Bangor team gains valuable experience; Atkinson stands out

The Bangor High boys soccer team may be out of the playoffs, but considering how much experience the Rams’ young players got this year, the squad should be ready for an even deeper run next season.

Consider the case of Aaron Taft.

When Bangor goalie Jessefa Murphy went down with a knee injury in the middle of a key game against Hampden on Oct. 7, the Rams looked at their bench and saw Taft, a sophomore who had never played in a varsity game.

Not only was Taft thrown into an intense game situation with no varsity experience, but he was also thrown into an intense season as Bangor was fighting for a top seed in Eastern Maine Class A.

Murphy was unable to play the rest of the season, and Taft helped the Rams to a 3-2 record in the games he started.

Bangor’s season ended Friday with a 3-2 Eastern Maine quarterfinal loss to Hampden, but the experience Taft gained should be key for next season.

“There was a lot of pressure but I just had to go out there and do what I could do to help our team either win or tie or whatever we needed to do,” Taft said of the Oct. 7 Hampden game. “I never thought I was going to do that.”

Bangor coach Adam Leach was, of course, sorry not to have Murphy, the senior, start the rest of the way. But at least Taft gained a lot of experience to prepare for the full-time goalie job next year.

“I’m very proud of him, a sophomore, to come in and step up and I thought he did a good job,” Leach said. “He’s our goalie for the next two years and I’m happy to have him.”

In fact, Leach will have most of his team back from the 12-3-1 effort this season. All but two of Friday’s starters, defenders Nate Cutshall and Ben Dixon, were sophomores or juniors.

Graduation will hit Hampden a bit harder as seven starters will graduate. But goalie Max Silver will return, as will forwards Martin Earley, Jay Uhrin and Andre Cushing.

Atkinson shines under pressure

The Eastern Maine Class B playoff run ended for John Bapst of Bangor Saturday with a 1-0 loss to Belfast in the field hockey semifinals. But the Crusaders likely won’t forget the play of junior goalie Meredith Atkinson in the postseason.

Atkinson saved two penalty strokes during the penalty-corner session of last week’s quarterfinal against Nokomis of Newport, and she stopped another early in Saturday’s loss to the Lions.

Atkinson had seven shutouts this year, according to Bapst coach Gina Schuck.

“She was just out of her mind,” Schuck said after Atkinson’s performance in the quarterfinals. “She’s had a big year. She had a couple of games that weren’t as good but that was her best game.”

Momentary distraction

Allen Holmes has been the Belfast High field hockey coach for 32 years, so it makes sense that he thinks about the sport a lot.

As he learned last Monday, sometimes he thinks about field hockey too much.

Holmes injured his left hand as he was working outdoors while pondering the No. 1 Lions’ quarterfinal matchup against No. 8 Camden Hills.

The Windjammers are coached by his daughter, Jan Holmes-Jackson.

“I got it caught in a woodsplitter,” Holmes said. “It was the last stick of wood, I was thinking about playing my daughter the next day, I was in a hurry, it was an old piece [of wood] and it caught my glove and twisted and took the tip of my finger.”

Belfast wound up beating Camden Hills 2-0.

Holmes is wearing a wrap around his hand and said he’ll be fine. To keep his hand warm, his wife gave him a big mitten which Holmes needed Saturday afternoon during a chilly semifinal against No. 5 John Bapst of Bangor. Belfast won 1-0 and advanced to the regional final against Rockland.

Jessica Bloch can be reached at 990-8193, 1-800-310-8600 or jbloch@bangordailynews.net.