Think Dexter’s 58-48 victory in the Eastern Maine Class C final was a close one?

Try Dirigo’s 44-36 overtime triumph over Jay in the Western Maine Class C semifinals.

In fact, the Cougars of Dixfield are no strangers to close games.

They needed overtime to beat Dexter 39-37 in last year’s Class C state game. Old foe Calais nipped Dirigo 41-39 in 2001. In 2000, the Cougars edged George Stevens of Blue Hill 46-45 with less than 10 seconds left in regulation. Calais won the 1999 title in double overtime.

The Tigers and two-time defending champion Cougars will put each other to the test Saturday night as they face off for the second year in a row in the Class C state title game at the Augusta Civic Center. Game time is 7 p.m.

In the Class D state final, Eastern Maine champ Lee will try for its first state title as the Pandas face the Lakers of Rangeley. That game starts at 1 p.m.

Both the Class C regional winners are undefeated.

Dexter did play Dirigo in a preseason game and won by five. But, Tigers coach Margaret Veazie cautioned, it was a preseason game.

“We played everybody, but at the end we were ahead, so we went for the win,” she said after last weekend’s regional final. “I put all my starters back in and we went on to win it.”

The Cougars, who graduated eight players from last year’s state championship team, had strong playoff games from a number of players. Forwards Alexa Kaubris and Michelle Holmquist scored 19 and 16 points, respectively, in a quarterfinal win against Wiscasset.

Center Holly Knight scored 16 and guard Brooke Weston had eight in the overtime semifinal win.

Kaubris, the only returning starter from last year’s team, put in another 14 points and Holmquist had 11 in a 40-33 Western Maine final win over Hall-Dale of Farmingdale.

But the worry for Dexter may be on the other side of the ball.

“They play such great defense and they’re such tough kids,” Veazie said. “It’s going to take a good effort on our part.”

It’s also going to take some kind of effort to break Dirigo’s streak at the Augusta Civic Center, where the Cougars have never lost a state championship game and have won 34 straight tournament games.

Rangeley last appeared in a state final in 2002, a 75-46 loss to Woodland. Unlike Dirigo, several of the players who played in that game two years ago are back as seniors.

Guard Sarah Schrader led coach Heidi Deery’s undefeated Lakers with an average of 20.3 points per game in the regional tournament. Krysteen Romero, a 6-foot center, followed at 18.3 ppg, while Sabrina Clark chipped in with 12, guard Rosie LaPointe averaged seven, and forward Justine Frost-Kolva had 6.3.

Romero, LaPointe, Frost-Kolva, and Schrader all played as freshmen in the 2002 state game against Woodland. Schrader and Romero started.

The Lakers gained their spot in this year’s state final by virtue of a 59-41 win over defending state champion Waynflete of Portland.