After a year without a postseason due to COVID-19, Forecaster Country athletes more than made up for lost time at the state meets for indoor track, swimming and skiing last week.

Here are the highlights:

Indoor track

It turns out that the only thing that can prevent Scarborough’s boys’ indoor track team from winning a Class A state championship is a global pandemic. The Red Storm, who captured nine of 10 titles between 2011-20, including five in a row, weren’t able to win one in 2021, but the return of a state meet this winter brought more hardware to the state’s premier program last week.

At the state meet in Gorham, Scarborough tallied 75 points, which was just enough to hold off Lewiston (72).

Jayden Flaker won the 55 hurdles in 7.52 seconds, tying the state record set by Bonny Eagle’s Ben Roy in 2006. He also came in third in the 200 (22.64). Zachary Barry was first in the 800 (1 minute, 59.89 seconds) and the mile (4:22.02). Barry was also runner-up in the 2-mile (9:48.97).

“I just tried to work as hard as I could,” Barry said. “Everyone on our team rallied. Everyone put out a good performance. Everyone did a good job.”

Nicholas Connolly won the shot put with a top throw of 55 feet, 6 inches. Toby Martin was first in the pole vault (13-6). The Red Storm’s 4×200 relay team (Noah Batoosingh, Martin, Parker Killiard and Flaker) finished first in 1:34.80. Scarborough’s 4×800 relay squad (Gavin Cote, Joseph Cotta, Ben Bouchard and Adam Bendetson) came in seventh (8:58.42).

South Portland (20 points) placed eighth. Amir Broadus finished second in the shot put (51-8). Maksim Kladov was runner-up in the pole vault (11-6). Carson Blake came in sixth in the 55 hurdles (8.29). The Red Riots’ 4×800 relay team (Jack Nickerson, Kyle Hartford, Jack Smart and Brady Guay) was sixth in 8:58.25.

The Class A girls’ title was won by Bangor with 82 points. Scarborough (30.5) came in sixth. Caroline Fallona finished runner-up in the 55 (7.22) and was fourth in the 200 (26.73). Julia Black finished fifth in the 200 (27.16). Emma Saraceno tied for sixth in the high jump (4-10).  The Red Storm’s 4×200 relay team (Saraceno, Bailey Stoddard-Baughman, Black and Fallona) came in second in 1:51.64. Scarborough’s 4×800 relay squad (Rowan Driscoll, Sofia Tierney, Erin Bresnahan and Kyleigh Record) placed third in 10:52.42.

South Portland (7) tied Biddeford for 16th place. Geneva Holmes placed fourth in the shot put (34-0) and Petmanee Nakummun was fifth in the pole vault (8-0).

In the Class B boys’ meet, won by York with 64.5 points, Cape Elizabeth (22) tied Mt. Desert Island for seventh place. Vaughn Lindenau was runner-up in the 2-mile (10:26.41). Tommy Gray was third in the shot put (46-10.5). Owen Patry came in fifth in the mile (4:53.48) and was fifth in the 2-mile (10:49.45). Carter Abrahamsen finished seventh in the 800 (2:10.84). Oscar Gustafson was seventh in the triple jump (39-6.75).

In the girls’ meet, won by Greely with 70 points, Cape Elizabeth (10) tied Ellsworth for 15th. Emma Young placed third in the 2-mile (12:36.81) and finished fourth in the mile (5:33.28).

The New England championships wrap up the indoor track season this weekend in Boston.

Swimming

In the pool, Scarborough’s boys also came in first at the Class A state meet last week, tallying 348 points to easily out-distance runner-up Falmouth (263). It was the program’s first championship.

The Red Storm got wins from Ethan Schulz in the 100 freestyle (46.85 seconds) and the 200 freestyle (1 minute, 42.83 seconds), Jack Pillsbury in the 200 individual medley (2:00.12) and the 100 breaststroke (1:00.07), and their 200 free relay team (Brennan Fravert, Pillsbury, Yandy Placeres and Schulz, 1:29.78).

Placeres finished second in the 200 free (1:45.43) and was second in the 100 butterfly (52.17). Evan Wardrop was runner-up in the 100 backstroke (54.21) and also came in second in the 500 free (5:03.11). Fravert finished third in the 50 free (22.58) and was sixth in the 100 free (51.21). Owen Kasper finished third in the 100 breaststroke (1:04.24) and was eighth in the IM (2:10.54). Scarborough’s 400 free relay squad (Placeres, Flavert, Wardrop and Schulz) was second in 3:17.78. The Red Storm’s 200 medley relay team (Wardrop, Pillsbury, Stephen Ranger and Brendan Amann) also placed second in 1:44.98.

“We’re a knit tight group of people,” Schulz said. “It’s been something special this year, for sure.”

“At the beginning of the season, I knew we had some pretty good pieces,” said Scarborough coach Eric French. “We knew we had some top talent. It was a matter of putting it all together. These guys worked hard all season long. We knew Falmouth and Bangor and South Portland would go after us. Our goal was to out-duel those guys. We just had to try to go top three in a lot of events.”

South Portland (195) was fourth. Noah Viola was second in one-meter diving with a score of 262.85 points. Calvin Comeau was runner-up in the IM (2:03.57) and third in the 100 butterfly (53.01). Evan Saunders came in third in diving with a score of 248.80. Jacob Ramos finished fifth in the 100 butterfly (54.96). Nick Reid was seventh in the 100 free (51.65).

The Red Riots’ 400 free relay team (Reid, Ramos, Kai Nault and Comeau) came in fourth (3:30.66). The 200 free relay squad (Josh Lamour, Blake Kierstead, Nault and Comeau) was also fourth (1:38.62). The 200 medley relay team (Ramos, Lamour, Reid and Kierstead) finished fifth (1:50.14).

In the Class A girls’ state meet, won by Camden Hills with 287 points, South Portland (158) was sixth. Meron Carlisle was runner-up in diving with a score of 289.40 points. Ana McDonald was fifth in diving (251.90 points). Emilie Way placed sixth in diving (245.30 points). Amelia Hughes was third in the 500 free (5:36.07) and sixth in the 200 free (2:08.85). Issi Babikova placed sixth in the 200 IM (2:25.75) and was sixth in the 100 backstroke (1:05.37). The Red Riots’ 200 free relay team (Sophia Ibarguen, Lucia Martinez-Monche, Anna Kuell and Lola Strom) came in fourth in the 1:53.76.

Scarborough (124) placed ninth. Lili Stone was third in the 100 butterfly (1:02.57) and fourth in the 100 backstroke (1:03.88). Emerson Johnson finished sixth in the 100 breaststroke (1:14.85). Risa Saunders was eighth in the 100 breaststroke (1:17.23). The Red Storm’s 400 free relay team (Nadia Grinyuk, Stone, Iman Ghosheh and Johnson) finished eighth in 4:04.95.

Cape Elizabeth stole the show at the Class B championships, sweeping the titles for the first time since 1992.

The Capers boys had 409 points, which proved to be 64 better than runner-up Mt. Desert Island. First-place showings included the 200 medley relay team (Jack McCormick, Cormac McKenney, Graham Plourde and David Steinbrick, 1:41.49), the 200 free relay squad (Ethan Smith, McCormick, Brendan Connolly and Keegan McKenney, 1:31.39) the 400 free relay team (Steinbrick, Smith, Cormac McKenney and Keegan McKenney, in a new record time of 3:16.50), Keegan McKenney in the 200 IM (1:55.62) and the 500 free (4:41.96) and Smith in the 100 butterfly (51.45).

Smith was also second in the 50 free (22.3). Steinbrick was runner-up in the 100 backstroke (55.71) and came in third in the 200 free (1:48.20). Cormac McKenney finished third in the IM (2:02.02) and was third in the 100 backstroke (1:00.74). McCormick came in third in the 100 free (51.62) and third in the 100 backstroke (57.02). Plourde was fourth in the 100 butterfly (56.8) and eighth in the 100 breaststroke (1:08.17). Rohan Yadav placed sixth in the 200 free (2:11.35) and seventh in the 500 free (5:22.09). Ian Plourde finished sixth in the 500 free (5:19.53) and was seventh in the 100 butterfly (58.95).

Although seeding showed Cape Elizabeth with a comfortable advantage entering the meet, Capers coach Ben Raymond told his team to ignore the score.

“It starts 0-0,” Raymond said. “You’re not given any points. You have to earn everything that you get throughout the meet.”

Cape Elizabeth’s girls’ team had to go the distance to hold off Mt. Desert Island, 338 points to 327.

The Capers’ 400 free relay team put the finishing touches on the victory, as Lucy Shaw, Hope Taylor, Ali Bragg and Cookie Mahoney came in first in 3:40.88. Cape Elizabeth’s 200 free relay squad (Shaw, Hadley Mahoney, Bragg and Cookie Mahoney) finished second in 1:42.32. The 200 medley team (Taylor, Maddie Mahoney, Mimi Esch and Hadley Mahoney) placed sixth in 1:59.45.

Taylor won the 500 free (5:20.18). Bragg was first in the 200 IM (2:12.56) and second in the 100 breaststroke (1:08.83). Cookie Mahoney won the 200 free in 1:56.30. Shaw was second in the IM (2:13.69) and third in the 100 butterfly (59.87). Stephanie te Boekhorst finished fourth in diving with 293.20 points. Hadley Mahoney was fourth in the 100 free (57.35) and sixth in the 200 free (2:07.42). Grace Taylor finished fifth in the 500 free (5:46.18). Esch placed seventh in the 50 free (1:05.33). Maddie Mahoney finished eighth in the 50 free (26.78).

“All I kept saying to the team was, ‘Leave it all in the pool! Leave it all in the pool!'” Bragg said. “The girls showed up and I’m beyond excited. I’m so happy I was able to swim at states with these girls. We had such a strong team, with so much depth.”

“I was pretty pleased with it coming down to that last relay, with the girls we had in that last relay,” Raymond said. “We couldn’t have had four better girls to swim that.”

Skiing

Cape Elizabeth’s boys’ Alpine ski team won another Class B state title last week. The Capers featured Tiernan Lathrop, who won the slalom in 35.53 seconds and was third in the giant slalom with a two-run combined time of 1 minute, 26.77 seconds. Logan Schwartz finished second in the GS (1:26.33) and seventh in the slalom (37.89). Keegan Lathrop was fourth in the slalom (36.99) and seventh in the GS (1:29.23). Cody LaBonty finished fifth in the slalom (37.12) and eighth in the GS (1:29.97).

Cape Elizabeth’s girls came in second behind Yarmouth. Dana Schwartz won the slalom (40.20) and was runner-up in the GS (1:30.25). Anya Monson placed fifth in the GS (1:31.96) and was fifth in the slalom (44.71).

Boys’ hockey

The boys’ hockey playoffs get underway this week.

In Class A, the South Portland/Waynflete/Freeport co-op team wound up third after closing with a 3-0 home win over Biddeford to finish 11-6-1. The squad hosted No. 14 St. Dom’s (1-17) in the state preliminary round Wednesday. Back on Jan. 5, SP/Waynflete/Freeport won, 7-2, at the Saints.

Scarborough, ranked seventh in Class A after a 9-7-1 campaign, hosted No. 10 Portland/Deering (6-10) in a prelim Wednesday. The Red Storm won, 7-1, in the teams’ regular season meeting Jan. 24.

In Class B South, Cape Elizabeth finished fifth at 9-6-1 after closing with a 4-3 home loss to Brunswick last week. The Capers were at No. 4 Leavitt (10-7-1) in the quarterfinals Wednesday. Cape Elizabeth beat the visiting Hornets, 8-1, Jan. 1, then lost at Leavitt, 3-1, Feb. 19.

The playoffs continue this weekend with the Class A state quarterfinals and the Class B South semifinals on the home ice of the higher seeds.

Press Herald staff writers Deirdre Fleming, Glenn Jordan and Travis Lazarczyk contributed to this story.

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