GORHAM — Thornton Academy’s 10-game winning streak came to a screeching halt on Monday afternoon, as the Trojans were beaten at both ends of the court by a Gorham team that came in winning six of its last seven. The Rams led from start to finish and cruised to a 50-27 win in an SMAA girls basketball game at Gorham High School.

Gorham junior Abby Hamilton scored the first five points of the game, and also showed a glimpse of the kind of game both she and the Rams were about to have.

But the Rams (9-4) were also tough on the defensive end as well, as the Trojans (10-2) were held scoreless until Katie McCrum hit a pull-up jumper with 3:45 left in the first quarter. That was the first of just three field goals the Trojans made in the first quarter, as they trailed 12-6 after the first eight minutes.

“I think we were a little surprised” of Gorham’s defense, said McCrum. “Obviously in the zone, you’ve got to be able to hit some outside shots, which we were not doing at all. And then on the inside, we weren’t getting calls, and we weren’t just getting the ball.”

Hamilton on her own out-scored Thornton, as she hit four field goals ”“ two 3-pointers ”“ and scored 10 points in the first quarter.

“That we expected. They always shoot the ball well at home,” said Thornton head coach Eric Marston. “We knew everything they were going to do, we knew who they wanted to get the ball to. We helped too much on the ball-handlers and didn’t get a hand up on shooters.”

Hamilton then extended the lead to 14-6 as she opened the second quarter with a jumper. That was Hamilton’s lone basket of the quarter, but freshman Emily Esposito picked up the slack, scoring five points in the quarter.

The Rams opened the quarter on a 7-0 run before Hannah Murphy hit a jumper for Thornton three minutes in. The Trojans also missed their first seven free throws, and finished the first half just 3-11.

“We rely a lot on our foul-shooting game,” said McCrum.

The halftime lead was 23-13 in favor of the Rams, as freshman Kaylea Lundin hit a turnaround short jumper with five seconds left.

McCrum got the Trojans off on the right foot to start the second half, as she hit a 3-pointer in the first Thornton possession, but the Trojans continued to be frustrated by Gorham’s full-court press and active ball pressure.

“We’ve seen pressure all year, and we usually don’t have any issues breaking the press at all. We were just throwing the ball out of bounds, and not catching the ball, and not meeting passes, dribbling it off our foot,” said Marston. “It was just one unforced error after another.”

“Our heads weren’t into it, and you could just tell the whole time,” said McCrum. “We kept making mental error after mental error, and it gets discouraging after a while when they just keep converting on our errors.”

Another 3-pointer from Hamilton increased the Gorham lead to 36-20 with 1:30 left in the third, but two free throws by Ashley Howe ”“ who missed her first five ”“ and a layup by McCrum with five seconds left cut it back down to 36-24 heading into the fourth.

But any momentum gained from the mini 4-0 run was gone quickly in the fourth quarter, as the Rams made baskets on their first two possessions, while the Trojans turned the ball over on their first two.

“Every time we’d start to put it together, we’d then make some sort of foolish turnover ”¦ and we just couldn’t get into a rhythm throughout the entire game,” said Marston.

Hamilton then hit a 3-pointer ”“ her eighth and final field goal of the game ”“ to make it 43-24.

“They started to pull away, and I just knew you couldn’t come back after that,” said McCrum.

The Rams opened the quarter on a 9-1 run, and Marston decided enough was enough, as he pulled his starters with 3:20 to play and the fate of the game sealed.

Thornton didn’t make a field goal in the fourth, and made just nine all game. The Trojans finished 8-22 at the free throw line, including missing their final five.

“This team usually shoots exceptionally well from the foul line,” said Marston.

Hamilton finished with a game-high 20 points, and Esposito chipped in with 10.

McCrum led Thornton with 11 points, and Olivia Shaw, who was hounded down low all game, finished with 10.

“They deserve a lot of credit for how hard they played, and they’ve got some excellent players,” Marston said of the Rams. “They just outplayed us. They outplayed us from the beginning until the end.”

“It just shows that you got to come out and play as hard as you can every time, because every team is going to give us a run for our money,” said McCrum. “We’re going to have a tough week of practice and get our heads back into it.”

— Staff Writer Wil Kramlich can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 323 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @WilTalkSports.