The Class A schoolboy basketball season begins tonight, and many eyes are focused on a familiar location: Bangor High.

The Rams, Eastern Maine finalists a year ago and winners of three state championships in the last five years, will field a blend of high-quality veterans and intriguing newcomers as they open against Old Town at Red Barry Gymnasium.

“We’re really looking forward to the season,” said senior co-captain Aaron Gallant. “I think we’ve got a good team. Every year our goal is to win the last game, and that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

Other openers involving Big East Conference Class A teams Friday have Brewer hosting Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference preseason favorite Oxford Hills of South Paris, Hampden Academy at John Bapst, and Nokomis of Newport at Edward Little of Auburn.

Gallant, a third-team NEWS All-Maine choice as a junior, leads a returning Bangor cast that also includes senior point guard Jordan Heath, senior swingman Anthony DeRosa and 6-7 senior center Andrew Trundy.

Alex Gallant, a 6-4 sophomore, and 6-2 freshman Lee Suvlu provide an infusion of young talent to the roster, but the most prominent newcomer is 6-6 junior Mark Socoby, a transfer from Houlton who earned first-team NEWS All-Maine recognition after leading the Shiretowners to the 2004 Class C state championship.

Socoby’s integration into the Bangor system has been smooth to date.

“Mark’s done a great job, he’s done everything that’s been asked of him so far,” said Heath, a co-captain. “He’s taking the time to understand a little bit of a different philosophy, and so far, so good. He’s been a great fit.”

Socoby averaged more than 20 points and 10 rebounds per game last winter, and scored 34 points in the state final as Houlton defeated Jay to win the gold ball, but he doesn’t anticipate being as much of a focal point this season as he was a year ago.

“There are a lot of good players on this team, so my role may not be as much as it was in Houlton, but that’s OK,” Socoby said.

Much of Socoby’s basketball adjustment has focused on getting accustomed to Bangor’s trademark man-to-man defensive system.

“Mark wants to be a good defender, he’s got a great attitude,” said Bangor coach Roger Reed. “He’s going to be a tremendous player, it’s just a case of learning how we do things.

“He has good leaping ability, he’s a great passer, and he has a wonderful attitude. He’s a wonderful addition to the team.”

So the rich get richer, perhaps, which leads to great expectations. But with three gold balls in five years – and six in the last 12 years – that’s nothing new for Bangor.

“I think a lot of outsiders have high expectations for us,” said Heath. “I don’t think it’s a lot of extra pressure on us. We expect a lot of ourselves, and if we come to practice every day and work hard, I think we can go as far as our hard work will take us.”

‘Jammers, Eagles show mettle

It had the intensity of a game in February, not mid-December.

And while both teams have room for improvement between now and tournament time, this week’s early showdown between Camden Hills of Rockport and defending Class B state champion Erskine Academy at South China did nothing to diminish the sense that both will be among the primary contenders for the Eastern B title again this season.

For Camden Hills, the 68-60 win was a profile in perseverance, as the Windjammers outscored the Eagles 26-8 over the final 6:56 of play to erase a game-long deficit.

“It’s a confidence builder,” said Camden Hills coach Jeff Hart. “People call us favorites, but you still have to build confidence and know what you can do against the better teams. This is a really good team, and when you come into their gym and win, that’s a big lift.”

For Erskine Academy, a team trying to blend three new starters this season with talented seniors Josh Jones and Darrell Haskell, the loss was one step in a season-long growth process.

“This was a wonderful experience, especially for the younger guys who haven’t been through this before,” said Erskine coach Tim Bonsant. “Hopefully we can get to Bangor and draw upon this and be a better team for it.”

The game also represented a coming-out party for a pair of senior big men, 6-4 Nick Tedford of Camden Hills and 6-5 James Leibowitz. Tedford showed both inside strength and shooting range, making 3 of 4 3-point tries on route to a team-high 18 points. The 6-5 Leibowitz, who played a key role off the bench during Erskine’s title run last season, worked the low post for 19 points and seven rebounds.

Erskine controlled most of the game, but couldn’t put the Windjammers away despite flustering the Camden Hills offense early with its 2-2-1 fullcourt press and 1-2-2 halfcourt zone. But later in the game the Windjammers adjusted, penetrating the zone and passing the ball back outside for open 3-pointers.

Camden Hills shot 7 of 9 from beyond the arc after intermission, and took the lead for the first time at 55-54 on a three by senior guard Will Horn with 3:47 left.

“We always knew we were going to come back and that the final push would be in the fourth quarter,” Horn said. “We just knew we had to pick up the intensity when it mattered, and we did.”

“It was big to come here and get that win against that zone defense the first time,” added senior forward Tim Stammen. “We learned a lot from playing against that zone, and it will help us the next time we play them.”

The teams meet again Jan. 15 at Rockport.

Penquis class jazzes up program

At many local high schools, the program for a basketball game means a photocopied piece of paper with rosters. Sometimes you get the cheerleaders’ names, sometimes the JV rosters.

But not at Penquis High in Milo, where things are a bit fancier – and more professional looking – thanks to the desktop publishing class at the school.

Lynn Gerrish, who teaches the class, said she’s just carrying on the work former teacher Kerrie Alley started several years ago before leaving the school. Under Gerrish’s guidance the class puts together a colorful, clean-looking program with one especially interesting feature.

Underneath the visitors’ roster, the Penquis coaches – Tony Hamlin for the boys and Brent Bailey for the girls – compose a paragraph with some information about the visiting team.

Bailey said he thinks Hamlin started the tradition, and former girls coach Wally Russell picked it up for the eight years he coached the team.

“That’s something that is a good thing,” Bailey said after his Patriots fell to coach Joe Cyr’s Penobscot Valley of Howland team. “To be honest with you, a lot of these coaches you become friends with. I’m very good friends with coach Cyr.”

In the program for the season-opener against the Howlers, Bailey wrote, “As in years past the Howlers have always brought their teams to Penquis well prepared and ready to do battle. Last year, coach Cyr led his Lady Howlers to their first playoff game in many years.”

It’s taken Bailey a while to get the hang of jotting a few notes down for the paragraph, and he tries to keep things general because the players change from year to year.

“I’m not a great writer, but it’s easier once you get a couple of years under your belt,” Bailey said. “You get to know the coaches and whatnot. The players change so much it’s hard to keep track.”

There’s also a player of the month feature and biographical information about the coach, and a place to keep track of field goals, free throws, personal fouls and total points during games.

The program also has photos of the band, cheerleaders, varsity captains, junior varsity teams, fans, and a group shot of the students in the publishing class.

Gerrish, whose daughter Alicia Gerrish played for the Penquis girls basketball team, said the class works steadily during the week to get each program ready and prints about 100-125 programs, depending on how many fans are expected to attend each game. The students also do design work for local authors.