Update: 1998 AAU National Championships

Warming Up...
New York, NY -- The Maine Hurricanes traveled to New York City the weekend of July 11-12 in preparation for their trip to the AAU Nationals the following week. Maine, ranked 14th nationally, faced four teams also heading to the nationals in Lafayette, Louisiana. They won their first three games versus the New York Lady Knicks (Gold), New Jersey Monarchs (Gold), and New York Quest (Silver) by an average margin of 25 points. The Hurricanes got positive contributions from all nine players, as their quick strike offense and stifling defense smothered their opponents. In the weekend finale the Hurricanes dropped a hard fought 2-point loss to the 9th ranked Connecticut Starters (Gold).

The Hurricanes played some great basketball this weekend and appear to be hitting all cylinders heading into their title run next week. Maine opens pool play in Louisiana on Saturday at 3:50 pm.

July 19, Sun @ 8:30am vs. IA - Spurs
In the first game on Sunday the Hurricanes had obviously eaten their wheaties as they cruised to an easy 77-51 win over the previously undefeated Iowa Spurs.
Lewiston's Chantal St. Laurent, Val Dumais and Jodi Auger led the way with 17, 16 and 15 points respectively. Bath's Katie Stailing had another good game with 14 points.

July 19, Sun @ 3:50pm vs. OZ - Jackson Jazz
Sunday's second game was a battle as the undefeated and #14 Hurricanes faced the 1-1 Ozark (MO) Jackson Jazz. The Jazz controlled the tempo and the boards for the first half and led 31-28 at the break. They continued their domination of the boards for most of the second half. The Hurricanes were down by as many as 7 points and lost Natalie Dupill (Rumford) and Stailing to fouls. Sarah Methvin playing with 4 fouls herself, had to play hardnosed defense against the Jazz top inside player and she found a way to slow her down without getting that fifth foul, which would have left the Hurricanes with only 4 players available. She also hit a clutch 3 pointer to give the Maine team their first lead in 8 minutes. That three gave the Hurricanes a big lift and guards Chantal St. Laurent and Val Dumais poured on the defensive pressure to created several turnover that brought the Hurricanes back as they won 66-59, to become the first Maine AAU team ever to finish pool play undefeated.
Bath's Katie Stailing led the way offensively with 26 points and she took 3 charges. Val Dumais finished with 12 points, 8 for 8 from the foul line. Bethany Roderigue had her finest game of the tourney with 10 key points and 3 big rebounds. St. Laurent once again led the team with rebounds with 8.

The Hurricanes will face the Classicway Cagers (OH) at 5:40 pm Monday, as they make their run on the AAU 14U GIRLS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP.

NE/ME - Maine Hurricanes (No. 14) vs.....
MEDAL ROUND
July 20, Mon @ 5:40pm vs. OH - Classicway Cagers
Hello baskektball fans and greetings from Cajun country where the locals and visitors are experiencing the strongest HURRICANE forces in recent memory. The Hurricanes put together what might be considered a perfect half of basketball as they raced out to a 51-26 halftime lead over the strong and talented Classicway Cagers of Ohio. The Mainers continued strong play into the second half and finished off the Cagers with a final score of 76-55.
Katie Stailing, of Bath, ran off an impressive 21 first half points with short jumpers, layups and a 3-pointer. She finished with a game high 23 points and 7 rebounds. Rumford's Natalie Dupill followed with 12 points and 7 rebounds, while Chantal St.Laurent, Sarah Methvin and Val Dumais contributed 8 points apiece.
St. Laurent continued her impressive rebound work with 7 boards from the gritty point guard. Finishing off the scoring were Jodi Auger, Bethany Roderigue and Kandace Jones with 7, 6 and 2 respectively. Jones was just coming back from a stomach virus.
The Hurricanes opened the game with a wave of pressure defense, hounding the ball at all times and all over the court. Three minutes into the game the Cagers were grabbing their shorts and wondering what had hit them, as the Hurricanes raced out to an early 15-4 lead. The lead continued to grow as the Hurricanes shot an incredible 76 percent from the field. The lead grew and the shooting continued into the half as Maine's finest hit 4 three pointers in the half. Val Dumais and Jodi Auger, both of Lewiston had 2 long range bombs, Dumais was 2 for 2 beyond the arc.
The win sets up a rematch of one year ago in Orlando, as the Hurricanes will face the #3 Western Pennsylvania Bruins. The Bruins won the National Championship in 1996 and are one of the most respected organizations in the U.S. The Hurricanes however, are ready for the challenge and they to are quickly gaining national recognition from basketball fans and experts alike, with their hardnosed style of play.
Stay tuned for more updates as the winds of Hurricane Maine continue to devastate their opponents and impress their onlookers.

July 21, Tue @ 3:50pm vs. PA - Western Penn. Bruins (No. 3)
Hello basketball fans. The Maine Hurricanes would have made you extremely proud today as they faced the #3 Western Pennsylvania Bruins. The Bruins and Hurricanes battled for 36 minutes and the outcome wasn't certain until the final buzzer.
The Bruins gave the Maine team their first loss of the week 83-73. The Bruins coach was extremely complimentary to the entire team saying, "you girls keep your heads up and be proud cause you're the best team we have played all year."
The Bruins started out quick and raced to a 12-2 lead before the Hurricanes put on a run of their own and eventually took the lead 21-20. The Maine girls held as large as a 4 point lead in the first half before the Bruins took a lead of 36-35 in the halftime break.
The second half started out with teams swapping baskets until the 12:00 markwhen the Bruins put on a 3 minute spurt to take a 12 point lead. Despite timeouts and changing defenses the Bruins took command. The final 8 minutes saw the Hurricanes cut the lead to as few as 7 points, but foul shooting down the stretch proved to be key, as the Bruins went 9-12 in the final minutes.
Bath's Katie Stailing again led the way for the 'Canes with 20 points and 7 rebounds. She had tremendous support from the Lewiston duo of Chantal St. Laurent (15 points) and Val Dumais (14 points). Bethany Roderigue scored 6, Kandace Jones and Jodi Auger finished with 5 points while Sarah Methvin and Natalie Dupill contributed 4 apiece.
The Hurricanes will face the #7 NJB Stars (So. California) Wednesday at 12:10pm and after winning will play again at 5:40pm. The Hurricanes are not finished, as last year they put together 3 consecutive wins in the losers bracket to earn their #14 national ranking. Stay tuned!

July 22, Wed @ 12:10pm vs. SP - NJB Stars (No. 7)
Well it was fun and exciting while it lasted, but the California based NJB Stars were just too ready for our Hurricanes this year. The Stars jumped out early and were accurate from the field while the Mainers were only able to hit on 22 percent of their field goal attempts for the game. The Hurricanes found themselves down 33-13 after a half of basketball.
Emotionally drained from the previous nights contest with the Bruins, the vaunted Hurricanes defensive intensity was not to be found. The second half was much better on the defensive end, but the offense never kicked into gear as the Hurricanes top scorer for the tournament Katie Stailing would only connect for 10 points as did teammate Natalie Dupill. Chantal St.Laurent was next in line with 7 points followed by Val Dumais, Sarah Methvin and Jodi Auger with 6, 5 and 4 respectively.

This ends the Hurricanes run at this year's national championship, one game shy of another "Sweet 16" bid. The girls from Maine faced the very best teams in the nation, compiling a 4-2 record, and earning the respect of the nation's top teams and college coaches alike. This year's showing further solidifies the Hurricanes right to truly be placed among the nation's elite teams.

Thanks go out to all of you that have followed our progress and that have sent your best wishes. We all appreciate your interest in the team's progress. The Hurricanes famiy will travel to New Orleans tomorrow to take in some of the sights and then afterward some will board the plane to return to Maine, THE WAY LIFE SHOULD BE.