Seconds after the Cony High School girls basketball team upset Portland in 1987 for its first Class A state championship, coach Paul Vachon waved his arms as if he were swimming the butterfly in reverse as he danced across the Bangor Auditorium floor.

It was Vachon's second year on the job at the Capital City school, and in the 21 seasons that followed he never lost that spontaneous enthusiasm. It not only carried the Rams to six more state titles and 10 additional Eastern Maine championships, but helped put girls basketball on the map in Maine.

The veteran Rams coach announced his retirement this week after accepting a position as the school's athletic director.

"I really don't think I could justify doing the AD's job and coaching at the same time," Vachon said. "Coaching girls basketball at Cony High School is a very difficult job. You're a coach, you're a teacher, a guidance counselor, a motivational speaker, a parent's consultant and sometimes you're even a parent."

The seven Class A girls titles won by Vachon's teams are the most of any coach in the state. During that time, his teams have won 92 percent of their games in posting a record of 433 wins and 37 losses. They've generally done it with an uptempo offense built around an aggressive, pressing defense and 3-point shooting.

"You knew they were going to come after you," former Nokomis coach Earl Anderson said. "They mirrored his personality -- very tough, very competitive."

Vachon learned his basketball from former Cony boys coach Dick Hunt, who employed the same sort of pressing style that helped him win boys state championships in 1966 and 1973. Hunt plucked Vachon out of a group of potential point guards in midseason in 1973 primarily because he followed his coach's instructions.

In the 1973 title game, Vachon missed a half dozen shots from the top of the key as opposing Rumford dared him to shoot. Hunt had Vachon keep firing until he eventually made one and it helped turn the game, a lesson that was not lost on the future coach.

"If you didn't shoot enough, he'd get on you," former player Julie Veilleux said.

As far as Vachon was concerned, if you busted your butt on defense, the offense would take care of itself. It usually did. In addition to Nokomis, Vachon's teams had a number of fierce rivals through the years, including Mt. Blue and Skowhegan. None were greater, though, than Lawrence during the Cindy Blodgett years.

One of the regular-season matchups between the two rivals was televised, and the 1994 Eastern Maine championship game -- a high-scoring shootout won by Lawrence -- was sold out and one of the most-watched girls games ever in the state. Blodgett was the main attraction in those days, but taking down Cony magnified her appearances.

Vachon's Rams, made up primarily of sophomores that year -- including his daughter, Amy -- went on to win the next two state championships.

"He's probably the dominant figure in the last 25 years in girls basketball," Anderson said. "He brought excitement and attention to the game."

An emotional motivator

Vachon's sideline demeanor sometimes worked to his detriment, at least for opposing fans and teams. They saw a frantic coach and heard a high-pitched yell that could penetrate even the noisiest din.

He was the same animated person in practice, said longtime assistant Dave Hopkins.

"What you see is what you get, in a positive way," Hopkins said. "I don't know of any practice in 20 years that has ended negatively."

Hopkins said Vachon involved him in team decisions from the day he arrived as a 21-year-old assistant. Gerard Lapierre, Brian Callahan and Rollie St. Pierre have also been part of Vachon's staff for years and contributed to the team's continuity and success. Vachon, however, set the tone.

"He's probably the best motivator of kids I know of," Hopkins said. "That's in the classroom, on the court and everywhere else."

Few of his current and former players escaped his criticism at one time or another, most of it for lack of hustle on intensity on defense. But this paled in comparison to the praise they received. Hopkins said Vachon often got after his older players in an effort to send his message to the entire team.

"He was just there for support," said senior Rachael Mack, who was named Miss Maine Basketball this season. "He'd get on you for stuff, but he never left you feeling like he was mad at you."

Veilleux, who went on to start for the University of Maine for three seasons, has known Vachon since she was a third grader at his summer basketball camp.

"Only the people in the program know who he truly is," she said. "When he motivates and pushes you, he knows who you are."

Veilleux recalls a heartbreaking loss in the tournament to Nokomis her junior year in a game the Rams were expected to win.

"He's calling me the next day and saying, 'The sun came up didn't it?' " she recalled.

Creating a family atmosphere

Vachon has always taken an intense interest in his players while they were playing and long after they graduated. His alumni games routinely draw between 20 and 30 former players, many of whom have suited up these days only for that game.

"We are basically a family," Vachon said. "We really are."

Veilleux, who went on to become an assistant coach for the Bowdoin College women's team, recently took a job as an assistant at the Naval Academy.

"He was one of the first people I called," she said. "I think who I am today is in big part because of him."

Dozens of Vachon's players have gone on to play basketball in college. Seven have earned Division I scholarships, including Katie Rollins and Cassie Cooper, who are currently playing for Harvard and Dartmouth, respectively.

His interest in former players extends beyond the court, a connection Anderson said is vital.

"They were willing to go the extra mile because they knew this was somebody who would go to bat for them, on and off the floor," he said. "I think that's very important for athletes, especially girls."

Veilleux recalls how Vachon tears up each year at the Chrisanne Burns Memorial Tournament when he tells students of the dangers of drinking, driving or just getting out of control.

"He's preaching core values," she said.

Vachon plans to stay involved in the game, through his summer camp, now in its 22nd year, at the Augusta Civic Center, through clinics and motivational speaking.

"Right now, this is the best thing for me and my family," he said. "I'm going to work as hard at this as I did in the classroom and on the basketball court."

As far as his coaching career goes, Vachon is reluctant to slam the door.

"I don't think you can ever say never," he said.

Gary Hawkins -- 621-5638

ghawkins@centralmaine.com