Southern: Postseason thrills have begun

With the basketball tournament set to begin this week (see story), there has already been an abundance of postseason excitement in the other winter sports.

With more to come.

Here’s an overview:

Girls’ hockey

The girls’ hockey tournament came and went quickly, as the Cape Elizabeth/South Portland/Waynflete co-op team, ranked third in the South Region, dropped a narrow 4-3 (overtime) decision at second-seeded Gorham in last Friday’s semifinal round to finish the year 11-8. Marina Bassett scored twice and Libby Hooper also had a goal.

Indoor track

South Portland’s Arnaud Sioho competes in the junior triple jump at last weekend’s SMAA championship meet. Sioho came in first. The Red Riots wound up first as a team. Ben McCanna / Portland Press Herald

Both the Western Maine Conference and Southwestern Maine Activities Association indoor track championship meets were contested last weekend at the University of Southern Maine in Gorham.

South Portland’s boys and Scarborough’s girls stole the show at the SMAA meet Saturday.

The Red Riots boys finished with 159 points, 37 clear of runner-up Portland. South Portland event winners included Brady Edwards in the junior 55 hurdles (8.73 seconds) and Arnaud Sioho in the junior 400 (53.89), junior long jump (19 feet, 5-2.5 inches) and junior triple jump (41-8.75).

Sioho is in his first indoor track season.

“Coach (David Kahill) saw me bounding in the gym and asked me to come out for track last winter,” Sioho said. “He said, ‘You’ve got balance. Why don’t you come try and see if you like it?’ I didn’t like it so much last year, but I like it a lot now. I owe everything to Coach. He invited me to come out for the team.”

Additionally, sophomore Tyler Bryant was named the SMAA Junior Division Most Improved Athlete and Alec Campbell received the Jim Dyer Spirit Award

Scarborough (94 points) placed fourth. Nate Murray won the junior shot put (46-1). The Red Storm’s open 4×800 relay team (Adam Bendetson, Landen Springer, Joseph Cotta and Gavin Cote) was also first (8 minutes, 29.85 seconds).

Bendetson also received the Jim Daley Award as the outstanding male athlete during the regular season.

Scarborough’s Kyleigh Record takes the lead in the senior 800 at the SMAA championship meet. The Red Storm came in first. Ben McCanna / Portland Press Herald.

The Red Storm girls tallied 160 points and held off Portland (123). Scarborough got first-place performances from Emerson Flaker in the junior 55 (7.56), junior 200 (26.81) and junior 400 (1:01.65), Caroline Fallona in the senior 55 (7.45) and senior 200 (27.74), Julia Black in the senior 400 (1:04.9), Kyleigh Record in the senior 800 (2:32.06) and its open 4×200 (Black, Fallona, Flaker and Bailey Stoddard-Baughman, 1:49.12) and open 4×400 (Avery Pettingill, Samantha Ocampo, Laurel Driscoll and Maya Taylor, 4:40.45) relay teams.

“We did so good,” Fallona said. “I’m super-proud of all of us. Everyone was just really excited to contribute today. I was just going for the points. There were no (personal-best marks), but I’m happy with how I did. I don’t want to say we’re confident, but we are really excited to do well at states.”

“I can get nervous, but I do better when I have fun, so I just tried to stay relaxed today,” said Flaker.

Fallona also received the John Casavola Award as the Most Valuable Senior Division Athlete and Denise Curry, Scarborough’s first-year coach, was named SMAA Girls’ Coach of the Year.

“The freshmen did amazing today,” Curry said. “They are tough cookies. They are a great group of girls. I have to say, this group is consistent, crazy-consistent. They are dedicated.”

South Portland (91 points) was third. Makayla Edwards-Burrell won the junior shot put (28-5.75).

In the WMC meet Friday, Cape Elizabeth’s girls had 28 points and came in eighth (Freeport was first with 145).

The Capers boys had 9 points and finished 13th (York won with 131).

The Class A state meet is next Monday, Feb. 20, in Gorham. The Class B state meet is the same day in Lewiston.

Swimming

The North and South Division swimming and diving Southwesterns were contested last weekend.

In the North Division girls’ meet, Cape Elizabeth’s girls scored 351 points to win the title (Greely was second with 299). Lucy Shaw won the 200 freestyle (1 minute, 56.81 seconds) and the 100 butterfly (58.97 seconds). Hope Taylor was first in the 500 free (5:22.22). The Capers’ 400 free relay team (Shaw, Taylor, Hadley Mahoney and Cookie Mahoney) also placed first (3:40.58).

South Portland (167) was fourth.

Scarborough (119) was fifth. Emerson Johnson won the 100 breaststroke (1:14.55).

The Capers boys had 329 points and edged Scarborough (298). Cape Elizabeth got wins from David Steinbrick in the 100 free (48.31) and 200 free (1:42.99), Cormac McKenney in the 200 individual medley (1:59.36) and the 100 breast (59.58) and the 400 free relay team (Graham Plourde, Max Hemeon, Weston Lowe and Steinbrick, 3:30.02).

Steinbrick was named the Male Swimmer of the Meet.

The Red Storm got wins from Ethan Schulz in the 50 free (21.67) and the 100 fly (51.5), Ryan Vigue in the 500 free (5:10.12), Evan Wardrop in the 100 backstroke (52.93) and their 200 medley relay squad (Wardrop, Owen Kasper, Brendan Amman and Stephen Ranger, 1:42.92).

South Portland (178 points) was fourth. David Lawlor was first in diving (217.35 points).

The state meets are Monday and Tuesday of next week.

Skiing

At last week’s WMC Alpine championship meet, Cape Elizabeth’s girls were third behind Freeport and Yarmouth. In the giant slalom, Anya Monson came in first with a two-run combined time of 1 minute, 2.25 seconds and was second in the slalom (1:40.71).

Cape Elizabeth’s boys came in fourth (Yarmouth placed first). Logan Schwartz won the GS (57.99 seconds) and the slalom (1:31.05).

The Alpine state meet is underway.

Boys’ hockey

Cape Elizabeth’s Connor Goss races up the ice with the puck during last week’s win at Lewiston. Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer

Boys’ hockey is the only sport which is still in the midst of its regular season.

Cape Elizabeth was first in the Class B South Heals at 14-2 after wins last week at Lewiston (3-1), Camden Hills (9-2) and Leavitt (6-2).

Against the Blue Devils, Sebastian Moon had two goals and Phil Coupe also scored.

“We were trying to set the tone and get the job done,” Moon said. “We’re all seniors, we have a big group of seniors, we all want to give it one last push.”

“We talked about it in the locker room, you’ve got to come out even harder than we did in the first period,” Coupe said. “You can’t be comfortable with any lead.”

“We played at our pace and we wanted to see if they could play at ours,” Capers coach Jacob Rutt added. “We stuck to a game plan and it’s been nice to be able to roll out three lines.”

In the win over the Hornets, Coupe had two goals.

The Capers, who have won nine straight games, go to Greely Saturday and close the regular season next Wednesday at home against Cheverus/Yarmouth.

“At this point in the season, everything’s shaping up to be us and Brunswick (for the top seed in B South),” Coupe said.

In Class A, Scarborough was 10-5 and third after a 5-3 home loss to Biddeford and a 4-1 home win over Marshwood. After going to St. Dom’s Wednesday, the Red Storm host Thornton Academy Saturday and welcome South Portland/Freeport/Waynflete Tuesday of next week in the finale.

South Portland/Freeport/Waynflete was 7-8 and fifth in Class A after 1-0 loss at Lewiston and a 3-2 home win over Marshwood. Goalie Jasper Curtis stopped 17 shots in the setback. In the victory, Richie Gilboy and Liam Anderson helped the squad erase a deficit and Roan Hopkins produced the winning goal with just 12 seconds left. South Portland/Freeport/Waynflete welcomes Biddeford Thursday, goes to Windham Saturday and closes at reigning Class A champion Scarborough Tuesday of next week.

The boys’ hockey playoffs begin with the Class B South preliminary round next Saturday on the home ice of the higher seeds. The Class A preliminary round begins March 1.

Press Herald staff writers Drew Bonifant and Deirdre Fleming contributed to this story.