Teresa Pomerleau ran religiously through the summer to get in shape for field hockey season.

So she was in terrific shape when a car crash with a moose Labor Day weekend brought her fall season, and possibly basketball season, to an abrupt end.

Pomerleau might be back in a Pirates uniform soon for the Guilford-based school, however, if her Dec. 18 tests reveal no problems.

“It was terrible,” she said. “I think I’m in the worst shape of my life right now. I ran all summer, and then I spent 11 days flat on my back. They said it was really good that I was in such great shape.”

The straight-A senior from Sangerville suffered a crushed vertebra the night of Sept. 1 when the car she was driving collided with a 1,100-pound bull moose on Interstate 95 in Carmel.

Surgery was done to repair the vertebra and three months was set as the recuperative time scale.

Pomerleau, who was one of four seniors on Piscataquis’ Eastern Maine runner-up Class C field hockey team, watched that season in a neck brace and wheelchair from the sidelines.

But the 6-foot center, who helped lead the Pirates to an 11- But the 6-foot center, who helped lead the Pirates to an 11-8 record in basketball last season while averaging 10 points and eight rebounds a game, is eager to start playing again.

“It’s been a wreck,” Pomerleau said. “This is my senior year and sports are really important to me, and sitting out field hockey season, was just about the worst.

“I healed really fast and really strong. When I was in the hospital, I thought I could definitely come back and play basketball,” she said. “I was quite upset about it when they told me I couldn’t, and I kept pushing. My mom told me to quit pushing because it wasn’t going to happen anyway.”

Pushing it seems to be a Pomerleau trait. A missed month of school and she still earned straight A’s. Her work ethic impressed former girls coach Steve Bell.

“She had some girls of height ahead of her during her sophomore and junior years,” Bell said. “She was a very steady rebounder whether or not she was starting.”

Belfast and Foxcroft Academy not only swept their Western Maine opponents to earn the Class B and C state championships, respectively. They also collected their fair share of the LTC All-Star first-team slots.

Belfast’s players grabbed seven of the 32 available spots, while Foxcroft garnered 14 of 30. (Team listed on Page C6).

Senior fullback Charlie Fearon is the Ponies’ nominee for the Class C Player of the Year, which will be announced at the Jan. 12 luncheon at Jeff’s Catering in Brewer.

First- and second-team members, as well as honorable mentions, will be honored for both classes and the Players of the Year will be announced at the 1 p.m. event. Tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for each honored athlete.

Bucksport’s Chris Soper, Josh Annis of Dexter, Aric Friend of Maine Central Institute of Pittsfield, and Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln’s Pat House also were nominated for the Class C award. Stearns of Millinocket’s Scott MacArthur, Ben Pratt of John Bapst, and Andy Hedrich of Rockland are included on the nomination list.

The list of nominees for Class B Player of the Year has not been released yet.

The Eastern Maine Class B hockey tournament will be expanded from a six-team field to eight teams this season.

That’s because Kents Hill School has joined the Eastern Maine Class B ranks, which gives the division 15 teams.

Larry LaBrie, the assistant executive director of the Maine Principals Association, said if there is an odd number of teams in a division, “we round it off to the larger number.”

As a result, the 15 will be rounded off to 16 and the MPA likes to have a ratio of 50 percent of its teams qualifying for postseason play in each class.

“The more teams in it, the better. But I wouldn’t like it if everybody made it,” said John Bapst High School coach Ray Thibodeau.

Last season, there were 14 teams in Eastern B but they had a six-team tournament with the top two seeds earning first-round byes.

This year, there will be a full quarterfinal field with the top seed hosting the eighth seed; 2 vs. 7; 3 vs. 6 and 4 vs. 5.

The semifinals (Feb. 25) and finals (Feb. 27) will be held at the University of Maine’s Alfond Arena in Orono with the state B championship game scheduled for Colby College’s Alfond Arena in Waterville on March 1.

Class A will gain one school as Cheverus High of Portland will move up from Class B. LaBrie said Skowhegan High had contemplated varsity status in Class A but will remain a club team for at least another year.

The eight-team Class A Tournament will be single elimination again with the semis scheduled for Lewiston’s Central Maine Civic Center on Feb. 26.

However, the A final will be held at the Alfond on March 1.

Although Bangor is the only team north of Waterville currently in Class A and has never won a playoff game, MPA executive director Dick Tyler said the MPA likes to “rotate sites” in order to create statewide exposure.

It also was pointed out that perennial powerhouses Lewiston and St. Dominic of Lewiston play their home games at the Central Maine Civic Center, giving them a distinct home ice advantage.