Boys Basketball

Coach: Bill Ridge (first year)

Last year’s record: 0-18

Key players: Jack Davenport (sr.), Brady LaFrance (sr.), Nate Pelletier (sr.)

Key games: Poland, G-NG, Yarmouth

Outlook: “Coming off a difficult season, our goal is to play hard and to play with a purpose,” says Ridge. “We have nine seniors in the program; those nine seniors want to experience some sort of success this season.” Ridge reports his elder statesmen are working hard and leading their greener counterparts in doing the same. Expect a handful of juniors and sophomores to also log minutes for the Falcons this winter.

Girls Basketball

Coach: Mike Hart

Last year’s record: 2-16

Key players: Kayla Belanger (sr., G); Jess Wall (sr., C); Regan Lynch (jr., F); Taylor Rinaldi (so., G); Megan Cormier (so, F)

Key games: Yarmouth

Outlook: Hart has a straightforward goal in 2014: to improve on last year’s record. To that end, “I like our depth,” he says. “It was tough picking just five key players because we have 12 who’ll compete on any given night.” Hart is looking for Belanger (5.3 PPG, 2.1 APG) to shoot her jumper more this season, and hopes Rinaldi, the team’s leading scorer (7.7 PPG) and fastest player, will exploit her speed in the full court more. A torn ACL sidelined Wall last season; she returns in full force to the inside this December. Hart calls Lynch a “tough kid who can play inside or out, and will be a tough matchup for opponents” and expects Cormier (7.4 PPG), the team’s leading blocker, “to have a breakout year.” Hart avoids placing more importance on one game over another, but likes the Yarmouth game for the rivalry; he’s happy that MPA’s class realignments haven’t eliminated it.

Cheering

Coach: Jessica Duplisea

Last year’s record: Second at WMCs

Key meets: WMCs, Regionals

Outlook: “For the last two years,” Duplisea says, “we’ve had increasing success at each competition, so we’re hoping to continue that momentum. We have a very talented and hardworking team and I think there will be big things in our future this season.”

Boys Hockey (with South Portland, Waynflete)

Coach: Joe Robinson

Last year’s record: 10-10

Key players: Joe Grant, Aidan Schifano, Max Winson, Mitchell Adams, Tyler Goldberg, Owen Patrick, Atticus Patrick

Key games: Windham/Westbrook, Portland/Deering, Noble/Wells

Outlook: The Riots are extremely green this year. Just two seniors and three juniors dot their 30-man roster, which means they’ll be looking, first and foremost, to create chemistry and learn about themselves. Robinson aims to balance his attack as that process unfolds: “We need to play a more well-rounded game instead of focusing on one player scoring the majority of our goals. We need to have our scoring spread out throughout all three lines to be successful.”

Girls Hockey (with Yarmouth, Gray-New Gloucester)

Coaches: Megan Vaughan (head, first year); Beth Fulton (asst.); Liz Bergstrom (asst.)

Key players: Colleen Sullivan (sr., Asst. Captain, F); Jenny Holmquist (sr., Asst. Captain, D); Keeley Arnold (sr., Captain, F); Maddie Wilkes (sr., D); Katie Clemmer (jr., F); Kelsey Meyer (jr., F/D); Kyaira Grondin (fr., D)

Key games: St. Dom, Falmouth, Greely, Scarborough, NYA

Outlook: “The Clippers have a short bench this season, but a team full of heart,” says Vaughan. They also have some strong scoring threats in Clemmer, Sullivan, Meyer, Arnold and Holmquist. Netminder Miranda O’Shea is almost completely new between the pipes, but also improving consistently. “I hope that by the end of the season we have a close-knit team with strong chemistry on and off the ice and we finish the season with more wins than losses,” Vaughan says.

Alpine Skiing

Coach: Jay Thomas

Last year’s record: Boys WMC Champions, Runners-up at Class B States; Girls sixth at Class B States

Key athletes: Isaac Salisbury, Griffin Agnese, Kaia Williams

Key meets: WMCs, States

Outlook: “This season will be a growth year for the teams,” says Thomas. The Gentlemen Falcons have sufficient numbers on the slopes, but return just Salisbury and Agnese from the very strong 2014 squad. “With only one senior,” Thomas says, “we’ll be working on building a group of racers that can finish events with top-10 times.” Williams is the lone returner on the girls’ side, meaning Thomas is looking to flesh out that half of his lineup. “I hope to fill the girls’ roster to have a scoring team. We’re looking forward to some new skiers.” Freeport is moving to Class A this year, as the MPA has rejiggered its enrollment cutoffs. “It’ll be interesting to race with a different group at States,” Thomas says.

Nordic Skiing

Coaches: Joel Hinshaw (head), Elysha Dyer (asst.)

Last year’s record: Boys and girls both Runners-up at Class B States

Key athletes: Nate Smail (sr.), Lily Johnston (sr.), Bennett Hight (jr.), Yacob Olins (jr.)

Key meets: Sassi Memorial Race

Outlook: Freeport returns six juniors on the boys’ side in 2015, skiers who “showed a lot of strength last year,” as Hinshaw says. “I’m excited to watch them this year, as they will be a force, pushing each other to do better and challenge all other teams in the WMC.” The Lady Falcons are young this winter, featuring just two upperclassmen. Still, Hinshaw is optimistic about his greener athletes: “The freshmen and sophomore skiers have a lot of talent, and as they grow, they’ll be a very powerful team.” Hinshaw singles out the Sassi meet as critical because “it will give us an idea how the team will do at our conference championship and States.”

Indoor Track

Coaches: Brian Berkemeyer (head), Matt Greear (asst.), Ginger Ivanov (asst.)

Last year’s record: Boys and girls both 21st at States

Key athletes: Chandler Vincent (sr.), Hannah Schnyder (sr.), Maddie Squibb (sr.), Henry Jaques (jr.), Chandler Wyman (jr.), Max Heathco (jr.), Emily Latulippe (jr.), Nick Mitch (fr.)

Outlook: “With almost 70 kids (36 girls, 29 boys),” Berkemeyer says simply, “we should improve on our state standings from last year. We’re a very young team.”

Freeport’s Ethan Sclar, seen here in action last year as a freshman, returns to the court this season.Taylor Rinaldi, seen here laying up a ball against Yarmouth last year, was Freeport’s leading scorer even as a freshman; with plenty of varsity experience under her belt, she should be a serious threat on any court this winter.Kayla Belanger returns as a senior for Freeport this winter.Jack Davenport – an outstanding multi-sport athlete – will be one of the Falcons’ most potent weapons this winter.