SOUTH PITTSBURG, Tenn. — After Arts & Sciences won its first Region 3-A girls’ basketball championship last season, coach Clay Martin surprised his players with a dousing from the team’s water cooler.

When Martin entered the locker room Wednesday following his team’s 65-52 victory over Copper Basin in this year’s region title game, the Lady Patriots were waiting to return the favor.

“He told us after the last game that we could get him back if we won,” CSAS senior and tournament MVP Jamisha Featherstone said, “and we surely did. Everybody is so happy. This is our second year in a row, and we’ve been going hard because we know what it takes now. We understand how to finish a game.”

The Lady Patriots (29-2) hope Wednesday night’s celebration won’t be their last of the season. After earning the District 6 championship that eluded them last year and defending their region title, they will try for the school’s first girls’ state-tournament berth on Saturday.

CSAS will host Pickett County, which upset 2008 state champion Jackson County in the Region 4 semifinals, in a Class A state sectional game.

“This is a great feeling,” Martin said. “With all the expectations we’ve had since the beginning of the season, it really would have a been a letdown to get this far and not finish it with a win. Now we get to play in that home game Saturday, and that’s huge.”

Copper Basin, which will travel to 4-A champion Clarkrange for its sectional Saturday, hung with the Lady Patriots early. A string of 3-pointers — three of them from Kayla Kelly — and three baskets underneath from Featherstone helped CSAS pull away with a 21-5 run during a 7:03 span between the first two quarters.

“That boosted our confidence a whole lot,” Featherstone said of her teammates’ outside shooting. “And after that, they started paying more attention to us on the outside, and that helped us inside, because all our players can drive.”

The Lady Cougars got within 30-20 at the half, but CSAS extended its lead to 17 points in the third quarter before three 3s from Brittany Hyatt helped Copper Basin cut the deficit to single digits in the fourth.

“There was a point when we got up 12 or 13 points, and the girls thought they could put it on cruise control,” Martin said. “I had told them before the game it was going to take four quarters, but I guess they didn’t believe me until it was proven. That’s one thing I know about Copper Basin, that they’re always going to keep coming at you.”

The Lady Patriots held on by shooting 9-for-12 from the free-throw line in the final two minutes. Seven of those shots came from Alexis Anderson, whose 10 points made her one of four CSAS players in double figures. Featherstone finished with 15, while Kelly totaled 13 and Robyn Anthony followed with 11. Hyatt finished with a game-high 28 points for the Lady Cougars (16-16).

ARTS & SCIENCES 65, COPPER BASIN 52

Copper Basin 8 12 8 24 — 52

CSAS 13 17 17 18 — 65

Copper Basin (52) — Dena, Cole 8, Stewart, Ellison, Loudermilk 5, Brittany Hyatt 28, Bria. Hyatt 5, Stevens, Payne 6.

CSAS (65) — Robyn Anthony 11, Alexis Anderson 10, Buchanan 4, Gordon 4, Kayla Kelly 13, McPhearson 1, Rodriguez 7, Jamisha Featherstone 15.

3-point goals: Copper Basin 3 (Brit. Hyatt 3); CSAS 6 (Kelly 3, Anthony, Anderson, Rodriguez). Records: CSAS 29-2; Copper Basin 16-16.

All-tournament team: CSAS — Jamisha Featherstone (MVP), Alexis Anderson, Terilyn Rodriguez, Rashell Buchanan; Copper Basin — Brittany Hyatt, Lindsey Cole; Grace Academy — Kaylan Dilts; Tennessee Temple — Janette Elliott.