Kaeden Green of Brunswick, right, fights for positioning with Libby Anderson of Mt. Ararat during an Oct. 12 field hockey game at Brunswick High School. Eli Canfield/The Times Record
It’s that time of year again.
As the leaves turn color and the days get colder, that can only mean one thing; The fall postseason is set to arrive, something that hasn’t been uttered since October of 2019.
With several Midcoast teams in contention to make a run towards that elusive gold ball, here’s a closer look at how the postseason is shaping up in soccer, field hockey, and volleyball.
FIELD HOCKEY
Class A North has been a jumbled mess of solid teams since the season began in early September. Skowhegan is once again at the top after an undefeated season. Mt. Ararat (9-3-2) sits at No. 2 in and will face the winner of No. 7 Mt. Blue and No. 10 Bangor. Those two teams are set to clash on Thursday evening in Farmington.
Head coach Krista Chase believes it’s the highest seed the Eagles have been in program history, and is certainly the highest they’ve been in her eight years as head coach.
“We’re happy to have the bye, we feel like we’ve earned it,” Chase said. “We’re a bit worried we’ll lose some stamina and the rhythm we were in, but we’re very happy with how we finished and hope to bring that into the postseason.”
Mt. Ararat won seven of its last eight games in the regular season.
Belle Hemond of Mt. Ararat, right, tries to get by Kelsey Cassidy during an Oct. 12 field hockey game at Brunswick. Eli Canfield/The Times Record
Brunswick ended its regular season with a 7-5-2 record to earn the No. 6 seed. The Dragons will host No. 11 Brewer in the preliminary round on Friday afternoon in Brunswick. The winner will move on to face No. 3 Oxford Hills next week. The Dragons and the Witches did not meet in the regular season.
In Class B South, Morse (6-6-2) earned the No. 7 seed. The Shipbuilders will host No. 10 Wells on Friday at McMann Stadium in Bath. Morse has won four of its last seven games, but did not see Wells in the regular season, setting up for an intriguing showdown. The winner of Friday’s game will be faced with No. 2 Cape Elizabeth in the regional quarterfinals next week.
Elsewhere in B South, Freeport (7-7) finishes its season on a three-game winning streak and has momentum on its side heading into the postseason. The Falcons finished the regular season with wins over Gray New-Gloucester, Fryeburg Academy, and Lake Region. Freeport will face No. 11 Gray New-Gloucester in the preliminary round, the same team it beat 5-1 on Oct. 11.
SOCCER
Both Brunswick soccer teams enjoyed strong regular seasons and have earned top-five seeds in Class A North to show for it. The girls earned the No. 3 seed at 12-2 and will face the winner of No. 6 Mt. Blue and No. 11 Skowhegan.
While the Brunswick boys faltered a bit towards the end, going just 3-3-1 over their final seven games after a 7-0 start, the Dragons (10-3-1) are the No. 5 seed. They’ll face No. 12 Mt. Blue on Friday in Brunswick. The winner of that game gets a date with No. 4 Bangor next week.
Over the ‘Green Bridge’ in Topsham, the Mt. Ararat (7-4-3) girls soccer team earned the No. 4 seed in Class A North and will face the winner of No. 5 Messalonskee and No. 12 Lewiston in the regional quarterfinals next week.
Mt. Blue’s Eryn Parlin (17) and Brunswick’s Elysia Palmer (21) raced for the ball in a soccer game at Caldwell Field in Farmington on Oct. 9. Tony Blasi/Sun Journal
“We’ve brought our energy level up a notch of late,” said Mt. Ararat head coach Chad Kirk after Tuesday’s 2-0 loss to Brunswick in the regular-season finale. “We know that’s something we’ll need if we want to have success in the postseason.”
The Mt. Ararat boys (8-5-1) are the No. 7 seed in A North and will take on No. 10 Hampden Academy in a preliminary game on Friday night in Topsham.
In Class B, the Freeport boys (9-4-1) earned the No. 5 seed in the South and will face No. 12 Lake Region on Friday. The No. 7 Freeport girls (7-7) will take on No. 10 Gardiner at home on Friday in a preliminary game.
VOLLEYBALL
The lone volleyball team on the Midcoast, the Brunswick/Mt. Ararat co-op team finished its regular season at 5-9 to earn the No. 12 seed. The team will travel to Standish on Saturday to take on No. 5 Bonny Eagle in a Class A preliminary match.
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