BRUNSWICK

The MPA lacrosse postseason is upon us with action slated for today, Wednesday and into the weekend.

In boys play, an Eastern Maine Class A Boys Quarterfinal today pits No. 5 Cony (8-4) at No. 4 Mt. Ararat (8-4), 6 p.m., while on Wednesday, Eastern A Boys quarterfinal has No. 8 Lewiston (5-7) at No. 1 Brunswick (10-2), 6:30 p.m.

In Eastern B Quarterfinal action No. 7 Oak Hill (4-8) is at No. 2 Freeport (7-5) on Wednesday (4 p.m.) and No. 6 Camden Hills (8-4) travels No. 3 Morse (9-3) at 7 p.m.

In Class A girls play Wednesday, No. 7 Mt. Ararat (6-6) visits No. 2 Messalonskee (9-3) at Thomas College (3:30 p.m.) and No. 8 Brunswick (5-7) heads to No. 1 Cheverus (9-3) for a 3:30 p.m. clash.

In Eastern B, No. 6 Camden Hills heads to No. No. 3 Morse (10-2) for a 5 p.m. clash, while No. 2 Freeport (10-2) has a bye into the semifinals.

Morse

The Morse boys beat the Windjammers 10-9 in overtime on the road.

“Our plan will be to open the field, use our off ball movement to create shooting opportunities up high for my middies,” said Morse coach Jay Paulus. “We like running 1-4-1 formations, however that will more than likely change in these upcoming games since many of the teams have been scouting, looking for key matchups against us.

“With only four seniors, Morse has a strong group of juniors that can shoot upwards to 90 miles per hour.”

Alec Beveridge leads with 22 goals, followed by Dylan Crowell (20) and Oliver Kruze (18). “When on their ‘A’ game are a huge threat,” lauded Paulus. “Perry Chase (12 goals) and Otto Werwaiss (nine goals) at attack additionally provide the Shipbuilders with five strong offensive players. Sam Coffey, Myles Day and Jake Reno has our speed with advance the ball in our transition game.

“Wesley McKenna has been our go to guy for face-offs consistently, along with long stick midfielder Kevin Tolan. With the exception of Maranacook game, we have a 78 percent win on the draw.

“Defensively, we are young, rebuilding the poles. Kyle Perry (senior) and James Laser (out with ankle injury, only started playing last week) have kept us in key match-ups. Patrick McKenna and Max Gurney (both freshmen) have played well along with David Rice, but unfortunately teams like Westbrook, Maranacook and Brunswick can find the inexperienced players and exploit them quickly.”

Morse lost its our backup goalie to a concussion midseason. “Kevin Thibodeau in the cage has had a terrific junior year as our goalie.”

The Morse girls beat Camden 14- 7 and 15-10 during the regular season.

Leading the way offensively is Ruth Nadeau with 41 goals and 13 assist, followed by Sophie Sreden (35-14), Maddy Olsen (18-8), Isabelle Paulus (18-8), Ann Tolan (15-7), Grace Koslosky (10-7).

The Shipbuilders have outscored opponents 169-84 and goaltender Kat Sener has been outstanding.

Brunswick

The Brunswick boys, who lost to Cheverus in the Eastern finals last year, grabbed the top spot in East A and will host No. 8 Lewiston.

During the season, the Dragons hosted the Blue Devils and won 12- 2.

The Brunswick girls head to Portland to face Cheverus and the two teams did not meet during the regular season. Brunswick scored 96 goals and allowed 91 under head coach Steph Fisher.

Mt. Ararat

The Mt. Ararat and Messalonskee girls met during KVAC regular-season play with Mt. Ararat losing 13-12 and 15-11.

“Messalonskee is a very good team with some strong talented seniors who can score,” said Mt. Ararat coach Sam Chard. “The constant theme of this season for us has been turnovers in the close games, and unfortunately, a good team like Messalonskee will and have capitalized on our mistakes.

“A lot of unforced errors has come to haunt us but as you know, anything can happen in the playoffs.

“Defensively, and as obvious as it is, we have to shut out their offense. Our defense has been up and down all season and we’ll have to rely on closing down space better and marking more closely. Holding checks and playing hard the whole game will be a challenge, but our players know we can do it. Defensively, Kaitlin Volk and Anna Manuel are the fastest and we’ll have to rely on them more on the transition.

“Bottom line, we’ll need an excellent performance from Bailey Sullivan in goal and our defense if we are to be victorious.

“Offensively, we’ll need more selective and smarter shots. We sometimes rush and force plays. Messalonskee is very good in the midfield so we’ll have start the pressure from their defensive end.”

Offensive leaders include Sierra Gilley with 34 goals and three assists and Carly Raymond with 33 goals and four assists. Also, Rebecca Schuman (8-12) and Alison Nolan (11-2).

“Playoffs are meant to be tough, but on any given day, sometimes the most talented team can fall short,” added Chard. “It’s our job coming in at No. 7 to give everyone a run for their money!”

Freeport

The Freeport boys wound up second in Eastern B with a 7-5 record, just edging No. 3 Morse (88.5417- 87.6389 Heal Points).

“That is the highest we have ever finished in school history,” said Freeport coach Geoff Arris. “This is also the first time we are hosting a home game for the tournament since I played in 1998!

“This season has been great. It’s such a new element this year working with this group. It’s the first time in a few years that I hear the team talking with each other and working together to solve problems during games and when we introduce new concepts. The leadership from our captains Sam Wogan, Zac Wogan, Ramsey Dodge, and Jake Perry has been phenomenal. They have really brought this team together.”

Top scorers include Sam Wogan (45 goals, 11 assists), Dodge (13-4) and Brady LaFrance (11-5)

“Sam has been leading the team offensively from the midfield. Our face-off guys Zach Owen and Perrin Davidson have done wonders for us. Tyler Frey has really stepped up for us this year as well as freshman Evan Donald and newcomer Noah Butler.

“Defensively we are led by sophomore Zac Wogan in goal. I don’t have enough words to describe how much he has improved and what a person and player he has become. During the regular season he finished with a 67 percent save average.

“Jake Perry leads the close defense. His takeaways and groundballs are truly impressive. Jake has come miles even from last year as a player. He’s helped by Ed Lefebvre and Jack Cunnigham and long stick middies Jake Todd — new to defense, was a short stick midfielder — and Matt Roy with Nick Spaulding.

“This is a pretty solid group that when they are on and communicating there isn’t really much that can stop them. We have been running an average of 15 players this season. The kids play non-stop and never give up. I get exhausted watching because there isn’t a lot of opportunity for subs. But they handle it well and never complain.

“We are really looking forward to playing Oak Hill. We haven’t played them before and love the opportunity to play new teams and we have something to prove to ourselves and the lacrosse community.”

The Freeport girls (10-2) finished second to Yarmouth (10-2) in Eastern B and could very well hook up with Morse in the semifinals.

The Falcons nipped the Shipbuilders 10-9 in overtime back on May 3.