AUGUSTA $ Deering High won its second consecutive Class A state girls basketball championship Saturday night, pulling away in the second half to beat Messalonskee 49-34 at the Augusta Civic Center.

In winning their 36th consecutive game, the Rams relied on the inside power of Claire Ramonas and Kayla Burchill in the second half, combined with the brilliant direction of Diana Manduca, to pull away from a one-point halftime leaad.

Manduca led Deering (22-0) with 14 points while Burchill had 13 and Ramonas 10.

Messalonskee (19-3) was led by Ariana Perry with nine points.

Claire Ramonas re-entered the game after missing most of the first half and scored six points in the third period as Deering took control. Kayla Burchill also had six in the period to help Deering dominate inside.

Jess Ruhlin's driving basket at the buzzer gave Deering an 11-point lead entering the fourth.

Diana Manduca and Kayla Burchill each had four points for Deering in the second quarter as the Rams took a one-point halftime lead after two sloppy periods.

The Rams held Messalonskee without a field goal in the second quarter as the Eagles missed eight shots and committed five turnovers.

Trailing 12-9, Burchill scored two baskets to put the Rams ahead at the half.

Deering played most of the first half without center Claire Ramonas, who picked up her second foul with 3:02 left in the first quarter and appeared to hurt her right leg on the play.

Deering came out ice cold at the Augusta Civic Center, hitting just 1-of-16 shots in the first quarter.

The Rams stayed as close as they were because theyforced five Messalonskee turnovers.

The Eagles took the lead at 4-3 on a driving layup by Ariana Perry.

Tom Knight scored 28 points and top-ranked Dirigo (20-1) earned its first Western Class C boys' basketball title since 1983 with a 64-44 win over second-ranked Wiscasset (19-2).

Knight, a 6-foot-9 senior center, took over at both ends of the court in the third quarter as Dirigo turned a 25-19 halftime lead into a 49-32 advantage. The Notre Dame recruit scored 18 points in the quarter, getting 12 straight Dirigo points during a stretch that included a tip-in on an offensive rebound, another tip-in of an alley-oop pass and an emphatic dunk. He followed the dunk by blocking two straight shots at the other end, then added a breakaway dunk moments later.

Knight popped in 10 second-quarter points, including 6 for 6 from the foul line.

Josh Sonia made five 3-pointers and finished with 19 points for Wiscasset.

No. 2 Jay made three of four free throws in the final 20 seconds to capture a 40-38 win over No. 1 Waynflete for the Western Class C championship.

Hillary Deane and Liz LeBlanc each scored 12 points for the Tigers.

Morgan Woodhouse led the Flyers with 16 points, but her last-second shot from mid-court fell short of the basket, sealing the win for Jay.

Jay will face George Stevens Academy next Saturday at the Bangor Auditorium in the Class C state title game.

Jay has kept pace with Waynflete in the third quarter, matching the Flyers point-for-point. But Morgan Woodhouse has come alive in the paint and at the free-throw line. Woodhouse scored seven points in the third, including three free throws made.

Mariam Qazi's shot at the buzzer gave Waynflete a 19-17 lead at halftime. Waynflete led 17-9 with under four minutes left in the half, but Liz LeBlanc scored the next eight points for Jay - her first points of the game - to tie the game at 17-17 with 23 seconds left in the half.

Qazi leads Waynflete with 12 points at the half.

Morgan Woodhouse has three points, including the go-ahead basket with eight seconds left in the first, as Waynflete leads Jay going into the second quarter Saturday at the Augusta Civic Center. Hillary Deane has all four of Jay's points.