The Falmouth football team already had made history by reaching its first state final. Once there, the Navigators went that last step further.

Indi Backman and Gio Guerrette ran for touchdowns, Tres Walker threw for a score, and Falmouth’s defense dominated in a 26-13 victory over Kennebunk in the Class B final Saturday at Fitzpatrick Stadium.

The Navigators (11-0) earned their first state title. Kennebunk, the defending champion, finished 10-1.

“It doesn’t even feel believable,” said Walker, who completed 12 of 15 passes for 167 yards. “I’m still taking it in. The emotions are definitely going to come through. … I have so much joy for this team. I’m going to miss it a lot, but we got the job done.”

Last season, frustration with the coaching situation prompted several of the team’s best players to not come out for the team, and the Navigators slumped to a 2-6 record. This year, behind new coach Spencer Emerson, the roster was full and Falmouth rolled, going undefeated through the North region and then shutting down a Kennebunk squad that entered with the state’s longest active winning streak – 14 games.

“It feels like a big pressure release off of our back,” said Emerson, who got 116 yards on just four carries from Gio Guerrette, 104 yards on 14 carries from Joey Guerrette, and 71 yards on 23 carries from Backman. “We’ve been able to really just try to be sound versus them, take their most explosive plays away and make them go to something else.”

Falmouth dominated the first half while building a 17-6 lead, then got a 35-yard field goal from Peter Kearns early in the third quarter.

Kennebunk briefly got back into the game when Jaiden Homa returned the ensuing kickoff 88 yards for a touchdown.

The momentum was short-lived, though, as Gio Guerrette took a sweep on the next play from scrimmage, shook two tackles, and sprinted down the right sideline for an 80-yard touchdown, a 26-13 lead and a gut punch with 4:52 left in the third.

“It was just amazing, the adrenaline was just pumping through my blood,” Guerrette said. “It felt (big). It was in the third quarter, that’s when our team really turned this thing around. Just getting up by two touchdowns, it was great for the momentum.”

And it was a body blow for the Rams, who were only able to score on defense and special teams.

“I was thinking if we get a three-and-out (on defense), the momentum’s there, our crowd was behind us, our kids were all fired up. And they responded with another big play,” Kennebunk Coach Keith Noel said. “It was no lack of effort from our kids. (Falmouth) made more plays than we did.”

Even after Guerrette’s touchdown, the game wasn’t out of reach for Kennebunk, but the Rams couldn’t crack Falmouth’s defense. They came in averaging 40 points per game, the second-highest average in 11-man football.

“And they scored zero on us,” said junior defensive end Eli Bush.

Indeed, with Bush leading the way, Falmouth’s defense snuffed out every Kennebunk threat. Top backs Brady Stone (eight carries, 50 yards) and Patrick West (nine carries, 57 yards) were kept in check, and Logan McVeigh and Luke Roy each snared an interception while the line brought pressure.

“We can call plays, we can do all that, but it’s just the attitude our defense has,” Bush said. “Our whole D-line wants it, our secondary wants it. It’s just the fact that our whole defense wants it more than the offense.”

Falmouth got off to a fast start, with Walker finding a wide-open Abram Wintersteen sprinting down the seam for a 38-yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead. On the next drive, Joey Guerrette gained 62 yards on two carries, and Backman got the call to finish the march, plunging in for the touchdown and a 14-0 advantage with 1:58 to go in the first quarter.

“We’re big on trying to get our energy up to start the game,” Walker said. “Coach called an amazing play, left it wide open. All I had to do was drop it in.”

Kennebunk answered when Walker tried to throw the ball away to avoid a sack but instead threw it to Rams lineman Calvin Johnson, who took it 15 yards the other way for a touchdown that cut the deficit to 14-6.

The Navigators, however, weren’t fazed.

“We preached what we’ve preached all season long,” junior lineman Thomas Willoughby said. “Up 50, down 50, whatever it is. The most important thing is the next thing.”

Kearns connected on a low kick for a 35-yard field goal, boosting the lead to 17-6 by halftime. In the second half, a Navigators team that ended last season unsure of its future finished this one with the ultimate prize.

“It felt like a fairy tale, man,” Willoughby said. “This feels like one of those things you see in a cheesy 90s movie, and it doesn’t sound real. But now it’s real. … Something Falmouth’s never done before.”