Two years ago, the Camden Hills boys tennis team won the Eastern Maine Class B title, only to be outclassed by Cape Elizabeth in the state championship match.

Last spring those same programs met again in the state final, and while the gap between the teams narrowed considerably, Camden Hills still had to settle for the runner-up plaque.

This year, with five of their top seven players back, including all three singles players, the Windjammers hope to end the Capers’ three-year title run and become the first Eastern Maine champion to win the Class B state crown since Hampden Academy accomplished the feat in 1998.

“I think it definitely motivates them,” said fourth-year coach Chris Walker-Spencer of last year’s 3-2 loss in the state final. “The guys obviously have [a state championship] as a goal they’re shooting for.”

That motivation already has shown itself as a powerful force this spring, at least if preseason matches are any indicator.

The Windjammers defeated both Cape Elizabeth and two-time defending Class A champion Lewiston during the third annual Allen Agency High School Tennis Challenge held in Rockport earlier this month.

Camden Hills features the talented 1-2 singles punch provided by junior Joey Michalakes and senior Peter Stein, younger brother of 2004 state schoolgirl singles champion Laura Stein.

Michalakes starts the season as the No. 1 seed with Stein at No. 2. They are essentially co-No. 1s because both played as the top seed at times last spring, and both reached the state singles Round of 32 in 2004.

“For a long time our strength here has come from our depth,” said Walker-Spencer. “But we also have a couple of guys in Joey and Peter who are going to climb into the top 16 or top eight in the state in singles this year, and if they play exceptionally well one of them could wind up in the top four.”

Junior Quinn Bardon provides strong singles depth as the third seed, while seniors Charlie Ash and Adam LaFleur have moved up from second doubles to team at first doubles this spring for the five-time defending Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class B champions.

Camden Hills, 14-2 a year ago and 1-0 so far this spring, boasts a rich boys tennis tradition, with nine Eastern B titles and a pair of state championships since 1989.

But the most recent state title came more than a decade ago in 1992, a fact this year’s Windjammer contingent hopes to change.

“I think a lot of the teams in the East graduated some key players, but you just can’t tell with freshmen and exchange students coming in,” said Walker-Spencer. “I’d like to think we’ll be right in the mix in Eastern Maine, and if we’re fortunate enough to advance we should be right in the mix for the states.”

Quick start for Ramsdell

It came almost too early in the season to fully appreciate,

In fact, when Washington Academy right-hander James Ramsdell completed pitching a no-hitter against Calais in a Downeast Athletic Conference baseball season opener at East Machias last Friday, he wasn’t all that impressed with his feat – even though it was the first no-hitter of his career.

Perhaps it was because the game lasted just five innings due to the 10-run rule, as the Raiders jumped out to a big early lead and cruised to an 11-0 victory against a Calais team that was playing outdoors for the first time this season.

“At first I didn’t think too much of it,” said Ramsdell. “But the more I look back on it, it’s a pretty good accomplishment.”

Ramsdell relied mostly on his fastball to overpower the Blue Devils, and he also spotted his curve effectively while striking out 10 batters.

“It was mostly my fastball,” said Ramsdell, who plans to attend Saint Joseph’s College in Standish in the fall.

Ramsdell had a familiar battery mate in his younger brother Jeffrey, a sophomore catcher for the Raiders. Jeffrey Ramsdell paced the WA offense against Calais with a grand slam during a five-run second-inning uprising that gave the Raiders a 6-0 lead.

WA returns a solid nucleus from the 2004 team that finished 13-4 and reached the Eastern C quarterfinals.

The Raiders do have to replace graduated standout Steve Colbeth, who batted .640 last spring while going 4-0 on the mound.

Ramsdell, who catches when he is not pitching, will anchor this year’s staff along with Nick Wood and Corey Colbeth.

“We’re a little concerned with our pitching depth,” said Ramsdell, who already has earned All-Downeast Athletic Conference honors in basketball and golf during the current school year, “but our offense should be pretty good.”