I was running late one day last week and arrived at the Cumberland County Civic Center just a few minutes before a regional quarterfinal game that featured one of the teams I cover. I spotted an empty seat at the press table and took it just in time for the opening tap.

To my left was a young woman who had short hair and was smartly dressed. After a referee’s whistle stopped the action early in the first quarter, the woman said it was a bad call. I defended the official.

“The call could have gone either way,” I offered. She disagreed, and I thought to myself: “Who is this reporter and what does she know about basketball? I’ve done a little coaching and officiating, and I know what I’m talking about.”

I looked over and noticed that the woman wasn’t taking any notes. She didn’t even have pen or paper. I then thought she might be a television reporter who was going to do a story from the CCCC on state tournament hoop. I’ve been in Maine for 16 months, but I don’t watch the local news too often, so I’d have some trouble IDing most of the region’s TV personalities.

We made small talk and commented on the action as we watched the game, and before long a thought surfaced in my sometimes-clouded brain.

“Could she be that famous basketball player from Maine that everyone talks about? The one who led her high school to four straight Class A titles and then stayed in Maine to play for the Black Bears, led the NCAA in scoring two years in a row and then went on to play professional ball?”

When the first quarter ended, I put my hand out and introduced myself. She responded: “I’m Cindy.”

Yup, it was Cindy Blodgett, the darling of Maine women’s basketball. And I’m the sports reporter who believed – for a few minutes – that my experience as a rec league coach and referee made me more knowledgeable about the game than she is.

I apologized about not immediately recognizing her, explaining that I’m “from away.” She laughed it off.

For the rest of the game and the one that followed we had a nice discussion about the players we were watching, about Boston – where I’m from and where she is currently living – and about how dark and cold the Civic Center is.

Blodgett is in her first year as an assistant coach for the women’s team at Brown, which is currently 17-8. When she scouts players it’s with the realization that only one in 10 has the academic background that they’ll need to succeed at the Ivy League school.

When the second contest ended, Blodgett donned her coat and prepared to head off to Augusta to watch more tournament hoop. I’m pretty sure that most of the people up there recognized her – especially the sports reporters.