The start was everything the Pine Tree Academy boys wanted it to be in Monday’s Class D South quarterfinal at the Augusta Civic Center.

The Breakers led AR Gould, 18-9 after eight minutes, running on all cylinders and keeping the Bears at bay.

But, AR Gould began chipping away in the second, caught the Breakers in the third and pulled away down the stretch for a 58-45 victory.

The Bears (15-4), the No. 3 seed, face second-seeded Valley in the semifinals on Thursday, while PTA ended its season with a 9-10 mark.

“We usually get off to a slow start, and we got into early holes in both games against AR Gould this season,” said PTA coach Trevor Schlisner. “I am proud of the way that we came out today. The first half we stuck with our game plan.”

The teams were tied twice and the lead changed hands five times before the Breakers closed the first quarter on a 10-0 run. Alex Schlisner and Evan Owen each hit a 3- pointer, and Jared Tamalea’a picked up four points and four assists for an 18-9 advantage.

“We were running our plays, going at our speed and going to space for layups,” said Owen, who scored seven points in that opening quarter.

Lorange hits

Pine Tree’s top defender, Chris Amisi, was tasked with guarding AR Gould’s top player, Ernest Lorange. Amisi held Lorange to one first-quarter point, but the senior warmed up in the second quarter. He drained three treys and scored 11 points, keeping the Bears in the game.

“We did a good job on Lorange in the first half, but he kept them in the game in the second quarter, though I thought we played pretty good defense on him. He hit some shots with hands in his face,” said Trevor Schlisner, who had to take Amisi out of the game after he picked up his third foul.

PTA led 27-22 at the half behind 12 points from Alex Schlisner, and the senior woke his team up in the third quarter after AR Gould reeled off the first seven points of the second half, stepping back and nailing a 3-pointer for a 30-29 lead.

Again the lead went back and forth, with Kyle Hurd’s second trey giving the Bears the lead for good, 38-36 with 32 seconds left in the third.

“Unfortunately, we went away from our plan in the second half. We stopped pushing the ball. They had six players,” said Coach Schlisner. “That is credit to (AR Gould coach) Chad (Sturgis). He has a revolving door of players, but he is able to get the most out of the players that he has at his disposal. They slowed the ball down, played their 2-3 defense, and did what they needed to do.”

Nothing went right for the Breakers in the fourth quarter. Malakai Brimage drove inside for two points, and Lorange put back his own miss for a 44-38 AR Gould lead.

By the time Tamalea’s scored with 4:03 remaining, the Bears had an eight-point cushion. Amisi fouled out earlier in the quarter, and AR Gould made steady trips to the free-throw line, making 13-of-20 down the stretch for the 13-point win, AR Gould’s third victory over Pine Tree Academy this season.

“Our ‘big 3’ is Chris, Jared and Alex, and Chris is our defensive stopper and leader, so losing him hurt,” said Trevor Schlisner. “I love this group of players. We got here, and that was a good season.”

Alex Schlisner led the Breakers with 17 points, while Owen and Tamalea’a chipped in 12 points apiece. Tamalea’a was solid all-around, adding 12 rebounds, six assists and five steals.

Lorange ended with a game-high 27 points. He also had 11 boards, five steals and three assists. Alex Shoureas had a double-double with 12 points and 16 rebounds, with Brimage picking up 11 points and two assists.