Officials are bashed so often at games and on the Internet, it seems only fair to point out when they do a good job. That was the case Monday night at Gardiner when the Tigers hosted unbeaten Maranacook.

These teams played a pretty physical contentious game in Readfield six weeks ago, giving reason to suspect we might see a repeat. The players played hard Monday night, but nothing ever got out of hand. Msrs. Coffin, Parkhurst and Fifield had the game under control.
They let the players bang and scramble for loose balls without placing anyone in jeopardy. The players quickly acclimated and the fans saw a good game. And guess what? With three officials, neither team got into the bonus. Some games require strict policing while others do not. This one didn't and the officials set the right tone and stuck with it.
One small quibble. When both coaches emptied their benches late in the game, things got a little ragged and a quick foul might have restored order. Otherwise, great job, guys.