By Pete Warner, Special to the BDN
There was a palpable sense of confidence and calm among the members of the Old Town High School girls basketball team on Friday night.
The Coyotes, playing in their third straight regional title game, used their considerable experience and poise to make their championship dreams a reality.
Senior Saige Evans poured in 26 points and snatched 16 rebounds to set the tone for No. 2 Old Town’s resounding 58-42 victory over No. 1 Ellsworth in the Class B North championship game at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor.
“I think it was us just not putting pressure on ourselves,” Evans said. “We were all out there having fun. We’ve been playing with each other since we were little.”
Coach Heather Richards’ team (18-2) will face South champion Oceanside of Rockland (21-0) in Friday’s 6 p.m. state championship game at the Cross Insurance Center.
Coach Andy Pooler’s Ellsworth squad (20-1), the 2023 Class B state champ, had its 23-game winning streak snapped.
Unselfishness and focus enabled the Coyotes to dominate the Eagles, who had beaten them twice during the regular season. It is Old Town’s first girls regional basketball title since 1980 (Class A).
“We all played together as one, ‘we instead of me,’ and that really helped us work our way through the game,” said Old Town senior guard Alexis Degrasse, who posted 15 points, handed out seven assists and made two steals.
The Coyotes, who fell to Ellsworth in the 2023 regional final, rode the gritty play of their seniors. Makayla Emerson provided nine points and five rebounds, joining Degrasse in handling the ball against the Eagles’ active player-to-player defense.
“We have four seniors on the team and we were like, we want this bad,” Evans said.
“I really think it was just us having fun out there. We were not tight before the game. We were just like, let’s go out there, let’s play ball,” Evans said.
Old Town also overcame the loss of starting senior guard Taylor Loring, who suffered a left knee injury in the semifinal win over Mount Desert Island.
The Coyotes received important contributions from senior forward Danica Brown (4 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists), junior guard Elizabeth Magoon (5 assists, 4 rebounds) and sophomore forward Karina Dumond (4 points).
Old Town’s offensive chemistry was evident. The Coyotes executed crisply, shooting 54 percent (25-for-46) from the floor with a combination of close-range scoring and perimeter accuracy. They overcame 18 turnovers.
“They’re a very unselfish group of girls. They thrive off each other’s success,” Richards said. “Their motto is, ‘it takes all 10 of us to accomplish anything’ and they genuinely enjoy one another.”
Ellsworth was unable to generate the same defensive pressure, transition offense and shooting prowess that had made it the team to beat in Class B this season.
Junior Grace Jaffrey paced Ellsworth with 12 points, classmate Lily Bean scored seven points and sophomore Lillie Boles chipped in with six points, four rebounds and two assists.
The Eagles shot only 31 percent (15-for-48) from the field and went 5-for-17 from 3-point range.
“It was their time to break through,” a cordial Pooler said of Old Town. “They rose to the occasion. They came ready to play.”
“We went ice cold and they took advantage. We weren’t able to hit shots to set up our pressure and ultimately we dug ourselves too big of a hole,” he added.