Iain Clendering of Brunswick, left, looks back with possession after Bryce Crowell of Messalonskee has his stick snapped in half during a May 13 game at Brunswick High School. Eli Canfield/The Times Record
Brunswick High School boys lacrosse coach Jason Miller acknowledged he didn’t know what to expect this season.
What did he hope for?
“We hope to make a deep (playoff) run,” said Miller, who took over for Don Glover in 2020 before the season was canceled. “The seniors set some realistic goals, their teammates have bought in, and every day at practice we are working hard to achieve said goals.”
Now, the Dragons (11-1) enter the Class B playoffs as the second seed. They will host No. 15 Lawrence in an opening round game on June 8.
“We’re finally coming together as a homogenous unit, with COVID we lost players sporadically throughout the season,” said Miller. “The past two weeks we’ve been at full strength, therefore the kids are really starting to trust each other and play some of their best lacrosse.”
Brunswick’s lone loss came to Yarmouth, 11-9 on May 4.
Elsewhere in Class B boys, No. 16 Morse (2-10) and No. 17 Westbrook (0-12) squared off in a play-in game on Monday. The winner earned a date with top-seeded Messalonskee (11-1) on Thursday in Oakland. No. 14 Mt. Ararat (3-9) will travel to Farmington to take on No. 3 Mt. Blue (10-2) on Tuesday.
In Class C, No. 14 Freeport (1-11) will visit No. 3 Wells (8-4) for a preliminary round game Thursday.
With regionalized scheduling this spring, the playoffs will feature plenty of intriguing matchups.
Emily Cloutier of Brunswick, left, scoops the ball while Lily Pomerleau of Morse tries to defend during a May 1 game at McMann Field in Bath. Eli Canfield/The Times Record
“We know we have a challenge in front of us but haven’t experienced playing Mt. Blue,” said Mt. Ararat boys head coach Matt Haskell. “That’s just another factor that adds to the excitement.”
The Eagles are playing their best lacrosse of the season, winning two of their final three games.
On the girls side, teams will be looking to dethrone top-seeded Yarmouth (11-1) in Class B.
“It’s going to be a battle, but we’ve seen some tremendous improvement from our girls,” said Mt. Ararat girls lacrosse coach Chad Kirk. “We’ve really been trending in the right direction, our build up from the beginning of the season until now has been a constant and steady progress.”
The No. 6 Eagles (7-5) will host No. 11 Lawrence (5-6) in a preliminary game on Tuesday at McMann Field in Bath.
“The home playoff game will be big for us and will be like a ‘here we go’ moment,” said Kirk. “This is what we’ve been training for and I know the team is excited for this experience at our home field.”
The No. 7 Dragons (8-4) will host No. 10 Gardiner/Hall-Dale (6-6) on Tuesday afternoon.
In her first season as Brunswick head coach, EmaLeigh Aschbrenner has been pleased with what she has seen from her team.
“One of the strongest parts of our team is our flexibility; the majority of the girls are able to play any position that I ask them to play, and they excel in it,” said Aschbrenner.
The Dragons won four of their final five games.
“We have been a very different team since we first set foot on the field back in March, and I couldn’t be happier,” said Aschbrenner. “I know they will play hard and finish this season strong no matter the outcome.”
Brunswick senior attacker Emily Cloutier has scored 52 goals in 12 games.
In Class C, Freeport (9-3) comes in as the No. 1 seed.
“We’ve learned a lot from our losses and know not to make those same mistakes again,” said Freeport head coach Marcia Wood. “There are no re-do’s in the playoffs, something I’ve been emphasizing to the team.”
The Falcons finished the regular season on a two-game losing streak, with the losses coming to Class B Greely and undefeated Kennebunk of Class A. Freeport will await the winner of No. 8 St. Dominic and No. 9 Erskine Academy.
In Bath, the Morse girls lacrosse team returned no varsity starters from 2019 and have had several absences for various reasons during the course of the season.
“We’ve had several underclassmen swing up for one reason or another which will be helpful for us in the long run,” said Morse head coach Linda Levesque.
The No. 12 Shipbuilders (3-9) will travel up the coast to play No. 5 Camden Hills (9-2) on Thursday. The Windjammers swept the two-game series in the regular season, winning 10-5 and 16-4.
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