Hustle, heart and togetherness
The huddle before tip-off. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Typical defense by a couple of Wildcats, Meabh Hennessy, left, and Madilyn Alley. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register 
Jimiah Stetson on a fastbreak. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Pauline Nadeau Miller on a fastbreak. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley on a fastbreak. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Pauline Nadeau Miller starts a fastbreak on a pass to Madilyn Alley. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley breaks up a pass. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Meabh Hennessy looks to grab the loose ball. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Mabel Kaler gets an easy look for a shot. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Jimiah Stetson drives to the basket. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Meabh Hennessy looks for an open teammate. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley on a baseline drive. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Meabh Hennessy scores from under the basket. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The starting five waits for the opponent to bring the ball into the frontcourt. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Pauline Nadeau Miller. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Izabella Locke-Smith. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Izabella Locke-Smith. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Abigail Locke-Smith. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Coach Lesley Blethen tells her players to get their hands up on defense. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Coach Lesley Blethen. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The tip-off. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Another fastbreak. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Jimiah Stetson. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Izabella Locke-Smith passes to a teammate. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Peyton Marr. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Corinneanne Rogers eyes the basket for shot. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Blythe Miller looks to get off a shot from the lane. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Blythe Miller moves the ball. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Shauna Ytac dribbles past a defender. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
After the halftime talk, Coach Blethen rallies her team. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The team's battle cry. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Isabella Page drives to the basket. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley looks to help Blythe Miller after she fell on the court. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Coach Blethen helps Blythe Miller to the bench after an injury. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The post-game celebration. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The post-game celebration. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The BRES boys team cheers on the girls during warmups. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The huddle before tip-off. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Typical defense by a couple of Wildcats, Meabh Hennessy, left, and Madilyn Alley. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Jimiah Stetson on a fastbreak. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Pauline Nadeau Miller on a fastbreak. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley on a fastbreak. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Pauline Nadeau Miller starts a fastbreak on a pass to Madilyn Alley. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley breaks up a pass. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Meabh Hennessy looks to grab the loose ball. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Mabel Kaler gets an easy look for a shot. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Jimiah Stetson drives to the basket. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Meabh Hennessy looks for an open teammate. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley on a baseline drive. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Meabh Hennessy scores from under the basket. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The starting five waits for the opponent to bring the ball into the frontcourt. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Pauline Nadeau Miller. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Izabella Locke-Smith. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Izabella Locke-Smith. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Abigail Locke-Smith. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Coach Lesley Blethen tells her players to get their hands up on defense. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Coach Lesley Blethen. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The tip-off. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Another fastbreak. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Jimiah Stetson. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Izabella Locke-Smith passes to a teammate. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Peyton Marr. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Corinneanne Rogers eyes the basket for shot. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Blythe Miller looks to get off a shot from the lane. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Blythe Miller moves the ball. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Shauna Ytac dribbles past a defender. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
After the halftime talk, Coach Blethen rallies her team. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The team's battle cry. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Isabella Page drives to the basket. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Madilyn Alley looks to help Blythe Miller after she fell on the court. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
Coach Blethen helps Blythe Miller to the bench after an injury. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The post-game celebration. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The post-game celebration. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register
The BRES boys team cheers on the girls during warmups. KEVIN BURNHAM/Boothbay Register“Together” is their battle cry and it shows on and off the court.
Coach Lesley Blethen, a veteran youth coach, a former Boothbay Region High School state champion (1984), mother of two BRHS state champion players (Faith and Glory Blethen in 2019) who has taken over the reins as head coach of the Boothbay Region Middle School Wildcat girls basketball team this year, feels blessed.
Her 16-member team has 10 eighth graders and six seventh graders. Heading into their final four regular season games, the team was undefeated (11-0), with their closest game being a 13-point victory.
“The players have worked incredibly hard, showing great teamwork and sportsmanship. They share the ball well, support each other, and are very coach-able, which makes coaching them a joy,” said Blethen. “The eighth graders are a really good group coming in, and they’ve shown great leadership and skill that will make a big impact when they move up to high school next year.”
This hustling bunch – as observed by this reporter, a former BRHS girls (and boys) basketball coach – plays tenacious defense, passes the ball up the court quickly after a steal, they look for an open teammate to get easy looks at the basket – and congratulate one another all the time! Not only that, they “high-five” or “fist-bump” the officials and coaches after a game.
“The energy is high,” said Blethen as the Busline League playoffs begin the week of Jan. 26. Serving as volunteer assistant coaches are Laurie Dickinson and Caroline Ivens.
“I’ve really enjoyed getting back into coaching—being around these kids keeps you young! Brian (Lesley’s husband and former BRHS championship coach) and the girls (Faith and Glory) have even stopped by a couple of practices, and it’s clear we have a great group moving up to high school next year. Hopefully, the numbers stay strong so we can have a JV team next season. A big shout-out to Bruce (Orne, current BRHS girls basketball head coach), who worked with the eighth graders in the off-season after last year’s season; that effort really paid off.”
The BRES roster w/ jersey no.
#1 Isabella Page; #2 Aria Davis; #3 Sheyenne Upham; #4 Pauline Nadeau Miller; #5 Mabel Kaler; #10 Meabh Hennessy; #11 Izabella Locke-Smith; #12 Shauna Ytac; #13 Peyton Marr; #14 Savannah Alley; #22 Madilyn Alley; #32 Jimiah Stetson; #41 Blythe Miller; #43 Abigail Locke-Smith; #45 Corinneanne Rogers; and #52 Maxine Zehm. Scorekeepers are Samantha Doucette and Astrid Pochee.
