WASHBURN, Maine — After winning Class D state championships every year from 2011 to 2015, the Washburn girls’ basketball team has gone through some instability with coaching the past three seasons.
Jon Poisson has come aboard as the squad’s third coach in as many years and he says he’s ready to bring consistency to the state’s most successful program this decade.
Diana Trams’s five-year coaching run, which included three state titles, ended after the 2015-16 season and Tyler Putnam was on board last season before stepping down to accept a teaching position in Hodgdon.
Poisson faces a difficult task of trying to keep the team’s lengthy string of consecutive playoff appearances alive, but is ready for the challenge that lies ahead.
The Beavers are coming off a successful season. With a young squad consisting of 11 players that were in either eighth, ninth or 10th grade, they went 10-8 during the regular season and upset Central Aroostook in the tourney quarterfinals before being eliminated the following round.
Washburn still has a youthful roster, but did suffer some significant losses even beyond graduation. Two starters as freshmen a year ago have relocated, with Maggie Castonguay transferring to Presque Isle and Skylar Mette moving to New Hampshire.
Still, the Beavers boast plenty of young talent and Poisson is gunning for a postseason berth in what should be a competitive division.
“I am hoping we can take the post-season experience [of a year ago] and the knowledge of what it takes to get there, and use it,” he said. “Team bonding and chemistry is a big thing I will focus on because if the girls are all close with each other, it can take us to a whole new level.”
The team does not have a single senior on the roster, which consists of four juniors and seven freshmen.
Kassie Farley is one of the juniors and is the lone returning starter. Poisson says she is versatile and a good scorer and defender. She will be expected to take on a lot of the point guard responsibilities this season following the loss of Mette, who was last year’s starter at the position.
Alexis Carney, who was a key player off the bench last year, is another junior who will step into a starting role. She is a strong defender who often will be asked to guard the opponent’s top offensive threat, but Carney also will contribute offensively with her shooting ability.
Classmates Sam Churchill and Bobbie Lee Campbell will be reserve players for Poisson’s team.
The freshmen contingent is strong in numbers and talent. Many were on last year’s team as eighth-graders.
Expected to get the starting nod along with Farley and Carney are Emma Johnston, Raegyn Chavez and Emerson Turner. Bree Turner will be one of the top players off the bench, while Madison Miller, Trinity Saucier-Pellicer and player-manager Brooklyn Tupper are other substitutes to begin the season.
Josh Poisson, Grace Braley and Scott Olson will be assistant coaches under Jon Poisson. Sydney Chavez and Kyli Farley are the managers.
With a young and athletic squad that features quickness, the head coach said a running game will be a key component.
“We are going to play uptempo and want to have quick ball movement,” Poisson said, “but we want to play fast without rushing.”
