For many, autumn is the best time to travel in Maine. Temperatures are tolerable, tourist traffic has abated, and the changing foliage is a blessing in color. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false;… Read More
To outsiders, a 2-9-3 finish to a soccer season might be the hallmark of a bad team. For the Hermon boys, however, last season’s record seemed more like a bout of bad luck. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes… Read More
As the George Stevens Academy boys basketball team was surging toward the 2003 Maine Class C championship last winter, junior varsity coach Dwayne Carter occasionally would break out a symbol of the school’s last state crown – the championship jacket he earned as a member of the 1979… Read More
Even when they got on the bus to go home, the members of Bangor High’s golf team were talking about how they could have improved on their scores. “That’s one of the reasons they’re state champions,” coach Rob Jarvis said. “They were saying, man, I… Read More
High school booster groups advocate for their favorite teams and players in a variety of ways, from tailgate parties to pep rallies, game-day dinners to postseason banquets. At Skowhegan Area High School, the football boosters have taken their support of the Indians to the Internet… Read More
DYER BROOK – Italian exchange student Edoardo Crotta scored a goal in each half Wednesday to lead the Southern Aroostook Warriors to a 3-1 high school soccer victory over Ashland. Zac Montgomery contributed a goal and an assist for 6-5-1 Southern Aroostook, while Tom St. Read More
HARRINGTON – Junior Cory Worcester scored four goals during a span of 26 minutes, 46 seconds in the first half Wednesday, spearheading Narraguagus to a 4-0 boys soccer victory over Woodland. Worcester scored on assists from Aaron Dublin and Jon Albee and booted two unassisted… Read More
At Orono High School, rebuilding the cross country program has meant blazing a trail – literally. The result is a new 3.1-mile course that recently hosted the school’s first home meet in many years. Orono junior Lexi Wakeling set the initial course record of 18… Read More
Shelby Pickering has been a standout soccer and basketball player since her freshman year at Lee Academy. She has decided to add cross country in her junior year, and her strategy is a bit different. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]];… Read More
When Dan O’Connell played football at Bates College in Lewiston from 1995 to 1998, he learned to cope with lack of success on the gridiron, but he never accepted it. One of 27 members of his freshman football class at Bates, he was one of… Read More
Most years, the Bangor boys soccer team is a contender and a lock to at least finish as one of the top teams in Eastern Maine Class A. If the Rams are going to continue on the same level of success, they’ll have to do… Read More
DOVER-FOXCROFT – A knee injury has sidelined one of Eastern Maine’s top all-around schoolboy athletes, ending his football season and endangering his senior year of high school basketball. Brandon Hall, a 6-foot-8 wide receiver and defensive end for the Foxcroft Academy football team, tore the… Read More
The moments before last Wednesday’s boys soccer game between Foxcroft Academy and Piscataquis in Guilford were pretty normal. Players practiced taking shots at goalies, who practiced making saves. Managers filled out scorebooks. Referees checked for proper inflation of soccer balls. But there was one more… Read More
FORT KENT – Megan Lajoie netted the game-winning goal with 30:41 left in the first half to lift the Class D Van Buren girls soccer team to a 1-0 victory over Class B Fort Kent Thursday night in high school action. Lisa Levasseur made 11… Read More
Thirteen Brewer High School student-athletes returned to the playing fields this week after serving 10-day suspensions for violating the school’s athletic code. According to Brewer superintendent of schools Betsy Webb, the student-athletes were suspended from their teams for being in the presence of illegal use… Read More
With a 12-ton weight limit posted for vehicles using the Waldo-Hancock Bridge, several schools in Waldo and Hancock counties have had to adjust their fall sports schedules. Searsport High is probably the school most affected by the bridge restrictions. The Vikings travel from northern Waldo… Read More
PRESQUE ISLE – Katie Delong scored off a pass from Kylan Smith with 9:04 left in the first half as the Presque Isle girls soccer team held off Ellsworth 1-0 Saturday in high school action. Melissa Demerchant made seven saves on 11 shots for the… Read More
For most high school athletes, Sunday is a day of rest. For Tom Dennen, it’s the busiest day of the week. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i… Read More
Hodgdon High School will not field a boys soccer team this fall because of a lack of interest at the Eastern Maine Class C school. Wendy Ivey, who was to coach the Hawks this fall, said there were about nine or 10 committed players and… Read More
HAMPDEN – Mountain climbs, island retreats, and visits to summer camps. All have served as backdrops for the bonding experience that are the double and triple sessions of the first week of football practice. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var… Read More
Rick Sinclair has been named athletic director and boys varsity basketball coach at Mattanawcook Academy in Lincoln. “This is an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up,” said Sinclair, a former basketball standout at Hermon High School and Husson College who also coached Hermon to the… Read More
All the state’s high school football teams began preseason practices this week with the same destination in mind: Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland on Saturday, Nov. 22. For the second straight year, the three state championship football games will be played on the artificial turf of… Read More
In the sun, it was definitely warm. But standing in the shade during Monday afternoon’s practice sessions at Bangor High School, with a stiff breeze blowing, you could almost feel a chill in the air as the Ram football, boys soccer, fall cheerleading, and cross country teams stretched,… Read More
The Fort Kent Community High School boys basketball team has endured some tough times in recent years, but Tim Farrar hopes to turn that around. Farrar has been hired as the Warriors’ new coach, replacing Mark Baxter, who stepped down after last season. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
Mike Soucie admits his Croatian language skills are limited. Occasionally that creates a problem, but other times it works to the Wilton native’s benefit as he coaches a club team of 15- and 16-year-olds based in that nation’s capital, Zagreb. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define… Read More
OLD TOWN – A familiar face is coming home to guide the fortunes of the Old Town High School football team. Dan Baker, a former All-Little Ten Conference and All-State player for the Indians between 1989 and 1991, has been named the Indians’ third head… Read More
Considering the recent rise of the Dexter girls basketball team, the release of a book about the Tiger program comes at an opportune time. James Wintle, a lifelong Dexter resident and the author of four other books about the town, recently finished “Girls Basketball: Dexter… Read More
BREWER – Perry Boudreau guided the Brewer High School wrestling family through its infancy. Now, with a son nearing his second birthday and a second child due to arrive in August – along with a new job as a special education teacher in Old Town… Read More
With athletic director Jen Lynch gone, Belfast has a new administrator familiar to many sports fans in the mid-coast region. Terry Kenniston, who recently resigned as the Old Town High principal, was hired July 3 to take over the Belfast post. googletag.cmd.push(function () { //… Read More
HAMPDEN – Dick Balentine tries to run five miles each day, both for personal fitness and perhaps to serve as an example for the many student-athletes he coaches at Hampden Academy. As the Broncos’ cross country coach for the past 24 years, he has overseen… Read More
Dennis Harmon has a few words of advice for anyone aspiring to be a high school athletic director. “Anybody who is going to do this has to have great enthusiasm for what they’re doing,” he said. “You’re going to have to put in a lot… Read More
Neal Wood understands the value of the Maine-Nebraska Wrestling Exchange more than most. In the summer of 1985, he represented Belfast Area High School and Maine in the inaugural event as a 167-pound wrestler. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var… Read More
After two successful seasons coaching the Hampden girls basketball team, Mike Webb knew he didn’t want to sit on the sidelines anymore after taking a break from basketball this past year. So when a vacancy opened at John Bapst in Bangor, Webb applied and was… Read More
Matt Lash, recently named athletic director at his alma mater, Medomak Valley High School in Waldoboro, probably can’t wait until he takes over that job officially in August. Given his hectic summer, having just one job might seem like a breeze. googletag.cmd.push(function () { //… Read More
One of the most dominant Eastern Maine Class D softball pitchers of the last four years plans to take her stuff on to college. Bangor Christian’s Kara Hartman said she picked Gordon, an NCAA Division III school in Wenham, Mass., over other schools that were… Read More
OLD TOWN – Old Town High School is looking for its third varsity football coach in as many years. Keith Holland, who coached the Indians last fall, and his family are leaving the area next week as he has accepted a high school teaching and… Read More
HAMPDEN – Russell Bartlett, who last year coached the Hampden Academy boys junior varsity basketball team, was elevated to varsity head coach by the SAD 22 board of directors Wednesday night, according to Superintendent of Schools Rick Lyons. Bartlett, 26, succeeds Andy Frace, who resigned… Read More
For Mike Astbury and his classmates on the George Stevens Academy baseball team, high school couldn’t have had a better ending. Astbury was one of 11 seniors for the Eagles who defeated Jay 2-0 on Monday, behind sophomore lefthander Dan Hilts, to win the state… Read More
Maine’s top high school softball players will have a chance to show off their skills at four all-star games this week. The Penobscot Valley Conference’s best players, regardless of their year, will play in the PVC all-star games tonight at Coffin Field. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
There’s no longer enough interest to sustain a full indoor team, yet the John Bapst girls track program is stronger than ever. Doesn’t make sense? It’s true, it’s just that most members of the two-time reigning state Class C outdoor track squad would rather test… Read More
After almost 30 years, Hampden track and field coach Dave King has announced his retirement. How long has retirement been on his mind? googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i =… Read More
As the week began, Joe Haroutunian was bittersweet as he looked ahead to today’s Eastern Maine team tennis championships. The 11th-year Sumner High School coach was excited to bring his top-seeded girls squad to the regional final for the third time in five years, but… Read More
It’s not unusual for the 100-meter dash in a track and field meet to come down to a photo finish, with fans waiting for the result to flash on the scoreboard and lots of excited chatter and predictions. Friday night’s Penobscot Valley Conference Large School… Read More
Karl Henrikson will be nominated for the Rockland boys varsity basketball coaching position at a June school district meeting. Rockland athletic director Brian Plourde acknowledged that Henrikson is the choice. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var… Read More
Megan Melcher was a freshman at Valley High in Bingham when her father Michael died in 1999. Megan, her brother Michael and mother Susan decided to set up the Michael Melcher Memorial Field Fund in hopes of creating a softball field for the school in time for Megan’s… Read More
One of the rarer occurrences in high school baseball is for a pitcher to toss a perfect game. It is, after all, high school baseball where mistakes are common. Ground balls are booted. Fly balls are dropped. Pitchers can be erratic. But Saturday in Dover-Foxcroft… Read More
A citizens group that raised money to fund the building of the Bordick Park baseball facility in Hampden has received concept approval from the SAD 22 board to begin fund raising and to attain engineering services to research a multipurpose synthetic field. The field could… Read More
Wright joins Maine swimming hall Don Richards, Rob Sommer also honored for contributions to aquatics
As a high school diver in the late 1970s, Kevin Wright couldn’t be touched. Honored many times over as a Bangor High star, Wright went on to success in college and as the head diving coach at Texas A&M University. Even though Wright is now… Read More
After eight years as the boys soccer coach and seven years coaching the boys basketball team at Hampden Academy, Andy Frace has turned in his resignation. Frace said a number of factors led to his decision, including outside pressures. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot… Read More
It wasn’t long after Dave Jeffrey was hired to coach indoor track and field at Brewer High School that the Witches became a state power. In his first year the Brewer boys were second at the 1980 state championship meet. The following year the girls… Read More
On April 22, 1947, at the Boston Garden one of the most stunning basketball upsets of its time took place when the boys team from tiny Patten Academy upset Massachusetts powerhouse Boston Latin 35-32. Members of the Patten Academy team will gather for a memorial… Read More
It’s an issue of equality, Bangor High athletic director Steve Vanidestine said, that has the Ram softball team playing its games at the Union Street complex instead of the high school field this year. With the Bangor baseball team playing regular games under the lights… Read More
The National Federation of State High School Associations’ basketball rules committee has adopted a “mercy” rule for high school basketball games in which a running clock would be used once the point difference between the teams reaches a certain point. The rule does not spell… Read More
Bangor High School basketball standout Zak Ray has been wrestling with a decision on where he would attend college for months. His heart said Division I Northeastern University in Boston but his mind was a bit more practical, pushing him toward Bates College in Lewiston. Read More
Faced with the diminishing number of Eastern Maine Class A schools in the northern part of the state, the Big East Conference and Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference have reached an agreement to play each other in basketball for the next two years. Bangor, Brewer, Hampden… Read More
Maine’s field hockey pioneers will soon have a place of their own. The Maine Field Hockey Association recently approved the creation of a MFHA Hall of Fame to honor players, coaches, officials and teams who have made a contribution to field hockey in Maine. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
It’s been a normal Maine spring with cool temperatures and wet conditions. Area high baseball teams have spent more time than they would like indoors preparing for the coming season. It’s no different for Bangor. Coach Jeff Fahey said that going into this week, the… Read More
The decision Heather Clark recently made to attend Florida State University was less about leaving her home in Brewer and more about going home to the south, where she was born and lived until she was about 10 years old. Of course, the prospect of… Read More
Central Aroostook of Mars Hill’s Tim Brewer and Larry Judd of Skowhegan have resigned from their jobs as boys basketball coaches at their schools. The 26-year-old Brewer said that a combination of his continuing education and workload forced him to step down. googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
When Nancy Snowdeal filled out her application form for the Bangor High softball coaching position this year, she fudged the section that asked for her name, putting down her maiden name instead of her new married name. That’s kind of a big deal, right? But… Read More
As high school baseball and softball players prepare for the beginning of the spring sports season, players in Hampden, Winterport, Glenburn, and Hermon can also look ahead to an American Legion season. A Hampden-based Legion team will enter play in Zone 1 this season. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
As a high school baseball coach in Maine, Dave Morris is accustomed to starting the season indoors. In fact, the Brewer skipper can’t imagine starting the season any differently. “I think we have an advantage over some programs,” Morris said Monday. “We can focus a… Read More
The proposed budget for the 2003-04 school year in the Belfast school district does not include funding for the high school’s cheerleading squad, gymnastics team and boys tennis team. Belfast Area High School Principal Butch Arthers said the move would save the district approximately $34,000. Read More
Donald “Buddy” Wood has resigned from his position as boys basketball coach at Rockland High School. Rockland athletic director Brian Plourde confirmed Wood has tendered his resignation but will stay on as an assistant coach with the school’s baseball team. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define… Read More
Ralph Mims of Brunswick High and Sarah Marshall of McAuley have been named the Gatorade Maine High School Basketball Players of the Year for boys and girls, respectively. Mims and Marshall are finalists for the National Player of the Year award. One boy and one… Read More
George “Toogie” McKay has resigned from his position as head football coach at Mount Desert Island. McKay spent 22 years as MDI’s head coach and served as an assistant at the school before taking over the program. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes… Read More
A move designed to encourage students to change their drinking habits was made at this year’s Eastern Maine high school basketball tournaments at the Bangor Auditorium. Players and cheerleaders were given free bottled water at their games. Approximately 40 cases of water were donated by… Read More
When Norris Nickerson pulled to the front entrance of the Bangor Auditorium Saturday, the Eastern Maine Class A basketball tournament director was pleasantly surprised by what he saw. It was about 12:20 p.m. – a good three hours before the girls Class A state championship… Read More
The Hodgdon school board voted Monday night to change the school’s athletic status from Class C to D beginning with the 2003-04 school year. Steve Fitzpatrick, the principal at Hodgdon High School, said the SAD 70 board voted unanimously to make the move. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
The economic strife caused by the closure of the Great Northern Paper mill in Millinocket has now taken a coaching casualty. Ed Mooney, the baseball coach at Katahdin High School in Sherman Station, has decided to resign. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes… Read More
Camden Hills basketball player Stephanie McIntyre is a self-proclaimed country girl, so she took that into consideration when picking a college to attend next year. Rather than head to a school in more populous southern Maine, the 6-foot-1 senior center said she’d rather play in… Read More
With snow falling and high winds, school was cancelled Monday in Presque Isle. Tim Prescott, the boys basketball coach at the high school, made his way into his office to put a close to the season. The Wildcats lost to Brunswick Saturday in the Eastern… Read More
There will be more movement in Classes C and D next year. Woodland and Limestone schools are headed back to Class C, while Schenck of East Millinocket may drop down to Class D, pending discussion by the school board. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot… Read More
It was something Calais senior Crystal Martin had wanted for years: a chance to attend school and play basketball with good friend Billi Blanchard, a senior guard at Presque Isle. And for a few days this fall, Martin made the move from Downeast to Aroostook… Read More
Members of the Pine Tree Conference are close to voting on a plan that will divide the conference into two seven-team divisions for play in Class A football beginning this year. The teams will play an eight-game schedule that includes a crossover game with teams from the Southern… Read More
This season has been an interesting convergence of years and circumstances for the Bangor girls swimming team – and it’s one that has put them in contention for the Class A state championship. The Rams have senior mainstays like Lucy Gross, Sarah Gordon and Candida… Read More
Bucksport athletic director Tish Frazier is looking to get back into teaching, and in order to do that she’ll be leaving her post at the end of the school year. Frazier, who has been the school’s athletic director for six years, submitted a letter of… Read More
When you’re 6-foot-5, a freshman, and average almost 20 points per game for a relatively small school, it doesn’t take long for the rumors to begin to fly about a move to a larger high school and a higher level of competition. Such is the… Read More
So what’s on the minds of the Lubec girls basketball team? One word: Bangor. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice()) {… Read More
While Mainers were braving the cold of subzero wind chills, Hampden’s Jeff Bouchard spent Tuesday afternoon celebrating Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl win – in Tampa. Bouchard, who will turn 18 in two weeks, is spending his high school senior year at a Florida school that… Read More
It’s no surprise that the Dexter girls basketball team is 15-0 with only three regular-season games left on the Tigers’ Class C schedule. After all, Dexter has what is one of the most experienced and well-rounded squads in Eastern Maine and those two 6-footers –… Read More
Sophomore Dustin Colbry has been skating a regular shift on the left wing for the Foxcroft Academy Ponies lately. But there was a time he wasn’t sure if he would be playing until the end of January. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes… Read More
The Big East basketball conference’s experiment of Class A teams playing each other for a third time in a season and playing the games at the Bangor Auditorium may not last past this season. Big East director Paul Soucy said attendance at the games has… Read More
When Orono High senior Jessica Wagner collapsed during a Jan. 9 girls basketball practice session, she immediately thought she had torn the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee. It wasn’t because of anything she felt when the knee buckled, but with the prevalence of… Read More
The Lee girls basketball team went into this season as a favorite to appear in the Eastern Maine Class D championship game, but the Pandas couldn’t be considered the only contender – Woodland, the two-time defending Class D state champ had graduated two star players but still lurked… Read More
The hardest part of a high school basketball official’s life may not necessarily be hostile crowds and coaches. It may just be the travel to and from the games they work. That was the case last Wednesday for Mark Turner, Mike Cote, and Roger Gagnon,… Read More
Speculation about the Eastern Maine Class A tournament moving from the Bangor Auditorium to the Augusta Civic Center seems to pop up every few years, and it’s no different this year, especially with the Bangor Auditorium’s uncertain future. But tourney fans can rest easy. According… Read More
Longtime Downeast basketball referee Tony Tammaro died last summer, but his colleagues at the Downeast Board of Officials are keeping his memory alive with the retirement of Tammaro’s referee jersey. Tammaro was one of the founding fathers of the Downeast Board of Officials, IAABO Board… Read More
Brewer’s Clark on a roll – again Senior garners national ranking in mile; seeks time under 5 minutes
Brewer High miler Heather Clark has a national ranking and will compete this weekend in a top meet, but it’s an unofficial time she ran this weekend that has her excited. Clark, a senior on the Witches indoor track team, posted around a 5-minute, 7-second… Read More
When the Brewer girls basketball team defeated Bangor Monday, the Witches ended a nine-game losing streak to the Rams, and an even longer streak at Bangor High’s Red Barry Gym. Brewer defeated Bangor 62-48, the Witches’ first victory over the Rams since Jan. 28, 1998,… Read More
Thinking about starting a new high school basketball team? Ross Bradford might be a good person to talk to about it. Bradford is the coach of the Calvary Chapel Christian boys’ basketball team in Orrington. One year ago there was no Calvary Chapel Christian boys’… Read More
Considering recent history, the time of the season, a distinct height disadvantage and the long bus ride, Presque Isle’s 45-43 schoolgirl basketball victory over Hampden Saturday was a bit unexpected. “Unbelievable. We absolutely stole that game,” coach Jeff Hudson said Monday, minutes before the 4-0… Read More
A couple of Eastern Maine teams are beginning to make waves in hockey’s hierarchy. The Houlton-Hodgdon Black Hawks served noticed that they are a team to be reckoned with recently thanks to a win over perennial power Gardiner. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var… Read More
Although Maine high school-sponsored gymnastics has been shrinking over the years, one school has found that interest in the winter sport is way up. Mount Desert Island High’s gymnastics team is in its first year of competition. The six-member squad is made up of five… Read More
Jonesport-Beals boys basketball coach Ordie Alley says one of the worst things that can happen to a person is to become a regular face around a hospital. He should know. He has spent more than his share of time at Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor and the… Read More
Even though David Chrisos didn’t walk away from Friday’s High School Heisman award ceremony with the coveted crystal trophy, the Bangor Christian senior still had a memorable weekend in New York City. The basketball and golf standout did have some hopes of winning the award,… Read More
Hodgdon High is running a contest for home basketball games that goes beyond the usual halftime 50-50 drawing. Fans who attend games at the school will have a chance to win a 1994 Toyota 4-by-4 truck worth about $6,000 in a 3-point shooting contest. googletag.cmd.push(function… Read More
A familiar face is back on the sidelines at Narraguagus boys basketball games this winter. Local basketball coaching veteran Ron Brown has taken over the reins of the Knights in Harrington. Brown’s coaching time has been limited in recent years after suffering kidney failure in… Read More
Another Aroostook County high school will likely drop in classification soon. Just weeks after Presque Isle High announced its decision to move from Class A to Class B, Houlton High is in discussions about going from Class B to Class C. googletag.cmd.push(function () { //… Read More
Coaches and athletic directors of Pine Tree Conference football teams will meet in Augusta today to discuss a potential scheduling problem in the 2003 season. Mount Ararat High School of Topsham is making the move from Class B to Class A and will join the… Read More