Cheverus senior Maddie Fitzpatrick carries the Gold Ball after the Stags won their second Class AA title in three seasons on Saturday. Fitzpatrick finished with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographe

BANGOR — Maddie Fitzpatrick had one more piece of hardware to add to her collection. On Friday, the Cheverus senior landed that remaining prize.

Fitzpatrick was named the 37th winner of the Miss Maine Basketball award at the Maine McDonald’s All-Star banquet in Bangor, prevailing out of a group that included finalists Ellie Gay of Gorham and Caroline Hartley of Scarborough.

“I’ve dreamt of this for so long,” Fitzpatrick said. “I’ve just been really lucky. I’ve had a lot of great people around me that have supported me and encouraged me, that have helped me get here. To be here with all these great players and coaches and my family, it’s incredible.”

Chance Mercier

The Mr. Maine Basketball award went to Ellsworth’s Chance Mercier.

Over the course of her dominant career, Fitzpatrick led Cheverus to two Gold Balls while also being named the state’s Gatorade Player of the Year her junior season. On Friday, she became the first Miss Maine winner from Cheverus, and the school’s second player to be named the state’s top senior basketball player, joining 2010 Mr. Maine Basketball selection Indiana Faithfull.

“I’m just so proud of her,” Cheverus Coach Billy Goodman said. “I think she deserved it because of everything she did for the team, and all that she does on the court and off the court. I think she’s a great representative of the top players in Maine, and how to do it the right way.”

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Mercier was chosen over fellow finalists Carter Galley of Oceanside and Zach McLaughlin of Hampden Academy. He became the first Ellsworth winner since Tim Scott in 1988.

“I did not think I was going to win, I thought it was open between Carter, Zach and I,” Mercier said. “It just feels great to be honored.”

Fitzpatrick finished with regular-season averages of 25.5 points, 11.3 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 4.9 steals per game. She led Cheverus to the Class AA championship, with 14 points, 13 rebounds and six assists in the final victory over Gorham.

Fitzpatrick showed an ability to take over games on both sides of the floor. The University of Maine commit could knock down shots in space or finish in traffic, or thread passes to players cutting toward the basket, and she showed a combination of strength and quickness to strip ball handlers and rack up rebounds.

That combination made Fitzpatrick the season-long favorite to be crowned Miss Maine Basketball, but Fitzpatrick had her sights set on the award well before the season began.

“I’m a list person, a goal-setter, it’s how I work,” she said. “I’ve always had this as a goal, and it’s always been on my bulletin board. I’m really close with (2015 winner) Ashley Storey (of Greely) … and so when she won it, I was like ‘Oh, I have to be like her, I want to win this award.'”

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Mercier averaged 22.1 points and 8.9 rebounds for Ellsworth, leading the Eagles to a 15-3 regular-season record.

“The Gold Ball was definitely first on my (wish) list,” Mercier said. “But being Mr. Maine, it was up there. … I couldn’t have done this without my teammates.”

Gay averaged 12.6 points for Gorham in the regular season and led the Rams to the Class AA final by averaging 17 points over three regional tournament games. Hartley averaged 15.7 points per game, as well as 6.9 rebounds.

Galley averaged 30 points and 2.8 steals for Oceanside, leading the Mariners’ explosive offensive attack. McLaughlin averaged 23.2 points and 3.2 steals for the Broncos, guiding Hampden to the Class A final.

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