Mariners relish role as state ‘D’ champions DI-Stonington eager for chance to defend title

It was a classic example of how high school basketball bonds those who live in small-town Maine when the Deer Isle-Stonington boys team went home after winning the 2007 Class D state championship.

A large motorcade greeted the Mariners as they crossed the bridge spanning Eggemoggin Reach to share in the celebration that began with their victory over Gould Academy of Bethel earlier in the day – and in some respects the celebration has continued ever since.

“Everyone still gets excited about it,” said Collin Ciomei, the Eastern Maine tournament MVP who scored 23 points in the state championship game. “They’re just as eager for us to win as we are.”

The state title was the first in boys basketball for the area since Stonington High School won crowns in 1961 and 1962, and the program’s next goal is to attempt to match that back-to-back effort.

“We hope to repeat in Eastern Maine,” said Eben Powers, the team’s sixth man in both 2006 and 2007. “We’ve got a lot of new guys, but we have the talent. It all comes down to hard work and determination.”

The team will have a different look when it begins its title defense Saturday as Deer Isle-Stonington hosts Shead of Eastport in its season opener.

Seven seniors, including four starters, graduated from last year’s 22-0 team, which ousted two-time defending state champion Central Aroostook of Mars Hill in the semifinals before outlasting Schenck of East Millinocket 75-74 in a memorable Eastern Maine final on Jon Eaton’s three-point play in the final 10 seconds.

But that doesn’t mean there’s any less excitement about the coming season. On Little Deer Isle, it’s a little like being a Red Sox fan. The first championship may erase the heartbreak of previous near misses, but it also whets the appetite for more.

“It’s a pretty exciting time for the school, the town and the people,” said Deer Isle-Stonington coach Glenn Billings. “Everyone can’t wait for the new season to begin.”

This year’s team will be led by Ciomei, the versatile 6-foot-4 center who’s the lone returning starter, as well as Powers, a 6-1 junior who was one of the top sixth men in Class D statewide.

“Last year I came off the bench when I was needed, and this year I’m going to be on the floor and be a leader,” said Powers.

That duo will headline a less experienced cast than the group that lost to Central Aroostook in the 2006 EM final before going all the way a year later, and the adjustments are continuing as preseason winds down.

“We aren’t able to do all the same things we practiced last year yet,” said Ciomei. “It’s a little like starting over.”

But with younger players like Doug Boutilier, Evan Rollins, Ethan Pinkham, Joe Carter and Evan Haskell all ready to step up to the challenge, the Mariners are hopeful they will be contenders in the Class D title hunt again this winter.

“We don’t have the talent to blow people away by 30 points,” said Powers, “so we have to be ready every time out.”

While much of that success will be determined by how well the newcomers run the team’s motion offense and play defense, it also will be affected by how well they adapt to the larger stage that is varsity basketball in these parts, particularly come time for postseason play.

And that’s perhaps where veterans like Ciomei and Powers are at their most valuable, because they’ve already lived through the anxious moments to experience that championship sensation.

“When I was a freshman, I was really nervous,” said Powers. “I really didn’t want to play at Bangor at all. But once I got out there and made my first shot, I thought, ‘This isn’t so bad.'”

The Class D field has been altered slightly by reclassification this season, with Schenck and 2007 semifinalist Lee Academy now in Class C and Hodgdon shifting from Class C to Class D.

The Mariners still expect plenty of competition from the likes of Central Aroostook, Woodland, Bangor Christian and Easton, as well as several other programs capable of advancing deep into postseason play.

“We’re not going to sneak up on anybody,” said Billings. “There’s a bulls-eye on our backs.”

Deer Isle-Stonington, its players, coaches and fans, don’t really mind that bulls-eye because it’s a reflection of where they’ve been – on a championship stage.

And that there’s a bit of uncertainty about their new team as another season begins, well, that’s just another reason high school basketball has such great appeal in small-town Maine.

“Living down here, I kind of look at it like launching a good boat,” said Billings. “You think you’ve got good power, but you really don’t know how it’s going to float until you put it out there.”