The Orono boys are no strangers to this stage of the high school basketball tournament, as they play in their fourth straight Class B North regional championship Friday night.
The third-seeded Red Riots will continue their quest for three straight state titles when they take on the top-ranked Vikings of Caribou at 7:45 p.m. at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor.
No team’s season can be solely defined by one player or play, but Orono senior Will Francis certainly had some critical moments Wednesday night when he put up a game-high 24 points and was all over the defensive end of the floor. That effort helped Orono overcome rival Old Town 54-51.
That game looked a little shaky for the defending champs in the first half, with the Coyotes from Old Town getting off to a strong start. A pair of Francis steals led to a pair of Francis buckets at a pivotal time, including an and-1 basket that tied the game at 20-20. It may not have been one of the flashiest plays of the tournament, but it might be one of the most consequential so far. That play and others from Francis added a huge boost of momentum as the Red Riots played without point guard Brady Hews, who was out Wednesday night due to illness.
Orono coach Ed Kohtala said Friday afternoon that he expects Hews to play in the game later tonight against Caribou.
Orono’s Will Francis (#32) passes the ball over Old Town’s defense in a Class B North Semifinal game at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor on Feb. 19, 2025. Orono won the game 54-51.
Caribou’s Brianna Levesque plays defense during a Class B North Quarterfinal vs Presque Isle at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor, ME on Feb. 15, 2025.
The Erskine Academy Eagles celebrate a 3-pointer during a Class B North Semifinal game against John Bapst at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor on Feb. 19, 2025. Erskine Academy won the game 46-38.
“They’re the most explosive offense in our league, in the tournament,” Kohtala explained. “It all starts and ends on the defensive end, because they can put up points in a hurry.”
That defense will be their primary focus, Kohtala said.
“And then you hope to generate enough offense against their very strong defense to be there,” Kohtala said. “They’re a really good team. They started out as a young group paying their dues, and they’ve now reached that point where they have a ton of experience.”
“They will definitely be a very tough opponent,” Kohtala added.
Caribou senior forward Tristen Robbins has been a force for the Vikings in the tournament and throughout the year. Robbins is looking for revenge after Orono knocked Caribou out of last year’s tournament, but he also had nothing but good things to say about the opposing Red Riots after Caribou beat Mount Desert Island on Wednesday.
“I want it, I want the revenge,” Robbins said about the rematch with Orono. “But they’re a great team, they played great tonight, without their point guard Brady Hews. [Bergen Soderberg] can shoot it, Will [Francis] played phenomenal tonight. They play hard defense, and their whole roster is just tough. They have a great coach in Coach [Ed] Kohtala. And it’s going to be a good game.”
It’s that kind of sportsmanship — competitive but respectful — that helps make tourney time so special. Both Caribou and Orono are showing it in droves as they head into Friday night’s boys Class B North regional final.
Prior to that game, the Caribou girls will be taking on Erskine Academy of South China at 6 p.m. for their own shot at a Class B North title.
Top ranked Caribou outlasted Ellsworth on Wednesday night, finally getting the better of the Eagles after having lost to them in the tournament the previous two seasons.
“We’d lost to them the last two years in the semifinals and this shows how hard these girls have worked,” Caribou coach Kayla Brown said after the Wednesday win. “We have a group of seniors who wanted to get back here and we finally pulled out a win.”
The Erskine girls overcame a 12-0 deficit against John Bapst to earn their spot in the regional final.
“We never quit. We just keep on going. We knew what we have to do,” said Erskine Academy sophomore guard Kelsie Dunn. “We’ve always been good at coming back and playing our game.”
In Augusta on Friday night, both the Hampden Academy girls and boys teams will compete for Class A North regional championships. The girls championship features the third seed Hampden Broncos against No. 4 Camden Hills at 6 p.m. after the Windjammers knocked out top-seeded Lawrence earlier in the week. Hampden’s defense powered them past Cony.
The Hampden boys play No. 1 Messalonskee after taking down rival Brewer on Wednesday.
Hampden senior Aiden Kochendoerfer had 19 points for the Broncos in that semifinal win, and credited his teammates after the game.
“My teammates helped me with everything,” Kochendoerfer said. “I trust them with my life. They’re my brothers out there and no matter what happens I know I can trust them. I can play my game and I know they’ll play their game.”
