PORTLAND, Maine — The Class B state finals could have been played in Caribou and the atmosphere wouldn’t have felt much different. It already seemed like a home game for the Viking girls and boys teams at the Cross Insurance Arena on Saturday.
The drive from Caribou to Portland is about 300 miles, and it appeared like a sizable number of the Aroostook County city’s roughly 7,000 people made that journey. It’s unlikely that a single one of them regretted the long trip, because it gave them a chance to watch Vikings history.
For the first time ever, the Caribou teams have won basketball state championships together.
“It just doesn’t feel real, honestly,” said senior forward Tristan Robbins, who was a dominant force for the boys team throughout the tournament. “This is Caribou history, it’s never been done before. And it feels great that it was us.”
And there were plenty of Caribou fans along for the historic ride.
“It definitely felt like a home game,” Robbins said. “They were rocking all night. We wouldn’t be here without them and all their support.”
“We’ve said it all year, we want to make away venues feel like home games,” added boys coach Kyle Corrigan.
Kayla Brown, the girls coach, expected plenty of support heading into the championship weekend.
“Despite being a small school, we still will have a big showing as far as the support goes,” Brown said earlier this week. And she was spot on with that prediction.
“I don’t think there’s anybody left in Caribou. Everyone’s here,” U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said after the girls shocked Biddeford and the entire stadium with a 49-48 win in overtime. “It’s just so exciting. And anyone who isn’t here was watching on TV.”
The Caribou side of the Cross Arena was overflowing with maroon on Saturday, and the well-traveled fans were certainly rewarded for their trip across the state. The girls team delivered an ending that was nothing short of magic, with freshman Quinn Corrigan literally stealing a win in the final second of overtime.
The win was earned, to be sure, but only possible because of Corrigan’s steal just before the final buzzer. Senior Guard Madelynn Deprey had just made two free throws to cut the Biddeford lead to one.
The Vikings trailed by three when Deprey stepped up to the line with 1.5 seconds left, and she actually meant to miss the second free throw so that Caribou could try to get a rebound and tie the game.
But the second shot unintentionally went in, and a dire situation for Caribou seemingly turned impossible. That changed in an instant when Corrigan intercepted the inbounds pass and was fouled while trying to put up a quick shot.
The freshman stepped up to the line and calmly knocked down both shots, sealing an improbable win for the top-ranked team from Class B North. And now, they’re the top Class B girls team in the entire state.
“We weren’t going to give up until the clock was over,” Deprey said. “Because we knew that we could come back from being down. We proved that all year.”
The Caribou fans also proved throughout the tournament that they were willing to travel far distances to bolster their squad, whether to Bangor for the regionals of Portland for the finals.
“We have the best community in all of Maine,” said senior guard Kaymen Sargent. He added that the Caribou faithful “support us through everything” and “make every game feel like a home game.”
The boys certainly looked right at home in the second half, using a 19-7 third quarter to help put away a very talented and previously undefeated team from York. It capped off a remarkable series of events for Caribou basketball on Saturday that nobody could have predicted, and that left Caribou fans feeling incredibly proud.
“Both the boys and the girls, they’ve just had an awesome year. And they’re determined to win,” said Sue Sands, who works in Caribou and was in the stands on Saturday with her daughter. “And we’re proud of all of them.”
Her daughter, Holly Rhinebolt, who has been a teacher in Caribou for 30 years, said she has had “like all” of the boys and girls players in class at some point.
“These are great kids,” Rhinebolt said. “To see all the people from Caribou — round-trip it’s 600 miles, so it’s super exciting. Proud of them all.”
Rhinebolt’s daughter was also there Saturday night, playing in the school band.
Caribou Athletic Director Evan Graves talked about looking up at the stands and marveling about the Caribou crowd.
“And it’s like, wow, this community comes out to show the support far and wide,” Graves said. “It’s the alumni, it’s the people that love basketball.”
It was hard for Caribou fans to not love the kind of championship basketball they saw on Saturday.
“This is massive for the community,” said Corrigan, the boys coach. “I’m just so proud of, not just of our guys, but the community in general. Because they showed up, they showed out, and both teams gave them a show today.”
He wasn’t just a proud coach, but also a proud uncle. Quinn Corrigan is his niece, and his nephew Owen Corrigan plays for him on the boys team. But the family mentality of the Caribou squad goes beyond actual family.
“This is a family,” he said about his entire team. “It’s bigger than basketball for us.”
