Those close games the Falmouth boys won this year in the regular season – three overtime games and a couple others – were the kind of games the Yachtsmen lost a year ago when they missed the tournament for the first time in 29 years.

"We were 8-10 last year," said Jack Cooleen, who scored a career-high 26 points Saturday in a Western Class B quarterfinal win over No. 9 Poland. "Those games have gone our way this season."

Falmouth found itself in a close game for a while against the Knights. It sure didn't begin that way.

Cooleen got his team off to a torrid start as he scored the first eight points in a 16-0 start for the No. 1 seed.

Cooleen said he felt it was his duty to lead the way.

"I'm the only player on our team who had played in the tournament. We have veteran players, but they had never been in a tournament game until now."

Cooleen, a senior, got playing time as a freshman and a sophomore. His sophomore year, Falmouth won the Class B state title in an epic game with Camden Hills at the Bangor Auditorium.

Falmouth (19-0) and fourth-ranked York (15-4) will meet in the semifinals at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Cumberland County Civic Center.
 

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VarsityMaine The Portland Press Herald and Maine Sunday Telegram put a priority on high school sports coverage, and this blog is a place for all our reporters to put news and notes from around the state.

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About the Author

Maine High School Sports Bloggers

Paul Betit is an Augusta native and graduate of the University of Maine. He has covered Maine high school sports for more than 30 years and is entering his seventh season as a beat writer covering the Portland Pirates. In his spare time, Betit writes mystery-suspense novels. Occasionally, he tries to sink his second career hole-in-one.

Glenn Jordan came to Maine in 1994 to cover the nascent Portland Sea Dogs. After eight baseball seasons and three children – the last two within 18 minutes of each other – he became a part-time writer. Among the sports he covers are now are tennis, skiing, swimming and running. He has a degree in philosophy from Dartmouth, a decent forehand and a penchant for checkers.

Mike Lowe is a Massachusetts native who feels he's lived long enough in Maine (since 1982) to have roots here. He graduated from Boston University and has worked in New Hampshire and Maine, covering everything from the Little League World Series to the Summer Olympics. When he has free time – Ha! – he likes to read, collect comic books and watch the grass grow from his hammock.

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