Ponies gallop by Dexter, Lisbon for 2nd C title Pelletier, Briggs help lead Foxcroft to repeat; Tigers surprise runner-up

AUGUSTA – It wasn’t that many years ago when the Foxcroft Academy wrestling program was in jeopardy of vanishing amid dwindling participation.

Led by its Class of 2005, the Ponies are now at the top of the Class C wrestling world after winning their second straight state championship Saturday at the Augusta Civic Center.

Foxcroft sent eight wrestlers to the championship round and went 7-1 – including 3-0 in head-to-head finals against Western Maine champion Lisbon, considered the Ponies’ chief pre-meet rival.

“The way we finished was great, having eight guys in the finals and five of them seniors,” said FA coach Luis Ayala, whose team scored 183 points to top Dexter (144.5) and Lisbon (138). “It was so satisfying to end the season like this, especially with this group of seniors.”

Seniors Caleb Pelletier (152) and Randy Briggs (171) won their third consecutive individual state titles. Pelletier pinned Nick Adams of Lisbon in 1:34 to cap off an undefeated season and Briggs defeated West top seed Jacob Walmer of Wiscasset in the semifinals and East top seed Chris Archer of Hermon 11-5 in the final.

Junior Josh Pelletier also finished an undefeated season and won his second state title with a 6-0 victory over Lisbon’s Jake Sprinkle in the 215-pound final. Junior James McPhee (189) defeated defending state champ Chris Vainio of Penobscot Valley of Howland in his semifinal, then edged 2004 160-pound state champ Adam Tweedie of Bucksport 6-3 in the final.

Seniors Cyle Heaney (119) and Ryan Whittemore (140) won their first individual titles for the Ponies, while Jerod Rideout became the first freshman state champ in school history when he earned a 12-0 major decision over Lisbon’s Ryan Guisto in the 135-pound final.

“To have eight make the finals was a great feeling,” said Rideout. “It makes it easier because you know it’s not all on you, but you still have the mentality that you want to go out and win.”

Senior Andrew Pomeroy added his second straight second-place finish at 160 pounds, while classmate Mike McNaughton placed third at 125 pounds.

“The numbers speak for themselves,” said Caleb Pelletier. “We stepped it up and exceeded our goals, which was awesome.”

Dexter went 4-0 in championship matches to surge past Lisbon.

The Tigers were led by senior Chris Barkac, who became just the seventh four-time state champion in Maine wrestling history. He wasted little time, pinning all three of his opponents, including a stunning 12-second victory over Dirigo of Dixfield’s Mike Jonaitis in the 130-pound final.

“My first year was the toughest, but after I won my sophomore year, I thought I could be a four-time champ,” said Barkac, 126-1 for his career. “It’s something I’ve been shooting for.”

Sophomore Jeremiah Barkac remained undefeated over two seasons at 103 pounds, requiring 3 minutes, 37 seconds to pin three opponents. Junior Billy Greene backed up his Penobscot Valley Conference and Eastern Maine crowns by winning the 140-pound title.

And 160-pounder Amos Corson was named the meet’s outstanding wrestler, edging Eastern Maine champion Derek Conner of Bucksport 7-5 in the semifinals and scoring a takedown with five seconds left in the final to tip Pomeroy 4-3.

Dexter also picked up thirds from Ryan Newcomb (119), Josh Harvey (135), and Tyler Poirier (275) and fourths from David Richardson (152) and Blake Woodruff (215) as all nine Tigers who wrestled earned top-four finishes.

“The kids did things I didn’t think they could do,” said Dexter coach David Gudroe. “We’ve been drilling and drilling on things that they needed to do better, and they listened and did the job.”

Third-place Lisbon crowned two champions in Justin Cornell (112) and Charlie Stambach (125), while Bucksport (121 points), Dirigo (68), and Penobscot Valley of Howland (53) placed fourth through sixth.

Bucksport collected runner-up efforts from Tweedie, Booky Nesin (112), Jon Pelletier (119), and Joel Milan (145).

Hermon High crowned its first state champion as Pat Reardon pinned Doug Dyer of PVHS in 2:23 for the 275-pound title. Dyer had scored his 100th career victory in the semifinals by pinning Lisbon’s Elijah Trefts in 59 seconds.