PORTLAND — Leavitt High looked every bit the defending Class B girls’ basketball state champion Tuesday night, cruising to a 72-59 victory over Spruce Mountain in a Western Class B quarterfinal at the Portland Expo.

After the Phoenix scored the game’s first basket, the fourth-ranked Hornets took control. Using a frenetic full-court press, they increased their lead in each quarter, leading by six after one, 14 at the half and 23 entering the fourth.

“We wanted to establish what we do and we wanted to do that early,” said Leavitt Coach Tammy Anderson.

“The kids did exactly what we asked.”

The Hornets (17-2) will play top-seeded Lake Region in a regional semifinal at 4:30 p.m. Thursday at the Cumberland County Civic Center.

Kristen Anderson led Leavitt with 27 points, eight assists and four steals.

She had 12 points in the decisive third quarter.

Adrianna Newton finished with 20 points and six rebounds for Leavitt. Sarah Frost had a strong inside game with seven rebounds.

Spruce Mountain was led by Kathryn Ventrella, who scored 16 points, hitting four 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.