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BREWER — Piscataquis was on the losing side of last year’s eight-player boys soccer state championship game. The majority of the staters returned this fall seeking redemption and to avoid the disappointment of falling a game short.

On Saturday, the Pirates found out how much better it feels to win the Gold Ball, which they claimed with a 2-1 victory over Telstar at Brewer High School.

“So we learned we didn’t want to do it again,” Brady Gaw said. “You never want to (lose) back-to-back. Especially, I mean, up two goals, I think it was at one point. You never want (a team) to have a comeback in a state game.”

Piscataquis coach Trey Gilbert said he and the Pirates (18-0) expected to return to the state final right after they lost to Greenville in last year’s title game.

“I mean, the day after we lost, we had one senior last year, we knew we had seven returning starters from last year,” Gilbert said. “We brought in an amazing exchange student (Oliver Luckovskis) from Latvia. So, basically, that next day they’re like, we’re going to states next year.”

The Piscataquis community came to Brewer in full force, and the players built off their fans’ energy.

“I love seeing the fans come out. I mean, we got all kinds of them,” Gaw said. “It brings everybody together, brings the community together, and it’s just a fun time.”

Gaw, a senior, scored one of the two Pirates’ two goals late in the first half. Chase Lander, a junior, scored the other in the second half to give Piscataquis a 2-0 advantage.

Cyrus Mills, the hero for Telstar (16-1-1) in the South final on Thursday, scored in the second half while the Rebels were a man down after senior Tommy LaPointe received a red card with 14 minutes remaining.

Piscataquis started to feel pressure building in the final minutes.

“It was definitely nerve-wracking because they’re a strong team, they can easily put another one in, and it’s tied up,” Lander said.

But the Pioneers held on to send their seven seniors out as state champions.

“We’re not going to be half as good next year,” Lander said.

The Rebels suffered their first loss of the season, but they hope to follow Piscataquis’ footsteps and return to the state final in 2026.

“It’s something that, unfortunately, there’s always a winner and a loser, right?” Telstar coach Nic Conrad said. “But I’m so proud of the young men out there, and it’s crazy how we went a man down with the unfortunate red card, right? Absolutely unacceptable for the behavior on that. But to rally behind that and score a goal and have them on their back heels, it seemed like that entire second half, they were scared of the underdog. I am very proud of the program that we are building here, and we will be back.”