WATERVILLE — Brunswick High School girls tennis player Maisie Silverman may look back one day on her sophomore year and realize just how right everything went.

Already the Maine Principals’ Association schoolgirls champ for 2012, Silverman charged the net on Saturday in the State Class A Championship at Colby College and did what she has done all season — hit a winner.

However, this shot was far different than the average point, because this one clinched the Class A title for the Dragons, the team’s first since 1998, in a 3-2 victory over Catherine McAuley.

“I knew both of the doubles were done, and that we needed just one more point to win,” said Silverman, who won her match against Addie Devine, 6-0, 6-1, to put the Dragons on top, 3-0. “I was up four-to-one, then five-to-one, and 40 to 30, and I just figured this was it. I wanted to win that point for the team.”

“It was symbolic that Maisie ended it the way she did,” said Brunswick coach Rob Manter. “I am extremely proud of these girls. They are a great group, fun to be around at practice, and it has just been a great experience.”

Manter worked with his team on Thursday to put the victory over Lewiston (a 4-1 win on Wednesday in the Eastern A final) behind them and focus on Catherine McAuley and the job at hand.

“We had a short practice, and we knew we weren’t there yet, that we could do it and believe,” said Manter.

“It feels great to end this way,” said senior Laura Pavitt, who along with classmates and captains Alexa Rivers and Hannah Wright were the first to receive the championship plaque. “We kept working every day in practice. We stayed confident in every match. It was hard to come back after beating Lewiston finally after so long, but we knew we wanted the state championship.”

Doubles victories

Brunswick jumped into a 1- 0 lead at No. 2 doubles. Leah Soloway and Samiera Mac- Mullen, players who teamed up throughout the season, easily dispatched McAuley’s squad of Caitlyn Connolly and Kathleen O’Brien, 6-0, 6-2.

“Me and Leah, when we start off good, we go uphill from there, and we just seem to play really well together,” said MacMullen.

In the No. 1 doubles match, Gillian Ford and Rivers trailed McAuley’s duo of Siobhan Kenneally and Katie Poulin, 4-5, in the first set.

“Alexa and I try to say that ‘this is the third period’ since we play hockey together, and I just think we had to get in the groove,” said Ford after rolling off three straight games to win the first set, 7-5, before jumping out to a 5-0 lead en route to a 6-1 secondset victory. “Once we were there, we were good to go. Everything came together. This is an amazing feeling, and has just been rewarding this year to be able to get all the way through.”

With McAuley’s Devri Ramsey leading her match at No. 2 singles with Brunswick’s Ali Stankiewicz, and Pavitt trailing in her singles battle with McAuley’s Ally Strawn at No. 3, the pressure went to Silverman. On the final point, Silverman leapt high into the air, knowing the Dragons were state champs.

“We knew today wouldn’t be easy,” said Silverman. “Honestly, the team win is so much better because you get to celebrate with everyone. There is so much love here. This is the best feeling.”

Ramsey picked up a point for McAuley with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Stankiewicz, her first team loss of the season, while Pavitt dropped a 6-1, 6-4 decision to Strawn. But, with the match already decided, the Dragons came together for a group hug and celebrated in front of a large group of fans.

“This was great, and we are just so happy to have won this,” said Soloway.