AUGUSTA — Only one thought went through Grace LaBree’s mind when she blocked Gabriella Martin’s shot.

“Get the ball and hopefully pitch it out to our front court,” she said with a smile.

LaBree’s wish was granted, and her second-seeded Hampden Academy girls basketball team held off No. 3 Camden Hills, 41-39, in a Class A North girls basketball semifinal Wednesday at the Augusta Civic Center.

The Broncos will face No. 1 Mt. Ararat in the regional final at 7 p.m. Friday at the Augusta Civic Center.

Down 40-32 midway through the fourth quarter, Camden Hills (16-4) clawed back to within one point. But Hampden (16-4), which lost twice to the Windjammers in the regular season, stayed in front when the the 6-foot-4 LaBree blocked Martin’s potential go-ahead shot with less than 10 seconds left.

LaBree finished with three blocks and eight rebounds.

“I told the kids before the game, ‘This is going to be a game of runs,'” Hampden coach Nick Winchester said. “I said, ‘Let’s make the first one, and let’s make the last one.’ We didn’t really do either, but in the middle we hung on and played good basketball.”

How it happened

Camden Hills scored seven straight points and cut the deficit to 40-39 on a Leah Jones jumper with 57 seconds left. The Windjammers then had a chance to take the lead after Hampden was fouled and missed two free throws, but Martin’s shot was blocked by LaBree, and the ball was scooped up by Mallory Lausier, who was fouled and made 1 of 2 free throws.

“I thought we put ourselves in a good spot to win,” Camden Hills coach Samantha Bragg said. “I thought they did a good job battling back and not hanging their heads. We did what we need to do.”

Winchester said his goal was to prevent Camden Hills sharpshooters Jones and Thea Laukka from having a chance at the buzzer.

Key moments

A pair of runs made the difference for Hampden. Down 14-7 after one quarter, the Broncos went on a 10-2 run in the second and led 24-20 at halftime. Aubrey Shaw scored nine points in the quarter.

Hampden then scored the last seven points of the third quarter to stretch their led to 37-29, capped by one of Eve Wiles’ four 3-pointers.

Notable quotable

“It feels good, but there were so many plays. We all worked together as a team.” — LaBree

Stat leaders

Hampden Academy: Eve Wyles 14 points, 6 rebounds; Aubrey Shaw 11 points

Camden Hills: Leah Jones 14 points; Thea Laukka eight points