BIDDEFORD — Biddeford boys basketball coach Justin Tardif has led an impressive turnaround over the past few years, including a 16-4 campaign last season that saw the Tigers reach the Class A South semifinals.

Now, the Biddeford coach is looking to keep the program heading in the right direction and he will be counting on his two senior captains – Carter Edgerton and Cody Saucier – to lead the way.

“I think with Cody and Carter, obviously we are really relying on them for their leadership and continuing the culture that we’ve built here in the program,” Tardif said.

Edgerton and Saucier are excited to take over the leadership role for the Tigers and will be counting on sophomores Ashton Crowell, Scott Kelly, Alex McAlevey and Will Harriman this year.

“I’m pretty excited to play with this group. We have a younger team and I’m excited to see what we can do,” Edgerton said.

“There’s really not another group I’d rather be with than the people I’m with right now,” added Saucier.

There is reason for optimism when it comes to the sophomore group as they went 17-1 in their freshman campaign last year.

“I think a lot of these guys are very experienced with basketball. They have been playing most of their lives. It’s just about getting everybody used to that varsity speed and I think we should be pretty successful,” said Edgerton of the sophomore standouts.

Saucier agreed.

“They’re all really good players. They are all going to contribute to the team,” Saucier said. “I think every single one of them can shoot. We’re going to be a really good shooting team this year and let’s hope we can put it together.”

Tardif knows the younger Tigers will need to grow up quickly as they will face a tough Class A South schedule this season.

“I think with Class A South, Falmouth, Greely, York and Kennebunk are going to be very good teams with experience and a lot of talent. I think those are definitely the class of Class A,” Tardif said.

Edgerton and Saucier will work hard to keep the Tigers together throughout the grueling Class A South campaign.

“We need to (remember) it’s going to be a long season. There’s going to be some highs and some lows and we’ve got to be prepared for that. We’ve just got to be mentally tough and, in the long run, our goal is to make the playoffs,” Edgerton said.

Tardif has been happy with what he has seen from this group and believes if they stay together and play unselfish basketball they will be just fine this season.

“It’s a very simple goal, but at the high school level, it’s probably the most challenging to accomplish. I said to the guys, based on what I saw this summer and last year, I think I have 13 good teammates. That’s a great thing to have as a coach and I said our goal by the end of the year is I’d like to be able to say at our banquet that we had 13 great teammates,” Tardif said. “I think if we can jump – and there is a difference between a good and a great teammate – I think if we can jump from 13 good teammates to 13 great teammates, I think we’ll play unselfish and things will take care of themselves.”

Biddeford will open the season Friday, Dec. 7 when the Tigers welcome in the rival Kennebunk Rams.