The Baraga High School girls varsity basketball team poses with the district trophy after beating Chassell on Friday, March 6, 2020, in Baraga, Mich. (Eddie O’Neill/Daily Mining Gazette)

BARAGA — It was Baraga from the start and Baraga till the end as the Vikings girl’s basketball team clinched another district title as they downed the Chassell Panthers 52-26. It was the second year in a row that these two teams have met in the Division 4 District 98 title game, and the outcome was the same.

“The girls were really pumped up when they came out,” said Baraga head coach Tom Goodreau. “they wanted this title in a big way. I am very happy in the way the girls play.”

The game started off with Baraga’s Reide Osterman hitting back-to-back 3-pointers. They moved out to a 10-0 lead before Chassell’s Alia Palosaari found the bottom of the net for the Panthers at the 5:03 mark. The Panthers were only able to manage two more points in the first while the Vikings poured in another 12 for a 22-4 lead at the end of one.

The Vikings kept it up in the second with a strong defensive press and good passing.

“We moved the ball well,” Goodreau said. “We’ve been working on that and good things come out of it as we saw tonight. When we stand around on offense, we are not very effective.”

Defense was also key for Baraga as their press and scrappiness caused more than a dozen turnovers just in the first two quarters. It flustered the Panthers and forced them to make a lot poor passes which were intercepted and converted into Viking points.

At half the Vikings led 32-11.

“We knew what we were getting into,” said Chassell head coach Bill Sleeman. “We just did not handle that up-front pressure well. We needed to keep our composure and handle the ball better at the beginning of the game and we didn’t.”

The last two quarters looked a lot like the first two as Baraga maintained a 20-point lead and cruised into victory.

Osterman led the scoring charge for the Vikings with 13 points. All of her points from the field came from three-point land. Rylie Koskinen followed with 11 and Jaylynne Lindemann sunk 10.

“It was a team effort, and that is how it has been for us every night,” said Goodreau.

Paige Sleeman led the Panthers with 15 points.

“It was a good season overall,” Sleeman said. “It was pretty much what we expected. We wanted to get back to this (title) game and we did. I expect to be back next year as well.”

Baraga plays Munising on Tuesday in Kingsford in the regional semifinals.

“We will be ready,” said Goodreau. “These girls understand what it takes to be successful.”

Chassell 4 7 9 6 — 26

Baraga 22 10 8 12 — 52

CHASSELL (26): Holombo 1, Warren 5, Sleeman 15, Palosaari 2, Rantamaki 4. 3-point FG: 1 (Warren). F: 16. FT: 3-6.

BARAGA (52): Koskinen 11, Osterman 13, Michaelson 3, Jahfetson 6, Lindemann 10, Durant 7, Coronado 2. 3-point FG: 6 (Osterman 4, Jahfetson 2). F: 17. FT: 12-23.