RUMFORD — Chilling temperatures at Black Mountain did not stop the Class B alpine state championship skiers from the fierce Giant Slalom competition Wednesday afternoon. Fort Kent’s Kaden Theriault took first place for the boys and Yarmouth’s Brooke Boone finished in the top spot for the girls.

Boone dominated her runs, with her 1:40.22 finish creating a 1.22-second gap between first and second place. The runner-up was Mountain Valley’s Jaden Boulanger, followed by Rangeley’s Bree Quimby.

“I’m super excited since it’s my senior year, so I just wanted to leave it all out there,” Boone said. “I really like the team this year, we’re super close, we spend the weekends together and we were undefeated all season.”

Theriault finished at 1:32.63, shaving off five seconds between his first and second runs. He said he just tried to find speed at every point he could, and almost lost his balance a couple of times. Cape Elizabeth’s Logan Schwartz took second place, despite having a faster first run than Theriault. The highest-finishing Sun Journal-area boys skier was Poland’s Dylan Cobb, in eighth.

“I knew how close it was, and that anything could happen,” Theriault said about the 0.3-second gap between him and Schwartz. “I knew that if I did my best that I could secure (the win).”

This senior season was Theriault’s first and last racing in Maine Principals’ Association, as he previously only raced at Carrabassett Valley Academy. He said the supportive team at Fort Kent, who loudly cheered him on and jumped up and down after his electric finish, has been his favorite part of the season and something he’ll miss when he graduates.

Schwartz, also a senior, isn’t ready to hang his skis up for good, and plans to ski for the club team at the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, this upcoming fall, along with running on the school’s NCAA Division III track and field team. At Wednesday’s state meet, he said the first run had far more turns than the second run. On the second run, he said he was able to be much more tactical and “really just let the skis go.”

The Class B alpine state championships continue Thursday with the slalom competition at Black Mountain of Maine.

Cape Elizabeth recently won the Western Maine Conference alpine title, even with adding several underclassmen to this year’s roster.

“Last year, we had six boys and this year, we got eight or nine,” Schwartz said. “It’s nice to see the steam’s still going to be around when I leave next year. This team for Easterns this year could be really good — this could be the best shot we’ve had in a while. I’m looking forward to that because Maine typically doesn’t win those things.”

Boone also spoke about the underclassmen on Yarmouth’s team, a couple of whom did not finish in Wednesday’s race. Despite that, she said she was proud of everyone’s effort, and she could relate to the nerves on the course because she, too, felt them on her first run.

Boulanger, also a senior, said her goal for the state meet was to “go out there and just have fun,” which she was happy to accomplish. Technically, she said she worked hard on both runs to “keep her line tight and push the gates,” which factored into the four-second time decrease between runs one (52.61 seconds) and two (48.39).

When asked what she’s most proud of throughout her whole senior season, Boulanger simply said, “I’m just, like, I’m having so much fun,” while sporting a huge grin on her face.

Another skier having a total blast at Wednesday’s state meet was St. Dominic’s Cecile Brown, who finished in 82nd with a time of 2:25.42.

“My coach always says there’s two f’s in a race: finish and fun. And not only did I finish, but it was so much fun,” Brown said. “Riding up the chairlift knowing that I get to race today, it’s just fun.”

Brown is a sophomore, and said that this season has been “amazing” for the Saints.

“Every season has ups and downs, there’s so much that goes into every season,” Brown said. “But, the growth, though it may be small, in the long term, you see it and it’s something that we’re so proud of.”

Mountain Valley freshman Sawyer Durant also went out on the hill intending to have fun, and like many of the skiers, completed that mission. He finished in 37th place with a time of 2:03.17.

“I’m only a freshman, so I wasn’t thinking too much of (the state meet),” Durant said. “I’m not expected to do as good as the seniors, so there wasn’t as much pressure, but it’s fun.”

He said he has a hard time staying low on GS, typically, but felt like he improved that skill in Wednesday’s meet. He has also learned how to hit gates in slalom, and is excited to keep improving these skills in his three remaining high school seasons.

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