:30 p.m. “We can’t be afraid. I had two freshmen out there, and we are a team without a point guard. They just got scared and it showed.”

As good as the run in the first quarter was, the second was even better for the Dragons. Brunswick scored all 25 points, led by seven from Rosalie White off the bench, six from Groat and five from guard Charlotte MacMillan.

In the first half alone, Groat had 10 points, dished out eight assists and had six steals.

“I have been amazed at just how well she has fit in,” said Farrell of Groat. “We have such a tight-knit group, and they trust if they cut, Marley will find them. On the defensive end, she was so solid.”

Armstrong did her thing, leading Brunswick with 14 first-half points while draining four treys as the Dragons carried a 46-7 lead to the intermission.

More Dragons

The Brunswick starters played the majority of the third quarter. Groat, who finished with a game-high 21 points, scored 11 in the frame.

Morse ended its 12-minute scoreless stretch when Sierra Wallace hit a short jumper. Wallace led the Shipbuilders with seven points and pulled down four rebounds. Marissa Parks was solid on the boards, getting to 11 caroms and blocking four shots.

“We have to go over the fundamentals again and have faith in it, just do it enough times and have faith in it,” said Veinot.

Brunswick hit 37 shots from the field, shooting 46 percent, and making 7-of-9 from the free-throw line. Armstrong finished with 16 points, six steals, four assists, five rebounds and two blocked shots in a complete game effort. MacMillan had seven points, seven boards and three steals, Groat nine assists and nine steals, Rian Sachs eight points and five steals, and Guptill five steals to complete the starters. White led the Brunswick bench with 11 points, with Mackenzie Burrows chipping in eight points and Emily Larochelle six points and six steals.

Morse committed 52 turnovers and made just 6- of-28 (21 percent) from the floor. The Shipbuilders also struggled from the charity stripe, making just 4-of-17.

Brunswick hosts “Battle of the Bridge” rival Mt. Ararat on Wednesday in its home opener at 5 p.m.

Brunswick 88, Morse 17

Friday at Bath Middle School
Brunswick — 21 25 21 21 — 88
Morse— 7 0 3 7 —17
Brunswick — Charlotte MacMillan 3-
0-7, Rian Sachs 3-1-8, Marley Groat
8-5-21, Sabrina Armstrong 6-0-16,
Alexis Guptill 2-0-4, Emily Larochelle
3-0-6, Mackenzie Burrows 4-0-8,
Rosalie White 5-1-11, Holly Black 2-
0-5, Johnnie Folsom 0-0-0, Hannah
Fortier 1-0-2, Mackenzie Dorr 0-0-0.
Totals — 37-7-88.
Morse — Madeline Mitchell 0-0-0,
Marija Medenica 1-0-2, Dory Kulis 1-
0-3, Sierra Wallace 3-1-7, Marissa
Parks 1-1-3, Julia Goddard 0-0-0,
Sydney Hollingsworth 0-1-1, Abigail
Carpenter 0-0-0, Kali Pierce 0-0-0,
Abigail Sreden 0-1-1, Maisey True 0-
0-0, Zoe Sreden 0-0-0. Totals — 6-4-
17.
3-point field goals — (B) Armstrong
4, MacMillan, Sachs, Black; (Mo)
Kulis.
Records — Brunswick 1-0, Morse 0-
1.
Up next for the Dragons — Wednesday at home vs. Mt. Ararat, 5 p.m.
Up next for the Shipbuilders —
Tonight at Lincoln Academy, 6:30
p.m.