The short and sweet spring sports season continues to produce memorable moments for local teams and athletes.
Here’s a glimpse of how things stand as we approach the midway point of the regular season:
Boys’ lacrosse: Flyers on the rise
The dominance of the Waynflete girls’ lacrosse program has been well-documented. This spring, the boys are getting into the fun as well.
The Flyers rolled 9-4 over visiting Marshwood last Tuesday (behind seven goals from junior Jay Witte), then went to Freeport Saturday for what proved to be a see-saw battle. The teams were tied 3-3 at the half and 4-4 late in the third period when Waynflete took the lead for good on a man-up goal from junior Josiah Baker-Connick (classmate Miles Beavin had the assist). Early in the fourth, Baker-Connick added an insurance goal and the Flyers held on to win 6-5, thanks in large part to 15 saves from sophomore Will Hallett. Baker-Connick, Beavin and Witte all had two goals.
“This was a taking-care-of-business game,” said Waynflete coach Bob Johnson. “This was a nice win for us. It was a real team effort. We did a lot of nice stuff. It’s the first time in awhile we’ve won two in a row. This was anyone’s game. The last couple years when it was anyone’s game, we lost. This is promising. The kids are tough and are working hard. They’ve pulled together as a team.”
The Flyers, now 3-1, visit Thornton Academy Wednesday and play host to Fryeburg Saturday.
In Western A, while Portland was making yet another huge statement (please see story, page 17), Cheverus and Deering have found the going difficult.
The Stags ran into arguably the two best teams in the state last week and lost 14-2 at Portland and 18-2 at home to Yarmouth. Freshman Tyler Bishop scored twice against the Bulldogs while senior Ryan McQuaid had two goals and junior Sean Oddy stopped 15 shots against the Clippers.
Cheverus got back in the win column and improved to 2-3 Monday with an 8-4 home win over Massabesic. Senior Ryan McQuaid scored four times. The Stags visit Noble Friday and go to York Monday of next week.
Deering is seeking its first win. The Rams lost 13-0 at Kennebunk and 20-3 at home to Cape Elizabeth last week to fall to 0-4. Deering was at South Portland Tuesday (too late for print), hosts York Saturday and pays a visit to Marshwood Monday.
Girls’ lacrosse: Waynflete up to old tricks
The defending Class B state champion Waynflete girls’ lacrosse team hasn’t faced a serious challenge to date, but does what teams of their stature must do, win consistently and decisively.
After opening with a 14-6 home win over York and a 16-7 home victory over Falmouth, the Flyers faced their first road tests last week. Waynflete only led host Massabesic by a goal at halftime last Tuesday, but erupted in the second half to cruise 18-5 behind four goals from senior Mariah Monks and three apiece from juniors Amy Allen and Morgan Woodhouse. Friday, the Flyers dominated from start to finish in a 13-2 triumph at Marshwood. Allen had five goals to lead the way.
Waynflete improved to 5-0 Monday with a 14-2 home win over Greely. Allen had five more goals, Monks scored three times and assisted on five other goals. Woodhouse had three goals as well. The Flyers faced a test Tuesday (too late for print, check Web site for game story) when they hosted Scarborough. Thursday, Waynflete is home against dangerous Kennebunk.
In Western A, Portland came back to earth Friday. The Bulldogs took a 2-0 record into Freeport and grabbed a quick 2-0 lead, but the Falcons scored 11 of the next 12 goals to lead 11-3 at the half en route to a 15-6 triumph. Portland got four goals from freshman Rachel Allen. The Bulldogs got back on the right track Monday and improved to 3-1 with an 11-5 home win over Windham. Junior Nancy McAdam and freshman Catherine Flaherty both had three goals.
Thursday, Portland hosts Westbrook in a playoff rematch. Friday, the Bulldogs welcome Gorham.
Cheverus fell to 1-2 last Tuesday after an 11-6 loss at Kennebunk, then proved to be no match for Mother Nature. First, the Stags’ home game against Falmouth was rained out, then their home contest with Deering was lost to weather. Cheverus was at Cape Elizabeth Tuesday (too late for print) and plays at Greely Thursday.
Deering and McAuley are seeking their first victories.
The Rams (0-1) were rained out against Greely and Cheverus. They hosted North Yarmouth Academy Tuesday (too late for print) and host Yarmouth Friday.
The Lions lost by 16-15 scores to Portland and Bonny Eagle to start the year, then ran into a buzzsaw from Thornton Academy in a 22-4 home loss last
Tuesday. McAuley (0-3) was home with Sanford Tuesday (too late for print), plays at Fryeburg Thursday and visits Freeport Monday.
Baseball: Portland on a roll
On the diamond, while Deering continues to deliver punishment to any team standing in its way (please see story, page 17), its fiercest rival has hit its stride.
The Bulldogs dropped their first two games, then won the 1,000th game in program history, 5-1 at Kennebunk. Last week, Portland blanked visiting Noble 5-0 behind senior Brian Furey’s arm and bat (he homered over the Maine Monster), then won 6-3 at Windham (behind a strong start from senior Ed Bogdanovich).
The Bulldogs took a 3-2 mark into Monday night’s home game versus Scarborough (too late for print). They played at Marshwood Tuesday, host Biddeford Thursday and Massabesic Saturday.
Cheverus improved to 3-2 with a pair of shutout wins last week. The Stags blanked visiting Marshwood 1-0 (sophomore Joe Royer threw a two-hit shutout with eight strikeouts and senior Mick DiStasio had the winning RBI) and host Massabesic 4-0 (as DiStasio went deep and junior Kyle Randall sparkled on the hill).
Cheverus was at Bonny Eagle Monday (too late for print), hosts Deering Thursday and plays at South Portland Saturday.
In Western C, Waynflete dropped a pair of close games and one not-so-close game last week, falling 7-3 at Old Orchard Beach and 2-1 (in eight innings) at home to NYA, before getting crushed 18-4 by visiting St. Dom’s. Senior Zohar Azoulay was the tough-luck loser against the Panthers despite a solid effort. The Flyers (1-5) go to Traip Wednesday and host Sacopee Friday.
Softball: Cheverus stays hot
On the girls’ side of the diamond, Cheverus took a two-game winning streak into Monday’s home game against Kennebunk. The Stags were coming off a 6-3 home victory over McAuley and a 7-5 (eight inning) triumph at Sanford. Junior Theresa Hendrix earned the win on the mound and stole home against the Lions. Against the Redskins, sophomore Audrey Grinnell’s RBI double put Cheverus ahead to stay. The Stags (4-2) go to Deering Thursday, host Westbrook Friday and visit Windham Monday.
The Rams fell to 1-5 last week after heartbreaking 3-2 losses to powerhouse Scarborough and defending Western A champion Biddeford. At the Tigers, Deering took a 2-1 lead in the top of the eighth, but couldn’t hold on. The Rams were supposed to host Portland Friday, but that game was rained out. Deering visited South Portland Monday (too late for print), hosts Cheverus Thursday, visits Bonny Eagle Friday and plays host to McAuley Monday.
The Lions lost 7-0 to visiting South Portland and 6-3 at Cheverus last week to fall to 1-5. Friday, McAuley was scheduled to host Bonny Eagle, but that game was rained out. After going to Sanford Wednesday, the Lions are home against Kennebunk Friday and play at Deering Monday.
Portland is 0-6 after losses to Sanford and Kennebunk last week. After hosting Westbrook Monday (too late for print), the Bulldogs visit Windham Wednesday, host Noble Friday and play at Marshwood Monday.
Track: Locals run at relays
The Cheverus boys’ outdoor track team took fifth out of 13 teams at Friday’s Kiwanis Relays in Westbrook.
Cheverus and McAuley’s girls’ squad took part in the Scarborough Relay Carnival. Cheverus came in fourth and McAuley was 11th out of 16 teams. The Stags won the 6,400 relay (22 minutes, 20.50 seconds).
Tennis: Portland girls still perfect
On the hardcourts, the Portland girls continue to impress. Last week, the Bulldogs improved to 4-0 with wins over Gorham and Westbrook. Even better, Portland’s Corey Carmichael and Maggie Eismeier and Audrey Seiz and Greer Chapman reached the SMAA double final. Portland’s boys are 1-2 to date.
Cheverus’ boys are unbeaten. The Stags improved to 4-0 last Wednesday with a 4-1 win at Kennebunk. Cheverus’ doubles tandem of Elliot Coates and Mackenzie Crosby reached the SMAA championship round before losing to a team from Windham, 3-6, 1-6. Cheverus’ girls fell to 0-5 last Wednesday with a 5-0 loss to the Rams.
Deering’s boys entered the week 4-1, riding a three-game win streak. The Rams girls’ squad fell to 2-3 last Wednesday after a 3-2 loss to McAuley.
Speaking of the Lions, their win over Deering was their third in a row and left them 4-1.
In Western C, Waynflete continues to excel. The Flyers boys, the defending Class C champions, improved to 6-0 Friday with a 4-1 home win over Lake Region. The girls’ team won 5-0 at Lake Region to improve to 5-1.
Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mailto:mhoffer@theforecaster.net
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