BANGOR – Sure, the Dexter girls basketball program is the defending Class C state champion, not to mention two-time Eastern Maine champ.

But that pedigree doesn’t immunize the top-ranked Tigers from tourney jitters, particularly when the lineup is dotted with a few new faces.

Those jitters eventually subsided, and one of the common denominators between past champions and current contenders, 6-foot-4 senior Ashley Ames, led the unbeaten Tigers to a 44-29 win over No. 8 Mattanawcook Academy in a regional quarterfinal Tuesday night.

Dexter (19-0) will face No. 4 Stearns of Millinocket (15-4) in a 3:35 p.m. semifinal Friday.

Ames had game-high totals of 16 points, 19 rebounds, and five blocked shots as Dexter pulled away after enduring a turnover-plagued first half.

“There were a lot of nerves before the game,” Ames said. “We just had to settle down.”

Ames’ defensive presence helped Dexter hold Mattanawcook to 10 points in the second half, just two in the third quarter as the Tigers extended a 24-19 halftime lead to a 36-21 cushion.

Ames had eight rebounds and three blocked shots in the period and also helped the Tigers better solve a Mattanawcook press that forced 11 Dexter turnovers in the first half.

“We just needed to handle the ball better,” said junior guard Nicci Burton.

Junior guard Sabrina Cote and sophomore center Mallory Ames added eight points each for coach Jody Grant’s club, with the 6-6 Ames contributing four blocked shots.

Senior forward Shannon Pietras paced 11-9 Mattanawcook with nine points, while junior guard Quinci Sanderson and freshman center Brianna Hanscom each grabbed six rebounds.

Dexter never trailed against a team it defeated by 28 and 29 points in two regular-season meetings.

But the Lynx certainly made the Tigers uncomfortable, particularly in the second quarter when they cut a 10-point deficit to 22-19 on a 3-pointer by Pietras and a free throw and a baseline jumper by Hanscom.

MA sagged its 2-3 zone into the lane, virtually daring Dexter to shoot from the perimeter, and the Lynx spread their offense to create space for their shots.

For a while the strategy worked, but eventually Dexter settled down.

“To play Dexter to within 15 points on the Auditorium floor, I’m very proud of my girls,” said MA coach Teri Thornton.

TIGERS 44, LYNX 29

Mattanawcook (11-9) Dexter (19-0)

Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG AF TP

Pietras 4 9 0 3 9 M. Ames 4 12 8

Paul 2 10 0 0 5 Chambers 0 0 0

Cousineau 1 2 1 1 3 Chapman 0 0 0

Vose 0 1 0 0 0 Mountain 0 0 0

Gulesian 1 2 0 0 2 N. Burton 1 2

Libby 0 1 0 0 0 Fogarty 3 6 6

Souers 0 3 0 0 0 Cote 3 8 8

Hannington 0 1 0 0 0 Hartford 2 4

Sanderson 2 8 0 0 5 Alton 0 0 0

Shorey 0 0 0 0 0 A. Ames 8 17 16

Thornton 0 0 0 0 0

Martin 0 0 0 0 0

Hanscom 2 9 1 2 5

Totals 12 46 2 6 29 Totals 21 50 44

Mattanawcook Acad. 6 19 21 29

Dexter 16 24 36 44

3-pt. goals – Mattanawcook (3-17): Sanderson 1-4, Pietras 1-5, Paul 1-6, Libby 0-1, Souers 0-1; Dexter (0-1): Burton 0-1