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Draft:1976–77 Van Buren High School Girls Basketball State Championship Season


This team would be the first Maine state championship, male or female, in Van Buren High School school history, and its only state championship in basketball in school history.[1] The season would also give Van Buren an opportunity to face teams that had frustrated its quest for championships the previous two years. Van Buren was in the Maine Class B Eastern Region.

Van Buren is a small town in Aroostook County Maine. Van Buren’s 1970 population was 3971 and in 1980 was 3557.

Van Buren High school would graduate 113 students in June 1977.[2]

Background

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The Maine State Principals' Association (SPA, later to be the Maine Principals' Association) held the first girls basketball state tournament in 1975. The state was divided into two regions - Eastern and Western - and the champion from each region would meet for the state championship. Van Buren, after capturing the Eastern Maine Class B Championship, met Lake Region High School in the Class B State Championship at the Augusta Civic Center on 15 February 1977. Van Buren lost 63-55.[3]

The next year Van Buren would play and lose the Eastern Maine Class B Championship to Hermon High School, 46-41, at the Bangor Auditorium on February 18, 1976.[4]

The 1976-77 Regular Season and Eastern Maine Tournament

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Van Buren would finish the 1976-77 regular season at 14-2 and be the number 1 seed in the Eastern Region.[5] Its only two loses coming against the Class A Fort Kent High School. Van Buren would win its Eastern Maine Class B quarterfinal game, 61-48, against eighth-seeded Penquis Valley High School at the Bangor Auditorium, February 19, 1977.[6] Van Buren would win the semifinal game, 55-50, against 5th ranked Camden-Rockport on February 24, 1977 at the Bangor Auditorium.[7]

For the Eastern Maine Class B Championship, Van Buren would meet Hermon High School who had beaten Van Buren the previous year for the Eastern Maine Championship. This team Van Buren would prevail, 54-42, on February 25, 1977, at the Bangor Auditorium.[8]

The 1977 Maine State Class B Championship

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The Western Maine Class B Champion would be Lake Region - the same team that had beaten Van Buren for the state championship in 1975. The teams met for the state championship at the Augusta Civic Center on March 4, 1977. Lake Region featured one 5'11' and two 5'10" players while Van Buren's tallest girl was 5'9". This time Van Buren would prevail 62-53.[9]

Epilogue

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Honors

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Monica Martin, Van Buren Senior guard, was named to the 1977 Eastern Maine Class B All-Tournament Team.[10]

The 1976-77 team was inducted into the Van Buren Athletic Hall of Fame in 2022. Also inducted from that championship team individually were Coach Jackie Derosier, Monica Martin, and Lisa Cormier.[1]

Coach Jackie Derosier

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Coach Jackie Derosier started coaching in 1963. Upon the completion of the 1977 season, she had a record of 127 and 31, with 9 wins in 11 tournament games (Maine Girls Tournaments started in 1975), with two Eastern Maine Championships and a State title. She would finish her basketball coaching career with 175 victories and retire in 1996. In June 1980 she would coach Van Buren Girls softball team to a Class B State Championship. She passed away in July 2020 and was inducted into the Van Buren High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2022.[1][11][12]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Van Buren High School Athletic Hall of Fame Banquet Program. Van Buren, Maine. August 20, 2022.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ^ "Jun 03, 1977, page 14 - The Bangor Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  3. ^ "Feb 17, 1975, page 6 - The Bangor Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  4. ^ "Feb 19, 1976, page 19 - The Bangor Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  5. ^ "Feb 17, 1977, page 18 - The Bangor Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  6. ^ "Feb 21, 1977, page 20 - The Bangor Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  7. ^ "Feb 25, 1977, page 10 - The Bangor Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  8. ^ "Feb 28, 1977, page 11 - The Bangor Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  9. ^ "Mar 05, 1977, page 18 - The Bangor Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  10. ^ "Mar 04, 1977, page 20 - The Bangor Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  11. ^ "Remembering the life of Jacqueline Derosier". obituaries.bangordailynews.com. Retrieved 2024-08-16.
  12. ^ "Maine Association of Basketball Coaches, Coaching Honor Roll". 1996.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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