Forecaster Country was again a lacrosse hotbed this spring and that was reflected when the state’s All-American selections were announced.

U.S. Lacrosse describes All-Americans as “Players who exhibit superior skills and techniques and possess exceptional game sense and knowledge. They are among the best players in the United States while also embodying excellent sportsmanship.”

Once again, southern Maine boasted no shortage of that kind of player this spring.

Nine boys (seven from Forecaster Country) and three girls (all local standouts) were selected.

Three champions

The girls’ All-American team featured Erin Foley of two-time Class B champion Cape Elizabeth and Caitlyn Camelio and Kayla Sarazin of two-time Class A champion Falmouth.

Foley, a senior goalie, last seen making a pair of pivotal overtime saves in the Capers’ 12-11, triple-overtime win over Yarmouth in the Class B state final, was honored for the first time.

Foley saved 47 percent of the shots she faced and was named Western Maine Conference first-team. Foley was consistently at her best on the brightest stage. She will play next year at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts.

“Erin has been an absolute pleasure to coach,” said Cape Elizabeth coach Alex Spark. “She has put in so much extra effort outside of practice to better herself at her position. She leads by example every day of what it means to work hard and improve. She’s extremely dedicated. She’s also been a great leader for our team and someone the underclassmen look up to. It’s been so much fun to watch her separate herself. I’m lucky to have had her for four years.”

Foley joins Lauren Steidl (2013) as Cape Elizabeth’s lone All-Americans. Kristina Scontras in 2005 and Carly Rapaport in 2006 were honorable mentions.

Falmouth had a pair of All-Americans.

Camelio, a senior midfielder, scored 61 goals and added 18 assists this season, giving her 135 goals and 46 assists for her prolific career. Camelio had the go-ahead goal in a 5-3 win over Kennebunk in the Class A state final. She also finished with 147 draw controls and well over 100 ground balls. Camelio will play for the University of Michigan next year.

“Caitlyn stormed on to the Maine lacrosse scene her junior year after tearing a ligament in her knee her sophomore year,” said Yachtsmen coach Ashley Pullen. “Lucky for us, her speed was preserved. I maintain that it is the combination of her foot speed and her stick speed that make her such a formidable threat. She is not only fluent with both hands, but she can confidently and powerfully place the ball wherever she wants on the move at full speed shooting with either hand.  On the defensive side, Caitlyn is a ground ball machine, thanks to her speed, and her hands are such that the ball stays in her stick even under pressure and in traffic. In addition to being a gifted player, Caitlyn is a strong leader and a humble person who doesn’t have an ego connected to her accomplishments. She puts the team first and is always a hardworking, positive presence.  She is, without a doubt, the best player I have had in my 10 years of coaching.”

Sarazin, a senior midfielder, dazzled for Falmouth as well and was another huge reason the Yachtsmen were able to repeat. This spring, Sarazin had 18 goals and 17 assists, but that barely told her story. Sarazin (who finished her high school career with 70 goals and 50 assists) was almost unbeatable in the draw circle (finishing her career with 215 wins) and scooped up ground balls with regularity (well over 100 for her career). Sarazin will play next year at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia.

“Kayla is a defense-oriented midfielder who takes almost all of our draws when she’s in the game,” said Pullen. “She has fine-tuned her form and that technique, combined with her athleticism and fire, led to 74 draw controls this year. Kayla often snags the ball with one hand, both on the draw and elsewhere on the field. On the attacking end, she has the best feed on the team and she often threads the needle through very tight spaces. On the defensive end, Kayla is a rock who directs traffic and shuts players down every time. We regularly have her guard the opposing team’s best player. Kayla is also a two-year captain who is everything you could ask for in a role model, always giving 110 percent and regularly rallying the team to be spirited and united.”

Camelio and Sarazin join Molly Ryan (2013) and Alex Bernier (2012) as the program’s previous All-Americans.

The girls’ Academic All-American team included Cheverus’ Annesley Black, Edward Little’s Megan Steele, Falmouth’s Natalie Birkel, Greely’s Madeline Perfetti, Kennebunk’s Mia Banglmaier and Sophie Thompson and Morse’s Abigail Sreden.

Nine stars

The boys’ All-American team included Brunswick’s Aiden Glover, Cape Elizabeth’s Max Patterson, Falmouth’s Riley Reed, Greely’s Jackson Williams, South Portland’s David Fiorini and Cooper Mehlhorn, Waynflete’s Miles Lipton and Thornton Academy’s C.J. Labreck and Ean Patry.

Glover, a senior attack and the youngest son of longtime, retiring Brunswick coach Don Glover, had 52 goals and 46 assists this spring and in his four years as a starter, scored a whopping 216 goals and added 161 assists for 377 total points. Glover was twice named Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Player of the Year and twice helped the Dragons win state titles. The repeat All-American will attend Phillips Exeter Academy next year and has signed his National Letter of Intent to play at Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts starting in the fall of 2020.

“Aiden has been a true leader and will be dearly missed,” said Don Glover.  “His determination, athleticism and dedication have been evident over his four years as a varsity starter.  His commitment to our, ‘We, not me’ motto has been evident is his desire to make our program, not just team, better every step of the way. ”

Mike Sfirri (2003), Brad Bishop (2004), Kit Smith (2007), Max Rosner (2008 and 2009), John Williams (2010), Cam Glover (2014 and 2015), Christian Glover (2016 and 2017) and Aiden Glover (2018) were Brunswick’s previous All-American selections.

Patterson, a junior defenseman, was a defensive force this season for a Cape Elizabeth team that won its first 13 games and didn’t lose until the regional final, to eventual Class A champion Thornton Academy.

Patterson forced 30 turnovers, picked up 47 ground balls and even assisted on a pair of goals.

“Max was an outstanding player for us this season,” said longtime Capers coach Ben Raymond. “He was the number one lockdown defender in the state. He covered some of the top offensive players in the state and held them to very few points in each of our games. He gave our team the ability to take away the opponents’ best player each and every game. He allowed us to do things on defense that other teams could not do. He continues to get better with each and every day. He earned the respect of his teammates, his coaches, opposing players as well as opposing coaches. He will be an excellent leader for us next season and help to anchor what should be a very impressive defense for sure.”

Cape Elizabeth has a litany of All-Americans to its credit with three decades’ worth of honorees.

The Capers’ first All-American was Chris Carlisle in 1989. Since then, Ethan Sanford (1990), Troy Graham (1991), Jason McGeachey (1993), Sean Brady and Mike Mullen (1994), Ned Struzziero and Matt Williams (1995), Struzziero and Brendan Bigos (1996), Zach Herbert (1997 and 1998), Rorke Greene (1999), Andrew Braziel and Nick Krunkkala (2000), Mike DiFusco and Constantine Scontras (2001), DiFusco, Matt Ranaghan and Dean Scontras (2002), Ranaghan and Alex Weaver (2003), Matt O’Hearn (2004), Bryan Holden and Dan Rautenberg (2005), Zach Belden and Mike Holden (2008), Holden (2009), Ben Brewster and Tommy Foden (2010), Jack Roos (2011), Timmy Lavallee (2012), Alex Bornick and Adam Haversat (2013), Tom Feenstra and Griffin Thoreck (2014), Thoreck (2015), Alex Narvaez, R.J. Sarka, Owen Thoreck (2016), Ben Ekedahl, Connor Thoreck and Owen Thoreck (2017) and Finn Raymond (2018) were all previously honored.

Falmouth lost to Thornton Academy in a memorable Class A state final and had one player chosen All-American this spring.

Reed, a senior defenseman and captain, had 78 ground balls and 39 caused turnovers this spring. He also scored five times and added five assists. Reed is a four-time All-Conference selection and the two-time Southwestern Maine Activities Association Player of the Year. A repeat All-American selection, Reed has verbally committed to Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts.

“Riley has an incredible motor,” said Yachtsmen coach Dave Barton. “He’s always tasked with covering the opponent’s top offensive player, which can be a daunting task on it’s own. However, Riley truly thrives in transition. Getting the ball on the ground and leading defense to offense. For as great as Riley’s footwork and positioning is defensively, he’s just as big of an offensive threat. Teams need to know where he is at all times. He’s a total game changer. On top of that, he is an incredible leader in our program. Players like Riley Reed don’t come around too often. I can’t wait to follow his career as he heads off to Merrimack.”

Prior Falmouth All-Americans include Kyle Jordan  in 2007, Dan Hanley and Michael Kane in 2010, Mike Ryan, Mitch Tapley and Nick Bachman in 2011, Ryan, Tapley and Willy Sipperly in 2012, I.V Stucker and Charlie Fay in 2013, Stucker in 2014, Bryce Kuhn in 2015, Jack Scribner in 2016 and 2017, Brendan Hickey in 2017 and 2018 and Reed last year.

Greely’s boys’ squad lost by a goal in the Class B state final for the second year in a row, but Williams, coming off a state title in hockey, did a little bit of everything to lead the Rangers to the brink of a crown.

Williams, a senior middie, won 134 of 205 faceoffs, or 65 percent, including 12 of 16 on the biggest stage, against Yarmouth in the state game. He also scooped up 133 ground balls, had 14 goals and 12 assists. Williams made the All-Conference team. He will play lacrosse at Bates College.

“Jackson excelled simply because of his work ethic and never-fail approach to sports,” said Greely coach Mike Storey. “Even when he did not win a faceoff on the clamp, he often would still come up with the ground ball. Jackson was not only important to our team on faceoffs, but on offense and defense as well. He was consistently one of our best short-stick defenders and was an important part of making our offense execute. He would rarely get the ball dislodged when clearing the ball across the midfield.”

South Portland made it to the Class A South semifinals, losing to Cape Elizabeth, and had two players honored for their play this season.

Fiorini, a senior attack, had 51 points and 37 assists, good for a team-high 88 points. He holds the program record for most points in a game with 14 versus Gorham and is second all-time for his career with 266, second to his older brother, Jack Fiorini. David Fiorini scored nine goals in a win at Brunswick in May. He made the SMAA All-Star team and will play next year at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell.

“The hours David put into playing, shooting and weight training really got him over the top this year,” said Red Riots coach Tom Fiorini, David’s father. “His coaches next year love his vision, speed and playmaking ability, as I did also. They believe he will compete for a starting job next season.”

Mehlhorn, a senior attack, is a repeat All-American selection, joining Jack Fiorini as the only player to accomplish that in South Portland annals. Mehlhorn had 53 goals and 30 assists this season to lead the Red Riots with 83 points. He holds the program record for most career goals (184) and points (308). Mehlhorn also had 46 ground balls in 2019 and was an SMAA first-team all-star.

“Cooper’s quickness open field speed and stick skills set him apart from rest of field,” said Tom Fiorini. “His lacrosse IQ is crazy off the charts. He’s always trying to come up with plays to help the team.”

Eugene Arsenault (2007), Duncan Preston (2014), T-Moe Hellier (2015), Jack Fiorini (2016) and Mehlhorn (2018) were the other previous South Portland All-Americans.

Waynflete wasn’t able to repeat as Class C state champion, but did win nine games in a row in one stretch this spring.

Lipton, a senior middie, naturally led the way, scoring 46 goals and adding nine assists in earning All-American honors for the second year in a row. Lipton made the Western Maine Conference all-star team and has committed to playing at Boston University.

“In a sport that sees more and more specialization, Miles is the ‘do everything’ player,” said Flyers coach Parker Repko. “His endurance and strength allow him to play the whole game. He starts on the faceoff wing, plays midfield defense, directs the offense, and clears the ball. This season, Miles cleared the ball exceptionally well. Often, he would be playing midfield defense and after a save or turnover, get the ball from our goalie, clear it the entire length of the field, pass it to our attack, get it back and dodge through his man and the slide to score, only then to get back on the faceoff wing and get ready to dig in for the ground ball. Some of the best defenses in the state dedicate their best player to shut him off and then still have an early slide ready to go because he is the most dangerous player on the field. Lacrosse is a part of him and he’s had a huge impact on the game of lacrosse in Maine. He has a bright future.”

Lipton and Hank Duvall (2018) and Christopher Burke (2012) were Waynflete’s lone prior All-American.

Thornton Academy repeated as Class A state champions and boasted a pair of All-Americans.

Labreck, a senior middie, who scored the winning goal in overtime in the state final, and standout senior goalie Ean Patry were honored.

Dan St. Ours (2001), Labreck and Noah Edborg (2018) were Thornton Academy’s lone previous All-Americans.

Nine additional boys’ players from Maine qualified for the US Lacrosse All-Academic team.

That list featured Yarmouth’s Michael Guertler (who also was given the Bob Scott Award for service to his team, school and community), Cape Elizabeth’s Jack Dresser and Sam Dresser, Falmouth’s Reilly Tucker, Edward Little’s Cameron Audette, Noble’s Ethan Demoura, Oak Hill’s Ethan Richard, Gray-New Gloucester, Kyle Anthony Curtis and Thornton Academy’s Tanner Weeks.

Bangor’s Michael Keim was named Maine US Lacrosse Coach of the Year.

Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @foresports.

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