The Southern Aroostook girls basketball team dominated from start to finish, trampling Seacoast Christian 58-18 en route to its third Class D state championship in the past four tournaments at the Augusta Civic Center on Saturday.
The win completes an undefeated season for coach Cliff Urquhart’s Warriors, who finish the season at 22-0.
The Class D South champion Seacoast Christian ends its season at 13-7.
Appearing in state championship games is nothing new for the Warriors as the team has contended for the gold ball for the past four years (not including 2021, when there was no postseason).
Sophomore Cami Shields led the Warriors with 17 points. Sophomore Madison Shields had 12 — including two 3-pointers — while juniors Madison Russell and Callie Russell and sophomore Lexi Rackliff each contributed six points. Eighth-grader Ally Shields added another five points while sophomore Emmalee Landry and freshman Libby Anderson each nabbed two.
Sophomore Ellie Leach paced Seacoast Christian with 10 points, six of which came in the game’s final quarter. Senior Kaitlyn Jandreau and junior Breckin Wynship each added four points.
Southern Aroostook went 6-for-6 from the foul line. Seacoast Christian missed all six of its free throws.
As if a state championship and undefeated season weren’t enough, the victory also marked coach Urquhart’s 200th career win.
“I don’t get 200 wins without great players, and they’ve played great all season long,” Urquhart told Maine Public after the game.
Southern Aroostook’s full-court pressure throttled Seacoast Christian throughout the first half of the game, building to a 24-0 advantage at the end of the first quarter.
The Warriors held the Guardians scoreless for the first 14:49 of the game. Wynship sank a basket with 1:11 left in the second quarter to get Seacoast Christian on the board with a score of 43-2.
Leach scored Seacoast Christian’s second and final field goal of the first half, giving the game a score of 43-4 at halftime.
Southern Aroostook pulled back its full-court pressure in the second half, but continued to convert turnovers into scoring opportunities.
The Warriors took a 54-6 advantage into the final quarter.
Using a full-court pressure defense, coupled with superior shooting from behind the 3-point arc, the Warriors have had their way against opponents for much of the year.
The Southern Aroostook girls have been on a roll this postseason, easily outscoring opponents in each of its three playoff games in the Class D North tournament at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor.
Southern Aroostook totaled 204 points (average of 68 points per game), while allowing just 76 points (25 per game) in its three playoffs.
The team loses just one senior in center Brianne Daggett.
Southern Aroostook won back to back state titles in 2019 — a 55-30 victory over Greenville — and in 2018 — 54-37 over Vinalhaven. The Warriors fell in the state championship in 2020 to Greenville 42-38.
In 2021, when COVID-19 did not allow for an official postseason, the Warriors proved they could handle themselves against much larger schools. Southern Aroostook beat Class B Presque Isle, 64-58, for the Aroostook County championship. It was the only loss Presque Isle suffered all season.