A loss, not a victory, helped put the Winthrop High School Ramblers in the quest for Saturday’s state Class C boys basketball title.

The Ramblers opened their season with nine straight victories, but then lost by 17 to Class B Mountain Valley in Rumford.

It showed the Ramblers some changes would have to be made if they expected to meet the preseason expectations as the team to beat in Western Maine Class C.

“It was a big turning point for us, we pulled together and started to work together more,” said 14th-year Winthrop coach David Poulin.

After the loss, the Ramblers rolled off five straight victories, including a 16-point win over Mountain Valley in their regular season finale.

The top-seeded Ramblers then gained the school’s first-ever boys “C” crown, beating Falmouth 64-61 after a semifinal win over Erskine Academy of South China and a quarterfinal verdict over Wiscasset.

The Ramblers captured WM “B” titles in ’64 and ’65, with the state crown in ’65, also.

Winthrop, now 18-1, will attempt to gain its second gold ball when it faces Washington Academy of East Machias at 8:45 p.m. at the Augusta Civic Center.

The Ramblers, which featured a run-and-gun attack like WA, still like fast break, but became more of a disciplined, patient team after the loss to Mountain Valley.

“We improved our half-court defense (after the loss). We were giving up way too many easy baskets with our press,” Poulin said. “We started to improve, offensively, too, getting five people involved.”

Winthrop’s offensive balance proved to be a key throughout the second half of the season and the tourney. It was a balance obtained through five junior starters, as the Ramblers have only one senior.

Jeff Love, a 6-foot forward, was named the MVP of the WM “C” tourney and is the Ramblers leading scorer with 15.3 points per game. Center Billy Harris (6-5, 11.3 ppg) and R.J. Jenkins (6-3, 11.3 ppg) add inside scoring strength.

Geoff Cobb (5-10, 9.8 ppg) directs the offense and Larry Ciembroniewicz (5-10, 8.3 ppg) provides perimeter scoring punch.

Winthrop has also received consistent efforts from junior Joel Stoneton (6-0), who is averaging 6.7 ppg and 7.1 rebounds per game. Junior Mike Piper (6-0) adds to the inside attack and senior Ben Dwinal (5-9) is the first guard off the bench.

The Ramblers win margin in the WM tourney was 4.6 ppg and they also had several comeback wins during the regular season. Poulin thinks both factors will help in the state game, explaining his team has responded well to pressure throughout the season.

“We only graduated one player from last year’s team and everyone expected us to be one of the top teams,” Poulin said. “We’ve been able to find a way to win all season. Playing a tough summer schedule and always trying to play at a higher level helped.”