LAWRENCE — Brianna Tersolo went to Boston's Zakim bridge when it was dedicated on Oct. 6, 2002. She has always loved the Charles River and Boston Light. She's also a huge Red Sox fan who adores the team mascot, Wally the Green Monster.

So when art teacher Corinne D'Onofrio asked her to design a flag that represents Massachusetts, Tersolo quickly combined those three elements in her mind and then put them onto paper. The result — an award-winning design that's on its way to be displayed in the nation's capital.

Tersolo, an eighth-grader of Our Lady of Good Counsel school on Tower Hill, yesterday received a burst of applause from family, friends and teachers during a school awards assembly. School principal Maureen Cocchiaro announced that Tersolo's flag design was selected during Youth Art Month as the Massachusetts winner.

"It's a huge honor," Cocchiaro told the students that gathered in Judson Hall at the 526 Lowell St. school.

The daughter of Ann and Rob Tersolo of Methuen, Brianna has been invited to a reception at the Worcester Art Museum in March. A trip to Washington, D.C., to see her design being flown with other state winners, is also in the works.

"It's just so exciting," her mother, Ann, said before yesterday's ceremony.

The oldest of four children, Tersolo hopes to combine her love of art and writing and pursue a career in graphic design.

Her father said that from a very young age, Brianna has always been very creative and colorful. She easily whips together posters and hand-made cards for family members on birthdays and holidays. In recent years, she's become interested in Web design and invitation making, her mother said.

When she designed the flag, Brianna said, she wanted to illustrate the new and old of Boston to show both history and progress. She particularly wanted to highlight the Zakim bridge because she walked over it during the 2002 dedication, which coincidentally fell on her ninth birthday.

She worked on the design during several art classes at school. Students were asked to design a flag that incorporated color, hallmarks of the state and the Youth Art Month logo.

The winning flags were chosen by the Central Massachusetts Youth Art Committee.

Tersolo plans to attend Central Catholic High School in Lawrence next year.