(Ed. Note: For the complete Yarmouth-Cape Elizabeth boys’ soccer and Greely-Waynflete and Yarmouth-Cape Elizabeth girls’ soccer game stories, see Sports at theforecaster.net)
Southern Maine avoided the worst of Hurricane Lee last weekend and as a result, it was a pretty smooth week for local teams to get their games in.
It may seem hard to believe, but some squads are already nearing the midway point of the 2023 regular season and the action is just heating up.
Here’s a look back at the week that was and a glimpse at what’s to come.
Football
Falmouth’s Ben Robbins makes a tackle during last week’s loss at Gardiner. Joe Phelan / Kennebec Journal
Yarmouth’s football team, the reigning eight-man, large school state champion, continues to dominate all foes, improving to 3-0 last Friday with a 52-20 win at Lake Region. The Clippers raced to a 24-6 halftime lead then pulled away in the second half. Yarmouth, which has allowed a grand total of one rushing yard in the last two games combined, returns home Friday to take on Gray-New Gloucester (0-3).
Greely lost a back-and-forth thriller to visiting Brunswick, 42-38, last Thursday to drop to 1-2. Jonah Guibord did his best to ensure victory by rushing for 348 yards and three touchdowns on 32 carries. He also blocked a punt. The Rangers had the ball late with a chance to win it, but couldn’t convert. Greely looks to get back in the win column Friday at home against Mt. Ararat (1-2).
Falmouth fell to 0-3 with a 20-0 loss at Gardiner Friday. The Navigators fell behind, 7-0, after one quarter, 14-0 at halftime and 20-0 after three quarters and couldn’t respond. Indi Backman ran for 81 yards, but Falmouth turned the ball over three times. The Navigators’ road gets no easier when they host Class A power Portland (3-0) Friday night.
Freeport dropped to 2-1 Monday with a 27-20 loss to John Bapst in a game that was postponed in anticipation of the storm and was played in Hermon. The Falcons got three rushing touchdowns from Teddy Peters, including a 12-yard scamper in the third quarter which tied the score. John Bapst then scored in the fourth period and held on. Freeport hosts Poland (3-0) Friday (see our website for game story).
Boys’ soccer
Yarmouth’s Gideon Ahrens fights for the ball during the Clippers’ 4-1 victory at Cape Elizabeth last week. Michael Hoffer / The Forecaster
Yarmouth’s boys’ soccer team is coming to life. Last Thursday, the Clippers improved to 4-1 with their fourth straight victory, 4-1, at Cape Elizabeth in a rematch of last year’s thrilling Class B South Final. Yarmouth went on top to stay in the second minute on a goal from Matt Gautreau. Justin Dawes added a goal before halftime, but the Capers drew within one on a penalty kick. The Clippers then put it away late in the game, as Jonny Fulton finished Adam McLaughlin’s free kick and Gautreau scored on a header to account for the final score.
“I think we’ve gotten our confidence back,” said McLaughlin. “We just needed to focus in practice. I think we’re doing well.”
The Clippers were at four-time reigning Class C champion Waynflete Tuesday, host Greely Saturday, as they seek to avenge their lone loss (see our website for game story), then welcome Freeport Tuesday of next week.
“It’s great to face adversity in the regular season so you’re prepared for the postseason,” said Gautreau.
“I think we just have to keep our heads down and keep working as hard as we can,” McLaughlin said. “We won’t underestimate any team.”
“We still have some things to clean up,” Hagerty added. “We just haven’t figured out yet who plays best with whom. The great thing with our schedule is we play very different teams with very different styles. That’s the fun part. You’re facing a different strength every time.”
Greely was 3-1-1 at press time after a 3-0 home win over Waynflete and a scoreless home tie against Freeport last week. In the victory, Bez Mendelsohn, Aaron Park and Connor Skillin all had goals. Landon Dominski stopped four shots against the Falcons. The Rangers go to Poland Thursday, have a showdown at Yarmouth Saturday and play host to Lake Region Tuesday of next week.
Freeport won its first two games, then tied its next three, including a 2-2 home deadlock against Cape Elizabeth and a 0-0 draw at Greely. Against the Capers, Ivan Lyons and Emmanual Ekogha scored to erase a two-goal deficit. Goalkeeper Mason Vintner saved six shots against the Rangers. The Falcons hosted York Tuesday, welcome Wells Saturday and go to Yarmouth Tuesday of next week.
Falmouth’s Elijah St. Louis slides to kick the ball during last week’s loss at Portland. Brianna Soukup / Portland Press Herald
Falmouth lost at Portland (2-0) and beat visiting Marshwood (3-1) last week and took a 2-2-1 mark into this week’s action. Against the Bulldogs, Caden Berry made 14 saves.
“I’ve seen all the teams and Portland has more talent than any of them,” said longtime Falmouth coach Dave Halligan.
In the victory, Ali Carter scored two goals and Evan Mayo added two assists. The Navigators’ game at Cheverus Monday was postponed by bad weather. Falmouth is at Thornton Academy Thursday and returns home next Tuesday to meet highly-touted Windham.
North Yarmouth Academy, the reigning Class D state champion which is now in Class C, took a 2-1 mark into Tuesday’s home game against St. Dom’s. The Panthers are at Traip Academy Friday, play a makeup game at Gray-New Gloucester Saturday and travel to Fryeburg Academy Tuesday of next week.
Girls’ soccer
Yarmouth’s Sonja Bell, left, celebrates with Brooke Boone after scoring the only goal in last week’s home win over Cape Elizabeth. Shawn Patrick Ouellette / Portland Press Herald
On the girls’ side, Yarmouth, the reigning Class B state champion, extended its win streak to four and improved to 4-1 after shutout wins last week at York (3-0) and at home over rival Cape Elizabeth (1-0). Against the Wildcats, Sonja Bell scored twice and Taylor Oranellas also found the net. Bell then scored early against the Capers, from Kadin Davoren, and goalkeeper Regan Sullivan (seven saves) and the Clippers’ defense made it stand up.
“We know (Cape’s) always going to be our hardest competitor.” Davoren said. “We enjoy playing them. It poses a challenge for us. We try to keep our hopes high. Coming in as the defending champs, it feels good to beat them. It was tough to hold them off. It’s intense being a defensive team at the end, but our back line pulled through.”
“I love the pressure,” Sullivan said. “(The Capers) have a lot of talented forwards, but my defense is amazing.”
“It’s a rivalry game and it was our first game at home, so it was a great atmosphere,” added Yarmouth coach Andy Higgins. “Cape’s been a phenomenal team for years. Both teams were up for each other. It was a really fun, really exciting high school soccer game in mid-September.”
The Clippers host Waynflete Thursday and welcome Greely Saturday (see our website for both game stories), then visit Freeport Tuesday of next week.
“This is a big confidence boost and we’ll build on this and get ready for next week,” Higgins said. “We have a tough schedule. Waynflete is a tough team, then Greely and Freeport are right around the corner. All the teams in our conference are good. When we see other teams get better, it pushes us to get better. It’s fun, but stressful every night.”
Greely was 3-1-1 after a 4-1 victory at Waynflete and a 0-0 tie at Freeport. In the win, Abby Lennox had three assists, Lily Pierce scored twice and Jackie Franklin and Shaylee O’Grady added a goal apiece.
“It’s so much fun to play with Abby,” Pierce said. “She has such amazing feeds. She’s a selfless player. It’s fun to finish those balls.”
“I feel like we have a really deep team,” said Lennox. “We have a lot of potential. The starters are great and we have game-changers on the bench. I feel like we all have the right mindset.”
“We had a strategy that didn’t work, but fortunately we had some good breaks,” said Rangers coach Rachel Williams. “(Waynflete’s) a tough team with strong players and they had some good chances. Fortunately, we connected and we came out on top.”
Greely hosted Poland Tuesday, visits Yarmouth Saturday and travels to four-time Class D champion NYA Tuesday of next week.
“We’re moving forward,” Williams said. “It’s a good group. The girls need to build more confidence so we can play more consistently. It won’t get any easier for us with our schedule.”
Freeport was 2-1-2 at the start of the week after a 2-1 loss at Cape Elizabeth, a scoreless home tie against Greely and a 4-0 victory at Traip Academy. Amanda Panciocco made six saves against the Capers. In the win, Claire Nadeau scored twice and Sadie Grogan and Silvi Strong each added one goal. The Falcons went to York Tuesday, visit Wells Thursday and have a home test against Yarmouth Tuesday of next week.
Falmouth improved to 3-1 after a 3-1 home win over Kennebunk and a seismic 3-1 home loss to Windham. Against the Rams, Josie D’Andrea, Mallory Kerr and Gwen Long had the goals. In the win over the perennial powerhouse Eagles, Margo Hesson, Gracyn Mick and Mackenzie VerLee found the net.
“It’s an excellent win for us against a great team,” said Navigators coach Ben Johnson. “We knew how hard Windham works and we’d have to match their intensity to get something out of the game. The girls have worked hard since the summer to be physically and mentally prepared to play the top teams, which Windham is, and I’m glad they got rewarded for their efforts. I knew we’d have a bit more familiarity with (our) turf, especially with rainy and windy conditions, but I think both teams battled well the entire way.”
After hosting Westbrook Wednesday, Falmouth visits Bonny Eagle Saturday and goes to Marshwood Tuesday of next week.
North Yarmouth Academy’s Graca Bila heads the ball during last week’s win over Gray-New Gloucester. Shawn Patrick Ouellette / Portland Press Herald.
NYA, the four-time Class D champion, now playing in lass C, improved to 4-0-1 after a 3-0 home victory over Gray-New Gloucester last week. Caroline Matusovich scored twice and Natasha Godrey had the other goal.
“We lost a lot of talent, but don’t get me wrong, we still have a lot of talent here,” said Panthers coach Ricky Doyon. “We’re just trying to connect those pieces now. We’re getting there. You see periods in the game where we get it. We’re trying to find the positions that suit us. We have some girls who can play anywhere on the field.”
Field hockey
Yarmouth’s field hockey team remained undefeated at press time, improving to 5-0 after blanking visiting Poland (4-0) and Greely (2-0) last week. Sophie Smith scored all four goals against the Knights and also had a goal versus the Rangers, as Celia Zinman rattled the cage as well. The Clippers go to Poland Wednesday, host Cape Elizabeth Saturday (see our website for game story), then travel to Gray-New Gloucester Tuesday of next week.
Freeport, the defending Class B South champion, extended its win streak to four games and improved to 4-1 after a 2-0 home victory over Lake Region Friday. Liza Flower and Emily Groves scored the goals. The Falcons had a game scheduled at Greely Monday postponed by bad weather. Freeport welcomes Poland Saturday.
Greely dropped to 2-2 after last week’s 2-0 loss at Yarmouth. The Rangers are at York Wednesday and host Fryeburg Academy Friday.
Falmouth won its first two outings by 3-0 scores, over visiting South Portland and visiting Kennebunk. The Navigators had a showdown at Biddeford Tuesday, host Noble Thursday, visit Sanford Saturday and travel to Windham Monday.
Volleyball
Falmouth’s volleyball team, which is in Class B this season, improved to 4-1 after wins last week over visiting Kennebunk (3-1) and at Thornton Academy (3-0). Against the Rams, Hannah Roche had 26 assists, Rhyse Sholl added 11 assists and 11 digs and Annika Asbjorbsen tallied seven kills, seven aces and 18 digs. The Navigators hosted Greely Tuesday, go to Massabesic Thursday and play host to reigning Class A champion Biddeford Tuesday of next week.
Yarmouth, the four-time reigning Class B state champion, dropped a four-set home decision to Class A power Gorham last week, then evened its record at 2-2 Monday by rallying from a 2-0 deficit for a thrilling five-set (21-25, 18-25, 25-20, 25-18, 15-9) home victory over visiting Cape Elizabeth. Grace Keaney had 10 kills and Ella Cameron added nine kills. The Clippers have a key home test versus Washington Academy Saturday, then visit Greely Tuesday of next week.
Greely improved to 4-1 after wins last week at Wells in straight sets (29-27, 25-12, 25-12) and in five-games over visiting Brunswick. The Rangers were at Falmouth Tuesday and host Yarmouth next Tuesday.
NYA dropped to 1-4 last week with a straight-set (21-25, 11-25, 12-25) loss at Lewiston. The Panthers host Gray-New Gloucester Wednesday, visit Westbrook Saturday and play at Wells Tuesday of next week.
Cross country
Monday’s Southern Maine Classic cross country meet was postponed by bad weather.
Golf
Falmouth’s golf team was 4-2 after an 11-2 win over South Portland and a 7-6 loss to Scarborough last week.
Freeport improved to 8-0 with a 149-166 win over Fryeburg Academy last Tuesday. The Falcons were led by Eli Spaulding, who shot a 4-under 32.
Greely improved to 5-1 after downing Gorham (8.5-4.5) and Bonny Eagle (9-4) last week. The Rangers have a chance to avenge their lone loss next Tuesday when they go to Thornton Academy.
Yarmouth edged Gray-New Gloucester (163-164) and Fryeburg Academy (164-168) last week.
Portland Press Herald staff writers Steve Craig and Travis Lazarczyk contributed to this story.
Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net.
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