Witches, Ponies hoping to bring home gold balls State finals on tap today at Fitzpatrick Stadium

State championship trophies and a lifetime worth of memories are up for grabs as the high school football season concludes today with a title tripleheader at Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland.

The Championship Saturday card begins with the Class A final between Mt. Blue of Farmington and Bonny Eagle of Standish at 11 a.m., followed by the Class B game between Brewer and York at 2:30 p.m. and the Class C game between Foxcroft Academy and Lisbon at 6 p.m.

Brewer Witches (9-2) vs. York Wildcats (9-2): Neither team began the season with much experience as Brewer returned only five starters while York had just two starters back.

But both gained experience on the fly and enter the state final coming off impressive victories.

Brewer defeated Winslow for the first time in 14 years last Saturday, ousting the defending Eastern Maine champions 21-10. Despite the emotion of that victory – which also avenged a loss to the Black Raiders in the 2004 EM final – the Witches were able to put it behind them quickly in order to focus on their quest for the program’s first state crown since 1970.

“It’s a gold ball deal now,” said Brewer coach Ed Ortego. “The kids looked like they were more concerned with that even when we were putting Winslow to rest and going over that game. I could see then that their interest was in going to that next step. We never talked about it, we never made it a goal, but now it’s here and they’re pretty excited about it.”

York, seeking its first state title since 1989, plays only four seniors regularly, but coach Randy Small’s club showed its maturity in rebounding from a 41-6 loss against Wells to end the regular season to defeat the Warriors in the Western B semifinals. The Wildcats then knocked off defending state champion Mountain Valley of Rumford in the title game.

“They don’t get too high or too low,” said Small of his team. “I don’t know if it’s just because they’re so young they don’t know any different, but nothing seems to bother them.”

York features a 1,450-yard rusher in junior tailback Zach Pruger and a top-notch tight end in junior Anthony Romero to go with senior quarterback Chris Knox. Knox and Brandon Cross key a strong linebacking corps, with end Jim Quinn another defensive catalyst.

“They look awfully quick,” said Ortego. “Their defensive scheme is similar to Belfast’s. Their kids aren’t huge, but they’re quick and come after you. On offense their scheme looks very much like Gardiner, and we’ve seen Gardiner twice and we see Belfast every year, so we’ve seen their schemes; we’re just not familiar with them.”

Brewer will rely on senior backs Ricky Porter, Zach Wilson, and Ben Caldwell, who are just 10 yards shy of rushing for a combined 3,000 yards this fall. Porter leads the Witches with 1,085 yards, followed by Wilson (998) and Caldwell (907).

“We’ve got to attack their speed,” said Small. “If we sit back and wait for them to come to us, it’s going to be difficult, so we’ve got to go at them and make something happen.”

Foxcroft Academy Ponies (10-1) vs. Lisbon Greyhounds (10-1): These teams are meeting in the state final for the third time in nine years, with the series tied at 1-1 thanks to Lisbon’s 19-14 win in 1997 and Foxcroft’s 26-20 victory in 2003.

Foxcroft is making its third trip to the state final in the last four years, while Lisbon is back for the second time in three years.

“To get to this game is a real goal for us,” said Lisbon coach Dick Mynahan. “For them I think it’s an expectation.”

Lisbon features a pair of elite football players in senior tailback-free safety Levi Ervin and senior tackle Elijah Trefts. The 6-foot-4, 205-pound Ervin has rushed for more than 1,500 yards this season and has scored 21 touchdowns in the last eight games alone.

“Levi Ervin causes a lot of problems,” said Foxcroft coach Paul Withee. “I don’t know if he’s had a lot of gaudy games where he’s had 200 or 300 yards, but he’s been very consistent in the 150- to 175-yard range and usually scores three or four touchdowns. He’s a real focal point of their offense, but in the last couple of games, they’ve thrown the football a little more and they utilize him as a receiver in those situations.”

Foxcroft counters with three running backs that have combined for 2,363 yards in senior tailback Joey Caparrelli (949 yards), senior fullback James McPhee (838), and junior wingback Brad Bellemare (576).

Senior quarterback Logan Forrest has completed 45 of 98 passes for 982 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions. His favorite receiver is senior Jon Catell, who has a team-high five TD catches.

“What stands out to me is that they beat Mattanawcook two times,” said Mynahan, whose team’s only loss was a 21-14 decision to MA at Lincoln in Week 3. “I felt that Mattanawcook was a real tough, physical team and for them to beat them twice, that’s all I need to know.”