Generally speaking, the spring sports playoffs are still a couple of weeks away, but the first state championships have been bestowed, as boys’ and girls’ tennis finished up the singles tournament over the weekend.

For everyone else, the regular season is rapidly coming to a close.

There’s been plenty of drama in recent days with the promise of more to come.

Here’s a glimpse:

Tennis

Greely’s Leif Boddie made a spirited run to the final match in the boys’ tennis singles championships before an injury and a talented foe left him one win shy of the title.

Boddie, the No. 2 seed in the boys’ field, started with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Cheverus’ Anton Behuniak in the second round. He then dispatched Will Smith of Kennebunk, 6-0, 6-0, in the round of 16 and defeated Max Friedlander of Mt. Desert Island, 6-1, 6-1, in the quarterfinals. Monday morning, in the semifinals, Boddie held off No. 3 Gabe Naftoly of Berwick Academy, 6-0, 3-6, 6-4, to advance to the championship round Monday afternoon, but against top-ranked George Cutone of Kennebunk, the reigning champion, Boddie suffered a quad injury in the first set and while he completed it and lost, 1-6, he then fell behind, 0-3, in the second set and retired, ending the match.

Boddie said his first match Monday took a toll on his body and things got worse from there.

“During that whole (championship) match, every muscle in both legs was seizing up,” Boddie said. “I was pretty confident that would happen again if I decided to play at full capacity and I’m not going to beat him if I’m not at full capacity. Finals was my goal. Anything after that was a bonus.”

“He wasn’t going to quit on his own, but it comes to a point where you’re at risk of injuring yourself,” Greely coach Tom Hurley said. “He’s got so much drive. He doesn’t give up on anything.”

Falmouth’s Sam Yoon, the No. 4 seed, also made it to Monday’s final four. Yoon advanced by knocking off Waynflete’s Henry Kerr, 6-2, 6-1, in the second round, MDI’s Westy Granholm, 6-2, 6-0, in the round of 16 and fifth-ranked Bernardo Tovar, 6-2, 4-5 (retire), in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, however, Yoon was ousted by Cutone, 4-6, 4-6.

Yarmouth’s Will Best, seeded 11th, was a 6-0, 6-1 winner over Skowhegan’s Drake Turcotte in the second round and eliminated No. 6 Marco Milano of Maine Central Institute, 7-5, 6-1, in the round of 16, before losing to Berwick Academy’s Naftoly, 0-6, 2-6, in the quarterfinals.

Yarmouth’s Quinn Federle defeated Finn Castrucci of Hampden Academy, 6-1, 6-4, in the first round, then ousted Lucas Pawlina of Edward Little, 6-0, 6-1, in the second round before being eliminated, 0-6, 1-6, by Cutone in the round of 16.

Greely’s Charles Segal was a 6-4, 6-1 winner of Lincoln Academy’s Rath Schoenthal in the first round, then lost, 0-6, 0-6, to Cutone in the second round.

Teammate Peter Rinehart ousted Fort Kent’s Colin Bennett, 6-1, 6-0, in the first round, then lost, 1-6, 2-6, to MDI’s Granholm in the second round.

North Yarmouth Academy’s Bryce Poulin lost, 3-6, 3-6, to Mt. Ararat’s Landon Weaver in the first round.

On the girls’ side, Falmouth’s Charlotte Williamson defeated Libby Forgues of Lewiston, 6-2, 6-3, in the first round, then outlasted Allie Young of Hall-Dale, 7-5, 6-7 (2), 1-0 (6) in the second round before losing to third-ranked Abby Emerson of Gorham, 0-6, 0-6, in the round of 16.

Greely’s Mia Netland beat Sydney Loring of Old Town, 6-1, 7-5, in the first round, then enjoyed a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Windham’s Alyssa Conley in the second round before being eliminated, 2-6, 0-6, by fourth-ranked Amber Woods of Scarborough in the round of 16.

Greely’s Emma Lindsey defeated Mt. Blue’s Grace Bell, 6-0, 6-0, in the first round, then fell, 0-6, 0-6, to sixth-seeded Fabi Novak of Piscataquis in the second round.

Isobel Wright of Greely lost in the first round to MDI’s Lelia Weir, 1-6, 0-6. Teammate Luna Smith-Mejia was eliminated in the first round by Haylie Peacock of Gardiner, 4-6, 0-6.

Turning to team tennis, Yarmouth’s boys, the reigning Class B champions, were 10-0 and first in the Class B South Heals heading into Tuesday’s finale versus York.

Greely was 9-1 and third in Class B South going into Tuesday’s finale versus Cape Elizabeth.

Freeport finished the regular season 8-4 after a 5-0 win over Mt. Ararat Monday. The Falcons were fourth in Class B South at press time.

In Class A South, Falmouth was 6-5 and sixth going into Tuesday’s finale against Cheverus.

In Class C South, NYA improved to 6-5 and sixth following Monday’s 4-1 win over York. The Panthers closed against 13-time state champion Waynflete Tuesday.

On the girls’ side, Falmouth, the reigning Class A South champion, was 8-3 and third in the region heading into Tuesday’s final against Cheverus.

In Class B South, Greely was 9-2 and third heading into Tuesday’s final against Cape Elizabeth.

Yarmouth was 7-4 and fourth going into Tuesday’s final versus York.

Freeport finished the regular season 5-7 after Monday’s 5-0 win over Mt. Ararat. The Falcons were sixth in Class B South at press time.

In Class C South, NYA was 2-8 and 10th heading into regular season-ending meets versus Lake Region and Waynflete.

The team tennis playoffs begin next Tuesday on the home courts of the higher seeds.

Baseball

Greely’s baseball team passed a couple of huge tests last week and has strengthened its hold on the top spot in the Class B South Heals. After holding off host Yarmouth, 2-0, last Monday, the Rangers welcomed reigning regional champion Freeport last Wednesday and Greely got a dose of revenge after dropping last year’s Class B South Final, as Ryan Kolben threw a five-inning no-hitter, his second in a row, striking out eight, in an 11-0 mercy rule victory. The Rangers scored three first-inning runs, then broke it open with eight in the third. Kolben had two hits, two RBI and scored twice, and Max Cloutier added three hits.

“I was expecting a closer game,” said Kolben, who will play at the University of Massachusetts. “We prepared a lot and had a different mindset going into this week and that’s the mindset we should have the rest of the season. We know at the end of the day, these games don’t mean that much until the playoffs come, and come playoffs, it’s a whole different story.”

“Back-to-back, five-inning no-hitters is pretty cool,” Greely coach Derek Soule said. “Ryan’s the first Greely Ranger ever (to throw two consecutive no-hitters in one season). Bobby Doyle in 1969, back when they played nine innings, lost the chance to do that with two outs in the ninth. We’ve had a lot of great pitchers and he’s the first one to do it.”

The Rangers improved to 13-1 Monday, winning their final regular season home game, 9-0, over Lake Region, as Wake Forest-bound left-handed ace Zach Johnston threw just the second perfect game in program history (Ryan Twitchell, 2017, was the other), striking out 16. Greely travels to Fryeburg Academy Wednesday, then completes the regular schedule at Freeport Tuesday of next week.

“We definitely want to be either the one or two seed and if we advance, with the open tournament, to be able to host three rounds at home,” Soule said. “That would be a big deal. We’re comfortable on this field. We’ll keep plugging away.”

Freeport had its eight-game win streak snapped at Greely.

“We’re down a couple guys right now,” said Falcons coach Steve Shukie. “Not that it would have made a huge difference, but it did change up a few things for us. We knew they hit the ball hard and they found some holes and we didn’t make every play. It got away from us early and that was the difference.

In Class C South, the Waynflete/North Yarmouth Academy co-op squad was 11-3 and sixth after holding off visiting Traip Academy (8-7) and St. Dom’s (5-4), then sweeping visiting Maine Central Institute in a doubleheader Saturday (11-0, in five innings, and 19-2, in five innings) and blanking host Old Orchard Beach Monday (6-0). In the win over the Rangers, Liam Slocumb’s walk-off single in the seventh ended it. Against the Saints, Jack Byrne hit a dramatic two-out, two-run, walk-off double in bottom of seventh inning to produce the winning runs. Peyton Smith pitched a five-inning no-hitter in the opener against the Huskies, while Cole Lambert and Connor Wolverton both had two hits. In the nightcap, Smith had three hits and Wolverton, Danny Noone, Nolan Pecora and Liam Slocumb added two apiece. Waynflete/NYA visits Richmond Friday and closes at home versus Sacopee Valley Tuesday of next week.

Softball

Freeport’s softball team continues to make history, securing its first .500 or better season since 2002 after beating host Greely (20-1, in five innings) and host Cape Elizabeth (15-11) last week. The Falcons beat the Capers for the first time this century and perhaps the first time ever, thanks to a five-run, seventh-inning rally. Jaclyn Burke had four hits and four RBI, Celia Cobb added four hits, Rosie Panenka had two hits and four RBI, Brook Pawlowski had three hits, and Norah Albertini had two hits. Monday, Freeport then ensured its first winning season since 2001 when it improved to 9-4 with a 17-3 (five-inning) home win over Yarmouth. Panenka hit three prodigious home runs and drove in eight runs. Izzy George earned the win and added a pair of hits.

“We’re having a great time,” said Freeport coach Jason Daniel. “I’m so happy for my players.”

The Falcons, ranked eighth in the Class B South Heal Points standings at press time, go to Gray-New Gloucester Wednesday, visit Wells Saturday and close at home versus Greely Tuesday of next week.

“All the teams are close this year,” Daniel said. “It’s anyone’s game.”

Greely fell to 4-10 and 12th in Class B South after losses to visiting Freeport (20-1, in five innings) and Lake Region (18-4, in five innings). After visiting Fryeburg Academy Wednesday, the Rangers close at Freeport Tuesday of next week.

Yarmouth rallied to edge visiting Gray-New Gloucester, 13-12, last Wednesday, to get in the win column for the first time. Elena Miller’s bases-loaded single drove home the winning run, completing a five-run rally in the bottom of the seventh. Drea Rideout, who scored the winning run, had four hits and five RBI, including a grand slam. Emma Butsch finished with two hits and three RBI. The Clippers then fell to 1-13 and 16th in Class B South after losses at Poland (26-5, in five innings) and Freeport (17-3, in five innings). Against the Knights, Butsch had two doubles and two RBI. In the loss to the Falcons, Julia Lawwill had three hits. Yarmouth hosts Wells Wednesday and closes at home versus Cape Elizabeth Tuesday of next week.

In Class A South, Falmouth fell to 0-12 and 16th in the region after home losses to Bonny Eagle (13-1) and Deering (15-13). The Navigators host Kennebunk Wednesday, go to Gorham Friday and finish at home against Massabesic Tuesday of next week.

Boys’ lacrosse

Yarmouth’s boys’ lacrosse team, the defending Class B state champion, remained red-hot, courtesy a dramatic overtime win at reigning Class C champion Waynflete Monday. The Clippers, who enjoyed decisive wins at Freeport (17-4) and at home over Fryeburg Academy (22-4) last week, jumped out to a 6-1 lead at the Flyers, but Waynflete rallied to tie the game and it would go to OT, where Killian Marsh played the hero, finishing a feed from Colter Olson (three goals, two assists). Peter Psyhogeos led all scorers with six goals.

“I have a lot of trust in Colter,” Marsh said. “He knows when to pass and when not to. He trusted me to shoot and I did. It hit his foot, then it rolled in. It felt great.”

“It’s great to fight through adversity and come out with the win,” Psyhogeos said.

“We had two failed clears, so it was a sloppy overtime, but when we got possession, we ran a play and the boys executed with composure,” Clippers coach Jon Miller added. “That was the play. Colter was going to initiate and Killian take the shot, and they executed perfectly. Killian was due. He hit posts, legs all game, but he got the one that mattered most.”

Yarmouth (8-2 and second to Messalonskee in the Class B state Heals) hosts Greely Wednesday and closes at home versus NYA June 1.

“We’re pleased with where we are,” Miller said. “Practice is fun right now. We’re in a good place. We want homefield advantage. That would be huge.”

Greely was 3-7 and 13th after recent wins at Wells (11-8) and at home over Freeport (10-6). After visiting Yarmouth Wednesday, the Rangers close at home versus reigning Class A champion Cape Elizabeth June 1.

Falmouth remains in the top spot in Class A North at 5-3 after a 13-7 win at Marshwood last week. Xavier Grenier scored four goals and Cyrus Boothby added three. The Navigators go to Noble Wednesday, meet Brunswick Saturday in a game played at Deering High in Portland, host Cheverus Tuesday of next week and close at Scarborough June 3.

In Class C, NYA was 8-2 and first in the standings following a 14-1 home win over Lake Region and a pivotal 12-11 overtime victory at Oak Hill. Against the Lakers, Caleb Waterman scored four goals and had two assists and Chas Rohde and James Papavasiliou added three goals apiece. In the OT victory, Brayden Warde scored four goals, including the winner, and Chas Rohde added four as well. The Panthers go to Freeport Friday, then close at Yarmouth June 1.

Freeport was 3-6 and fifth in Class C after losing at home to Yarmouth (17-4) and falling at Greely (10-6). The Falcons go to Gray-New Gloucester/Poland Wednesday, host NYA Friday and close at home versus Fryeburg Academy June 1.

Girls’ lacrosse

On the girls’ side, Yarmouth, the defending Class B state champion, which has moved up to Class A this spring, made it five straight victories after key wins last week at Greely (16-13) and reigning Class C state champion Waynflete (18-6). Against the Rangers, the Clippers avenged an earlier loss as Neena Panozzo had five goals, Katelyn D’Appolonia four and Aine Powers three.

“It’s a state championship rematch and we wanted revenge (from the earlier loss), so there was a lot riding on this game,” D’Appolonia said.

“We all just really wanted to win after losing to them earlier in the season,” Panozzo said. “We just wanted to connect and get the win.”

“This was good for us,” added Yarmouth coach Dorothy Holt. “A young team, playing a good team, on grass, that was great. To pull out a gritty win, that’s what we needed.”

D’Appolonia then scored her 100th career goal just 10 seconds into the Waynflete game and she would add seven more for a career-high eight goals as the Clippers rolled to victory. Powers and Lauren Keaney each added three goals.

“It’s an exciting accomplishment,” D’Appolonia said. “This is really great for me. I was ready for it. All my teammates were excited for me. They were waiting for me to get it and were encouraging me to do it.”

“I know what Katelyn is most proud of is her assists,” Holt said. “Katelyn is a true team player. This is a huge tribute to her in all her sports because she’s a true three-sport athlete.”

Yarmouth (7-3 and second in Class A North) hosts Cape Elizabeth Friday, then closes at Lake Region Tuesday of next week.

“We’d love homefield (advantage), but home, away, whatever, we just have to be ready,” Holt said.

Falmouth remained first in Class A North at 8-1 after defeating visiting Windham (11-4) and Marshwood (8-7, in overtime) last week. Sloane Ginevan scored five times against the Eagles. In the win over the Hawks, Whitney Adams scored three times, including in OT, and Molly Scribner also had three goals. The Navigators were at Massabesic Tuesday, host Thornton Academy Friday and close at home versus Portland June 2.

Greely, a Class B state finalist in 2021, was 9-2 and third in the region at press time following a 16-13 home loss to Yarmouth, a 14-10 win at Cape Elizabeth and a 13-1 triumph at Gray-New Gloucester/Poland. Against the Clippers, Carley Ferentz, Asja Kelman and Charlotte Taylor all had three goals.

“It’s not the outcome we wanted, but I’m really proud of how we didn’t give up and fought until the end,” said Rangers coach Becca Koelker. “That shows our resiliency.”

In the win over the Capers, Ferentz, Dennen and Eva Williams all scored four times. Against the Patriots, Dennan had four goals and Ferentz added three. Greely closes at home versus York Friday.

“We want to get ourselves in the best position for the playoffs,” Koelker said. “Most of the teams we play are used to playing on turf, so it would be a big advantage for us to play on grass.”

In Class C, Freeport, which lost in the state final last season, was 8-2 and second to Maranacook after a 14-9 loss at York and an 8-7 home win over NYA. In the victory, Kate Tracy scored five times as the Falcons rallied to score the final three goals of the game.

“We’ve been watching NYA and we knew they’d been improving throughout the season, so this was a feel-good win,” Kate Tracy said.

“The girls just love to give me gray hairs,” Freeport coach Marcia Wood said. “We’re coming to the realization that we have no room for let-ups. We were still a little sloppy today. There are still things we need to clean up.”

The Falcons host Wells Wednesday (see theforecaster.net/sports for game story), then close at Cape Elizabeth June 1.

NYA was 5-5 and fourth in Class C after a 17-10 win at Gardiner and losses to visiting Cape Elizabeth (14-7) and host Freeport (8-7). Maggie Holt scored four goals against the Capers.

“Cape’s a great team and it was great to play them and get tested,” NYA first-year coach Molly Moss-Stokes said. “We fell short, but we know what we have to work on and what we have to get ready for.”

The Panthers then did a lot right against the Falcons and led, 7-5, in the second half before dropping a heartbreaker. Holt had three goals and Emma Sharp added a pair.

“It was an exciting one,” Moss-Stokes said. “Such a battle. Freeport is a great team. I’m proud of how the girls played. They executed the game plan exactly how we wanted. We communicated and played great defense. I’m happy with the effort.”

NYA hosted Traip Academy Tuesday and finishes at Wells Friday.

“A lot of teams are close, so it’ll be anybody’s tournament,” Moss-Stokes said. “We just have to finish strong and see what’s ahead.”

Track

Yarmouth hosted a regular season-ending outdoor track meet last week, which included Freeport, Greely, NYA and Cape Elizabeth. The Clippers boys took first, with the Falcons placing second, the Rangers fourth and the Panthers fifth.

Greely won the girls’ competition, with Yarmouth third, NYA fourth and Freeport fifth.

Falmouth joined Biddeford and Portland for a meet last week at Gorham. The Navigators boys were second to the Rams, while the girls placed third behind Portland and Gorham.

The Southwestern Maine Activities Association and Western Maine Conference championship meets are this weekend.

The state meets are Saturday, June 4.

Press Herald staff writers Steve Craig and Glenn Jordan contributed to this story.

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