Skowhegan’s Jaycie Christopher maneuvers around Greely’s Asja Kelman during the Class A state championship game at Portland’s Cross Insurance Arena on March 5. The River Hawks defeated Greely, 60-46, to complete a 22-0 season and capture the school’s first championship in girls’ basketball. Ben McCanna/Portland Press Herald

If there’s an award – team or individual – to be won, Jaycie Christopher has won it.

Christopher, a recent Skowhegan Area High School graduate, has been a force ever since arriving at the school as a freshman in 2018. And as a senior, Christopher dominated Maine high school sports in a way no other female athlete has ever done, becoming the first player to be named both Miss Maine Basketball and Miss Maine Softball.

She’s also our choice for Varsity Maine Female Athlete of the Year.

“I’ve always wanted to be the best at whatever I do, and that’s something we talk about a lot in my family,” Christopher said. “It’s a lot of work and a lot of time in the gym or on the field or wherever else, and it’s great to look back and be able to see that it all paid off.”

As a freshman, Christopher established herself as an elite basketball player almost immediately as she became a double-figure scorer on a Skowhegan team that included Miss Basketball semifinalist Annie Cooke. By her junior year, Christopher was already a 1,000-point career scorer, the only underclassman in school history to reach that milestone.

Christopher’s real goal, though, was to win a state championship – something the Skowhegan girls had never done in their history. The River Hawks finally earned the Gold Ball this year, completing a 22-0 season with a 60-46 win over Greely in the Class A final.

“Even when I think about that game today, I can’t believe it,” Christopher said. “I remember walking off the court with 30 seconds left, and I just broke down because it was this feeling of overwhelming joy. It was a moment of, ‘We did it. We accomplished this thing that no one else at Skowhegan has ever done before.’”

Christopher, who will play basketball next at Boston University, was the dominant force behind that state championship run. She averaged 22.3 points, 8.6 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 3.4 steals per game and was named the Maine Gatorade Player of the Year in addition to Miss Maine Basketball.

“She could have dropped 35 any night but didn’t because of the way she shares the ball,” said Skowhegan Coach Mike LeBlanc. “She’s not a player who’s going to carry you; she’s going to be a player who develops you. Everything she does is geared toward making everyone else better around her.”

Nine months before the basketball state title win, Christopher won a state championship as a member of the Skowhegan softball team. She was instrumental to the River Hawks’ Class A title run as she banged out three hits in the team’s 9-4 win over Bangor in the Northern Maine championship game.

Skowhegan’s Jaycie Christopher puts on her cap during the announcement of the Miss Maine Softball award on June 21 at St. Joseph’s College in Standish. Andy Molloy/Kennebec Journal

Skowhegan had another outstanding season this spring as it went 16-3 with a Northern Maine runner-up finish. Christopher, who won Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Player of the Year in addition to her Miss Softball crown, played shortstop and batted an impressive .538 with eight doubles, four triples, two home runs, 24 RBI and 18 stolen bases.

Christopher’s father, Jon, got to watch her growth as an athlete up close as Skowhegan’s athletic director. Jon Christopher coached his daughter in the buildup to high school and was a major motivating force for Jaycie along with her older brother, 2019 Skowhegan graduate Marcus Christopher.

“I really think that Jaycie benefited greatly in her younger years from having a brother who was three years older who allowed her to play sports with him and his friends,” Jon Christopher said. “That challenging competition against older boys really helped Jaycie improve at a fast rate at a young age.”

Christopher already has started classes and team workouts at BU. But before she left for college, members of the 2021-22 Skowhegan girls’ basketball team gathered one last time to receive their championship rings.

“It’s so amazing that we can all be able to relive that moment,” Christopher said before that meeting. “All of us are so close, and it’s so special that we can get together one last time. I love this community so much.”