AUBURN — Adelaide Strout and the other Yarmouth/Freeport girls hockey seniors had been here before. The Clippers reached the state championship game in their freshman and sophomores years, losing close games to the Cheverus co-op each time. Last season, they reached the regional final, only to fall to Brunswick.

“We’ve been here so many times,” Strout, a defenseman, said.

Saturday night, the Clippers finally grabbed that elusive state title, with a 1-0 overtime victory over three-time defending state champ Cheverus at Norway Savings Bank Arena. It’s the program’s first title.

The game’s only goal came off the stick of freshman Avery Guyer, a defenseman who was playing out of position at forward, at 3:11 of overtime. Yarmouth/Freeport coach David Intraversato moved Guyer up to forward to give his exhausted forwards a breather.

“I thought it was going to be a rebound type of situation,” Guyer said of her goal. “We really wanted to beat them. They had a three-year winning streak, and we just wanted to get that state championship.”

She slipped the puck over the right shoulder of Cheverus goalie Ellie Skolnekovich, setting off the Clippers celebration.

“We put Avery up on forward for the last shift because we were a little gassed. She had some legs, and she answered the call. It was a great hustle shift,” Intraversato said.

It was the only goal Cheverus allowed in three playoff games. Skolnekovich was outstanding all season, posting a .955 save percentage and 0.81 goals against average entering the game, with eight shutouts. Cheverus coach Scott Rousseau said in December, when the team was struggling, he and his assistants talked about the best path to success.

“Ellie is our best player, so we’re going to start with her. We moved Taylor (Lucas) back to defense, and we’re going to lean into being the best defensive team in the state,” Rousseau said.

In November, Cheverus was 3-2-2, and a .500 season looked likely.

“Which is probably what should’ve happened. I couldn’t ask for anything more. We lost to a great hockey team. It was their time tonight,” Rousseau said. “Dave Intraversato is a good friend of mine, and I know he’s been in this position (losing a state game) more times than he wants.”

For Yarmouth/Freeport, the offensive plan was to try to screen Skolnekovich as much as possible, and jump on rebounds. That’s what worked in a 1-0 win over the Stags in the regular season, Strout said.

“The last game, I scored when everyone was in front of the net. We were thinking of trying to get everyone in front of the net and the shots coming from the top,” Strout said.

Strout couldn’t praise Guyer, her defensive partner, enough. The game-winner was just Guyer’s fifth goal of the season.

“I’m just so proud of her. The one shift she goes on forward, she scores. It’s awesome,” Strout said.

Lydia Costa made 11 saves to earn the shutout. To Intraversato, the experience his seniors gained playing in big games the last three seasons was key.

“They kind of knew how to play in the playoffs. We had a lot of experience there. They really dug deep, and it’s kind of come full circle for them,” he said.

Cheverus’ best chance to score came with a power play early in the third period.

“Our nature all year long is, we figure we’re going to win. Until I saw (the winning goal) go in, I thought we’d find a way to win,” Rousseau said.