Last week began with the weather making everyone miserable, but by week’s end, all was right with the world again.

Most teams have been able to play the majority of their scheduled games and as the action heats up, it’s clear that the best is yet to come.

Here’s a recap:

Baseball

The Waynflete/North Yarmouth Academy co-op baseball team improved to 7-0 after home wins last week over Traip Academy (2-1) and St. Dom’s (2-0) and Monday at Old Orchard Beach (5-3). Against the Rangers, Dylan Kullman doubled with one out in the bottom of the seventh and scored the winning run on an error. Cooper St. Hilaire had a pair of hits, drove in a run and pitched six strong innings, striking out five, and Cole Lambert earned the victory in relief. In the win over the Saints, Lambert threw a two-hit shutout with five strikeouts and St. Hilaire drove in one run, while his brother Daxton St. Hilaire had the other RBI. Against the Seagulls, Daxton St. Hilaire had a pair of hits and pitched three shutout innings of relief, Cal Nice had two hits and Jack Byrne drove in two runs. Waynflete/NYA visits Maranacook Wednesday, welcomes Sacopee Valley for a doubleheader Friday, then visits Traip Academy next Monday.

Falmouth is living up to billing as a preseason favorite in Class A South, beating host Noble (5-1) and visiting South Portland (2-1) and Kennebunk (7-2) last week to make it five straight victories and improve to 5-1. Against the Knights, Eli Cowperthwaite threw a one-hitter and struck out 11, Brennan Rumpf had three hits, scored twice and had an RBI and Mitch Ham drove in a pair of runs with an infield single.

“(Eli) was outstanding today,” said Falmouth coach Mike D’Andrea. “He had great command early, and that has always been a focus for him, just getting ahead and throwing strikes.”

In the win over the Red Riots, which was a measure of revenge for last year’s playoff ouster, Rumpf threw a three-hitter with 14 strikeouts, Tyler Simmons had two hits and drove in a run and Ham scored the go-ahead run on an error. Against the Rams, freshman Jacoby Porter hit his first career home run, singled twice and drove in three, then came on and pitched the final two innings in relief.

“It felt amazing,” said Porter, of his first high school home run. “It’s a dream come true. I went up there, tried to hit a line drive and it just sailed out. The wind was blowing in during (batting practice) and I didn’t hit any nearly that far. I knew I hit it far, but I wasn’t sure about the distance. My mind went blank. It was just pure happiness. It was special to have all the guys waiting for me.”

“South Portland was a big win, an intense game, a pitcher’s duel,” said D’Andrea. “We didn’t want today to be a letdown day and I’m proud of the guys. They brought it today.”

The Navigators host Portland Thursday, go to Windham Saturday and welcome Westbrook Tuesday of next week.

“I’m pleased with the way we’re competing and learning,” D’Andrea said. “We could use some outside practice. We still have some things to clean up.”

Greely was 5-3 at the midway point after a 4-3 home loss to undefeated Cape Elizabeth and an 11-1, six-inning home victory over Lake Region. In the setback, Marky Axelsen, Cam Irish and Ryder Simpson had RBI hits, but the Rangers made four errors.

“Cape outplayed us defensively,” longtime Greely coach Derek Soule said. “That’s the bottom line. They made the plays and we didn’t execute. That’s why they got the win. In order to beat a good team, we have to execute in all aspects of the game. We did alright offensively. Pitching was pretty good, but we didn’t make the plays. That’s not Greely baseball. We pride ourselves on pitching and defense first.”

In the win, Simpson pitched a complete game two-hitter, surrendering no earned runs with nine strikeouts. Simpson, Ethan Robeck and Zach Vanni all had multiple hits. The Rangers embark on a crucial stretch Wednesday at York. After going to Cape Elizabeth Friday (see our website for game story), Greely welcomes Yarmouth Monday, then goes to Freeport for a regional final rematch Tuesday of next week.

“It’s been awhile since I think the league has been this wide open,” Soule said. “It’s impressive the number of teams who have at least one high-quality starter. We have to continue to get better having productive at-bats against good pitching. That will be really important for us. We have to keep working at it. It’s a long season.”

Freeport extended its win streak to three games by beating host Gray-New Gloucester (5-3) and Lake Region (6-4) last week. Against the Patriots, Zane Aguiar threw a three-hitter and struck out nine, Aidan Heath had a key two-run hit and Will Maneikis had a pair of hits. In the win over the Lakers, Gus Hollen’s two-run homer was the difference. Aaron Converse hit a double and earned the win. Monday, the Falcons fell to 5-4 with an 8-7 setback at Fryeburg Academy. Freeport took the lead with three runs in the top of the seventh, but the Raiders answered with two to win it. The Falcons got multiple hits from Converse and Maneikis. Freeport goes to Poland Wednesday and returns home Tuesday of next week to take on Greely.

Yarmouth improved to 3-2 after blanking visiting York (5-0) and host Poland (14-0, in five-innings). Against the Wildcats, Liam Hickey threw a two-hit shutout, striking out six. In the win over the Knights, Sam Lowenstein hit a three-run double and earned the victory, striking out six, while David Swift singled, doubled and drove in four runs. The Clippers welcome Gray-New Gloucester Wednesday, play host to Wells Friday, then go to Mt. Ararat Saturday and visit Greely Monday.

Softball

NYA’s resurgent softball program has returned to varsity play this spring by winning its first five games, including a 13-3 (five-inning) home victory over St. Dom’s Friday and Monday’s 19-1 (six-inning) triumph at Old Orchard Beach. Against the Saints, Cami Casserly, Kailyn McIntyre, Toree St. Hilaire and Hayden Wienckowski all had multiple hits. In the win over the Seagulls, Lily Rawnsley had three hits and drove in seven runs and threw a two-hit shutout, while Wienckowski added four hits and scored three times. The Panthers go to Maranacook Wednesday, play host to Sacopee Valley Friday, visit Traip Academy Monday, then welcome Richmond Tuesday of next week.

Freeport snapped a five-game skid last week with an 8-4 win at Gray-New Gloucester, then fell to 2-7 after losses at Lake Region (9-1) and Fryeburg Academy (19-13). In the victory, Norah Albertini and Celia Cobb each had two hits, Vanessa St. Pierre and Sadie Todd both hit two-run doubles and Devon Russell earned the win on the hill. Against the Lakers, Rosie Panenka had two hits. In the loss to the Raiders, the Falcons let leads of 10-3 and 13-12 slip away. Paneneka paced the offense with four hits. Freeport goes to Poland Wednesday and welcomes Greely Tuesday of next week.

Greely fell to 1-7 after recent home losses to Cape Elizabeth (11-9) and Lake Region (3-1). Against the Capers, the Rangers led most of the way, but gave up five runs in the final two innings. Fiona MacArthur had three hits and Devin Gifford drove in two runs, but it wasn’t enough.

“It’s a bummer, but there were a lot of coachable moments,” Greely’s first-year coach Danielle Cimino said. “We didn’t execute and Cape Elizabeth did and that’s just how the cookie crumbles sometimes. We’ve grown a lot since the beginning of the season. We have a really, really young squad and I’m super-proud of the adjustments they’ve made. ”

In the loss to the Lakers, Avery Butler drove in the run. The Rangers travel to York Wednesday, go to Cape Elizabeth Friday, welcome Yarmouth Monday, then go to Freeport Tuesday of next week.

“We’d like to get some wins,” said Cimino. “We’ll make adjustments and get ready for the next game. I think we’re competitive. We have strong batters. We have to make some defensive adjustments and not make baserunning errors and I think we’ll see games start to flip. I’m very excited for the rest of the season.”

Yarmouth was 1-4 at press time following home losses to York (16-3, in five-innings) and Lake Region (8-5) and a 17-7 (five-inning) setback at Poland. Emma Butsch had two hits against the Lakers. In the loss to the Knights, Drea Rideout tripled and singled. The Clippers welcome Gray-New Gloucester Wednesday, play host to Wells Friday, then go to Mt. Ararat Saturday and visit Greely Monday.

Falmouth fell to 0-7 after a 4-1 home loss to Deering, a 10-2 setback at Bonny Eagle and home losses to Scarborough (21-0, in five-innings) and Cheverus (11-0, in five-innings) in a doubleheader Saturday. Izzy Malloy struck out nine against the Rams. The Navigators go to South Portland/Westbrook Wednesday, host Portland Friday and visit Massabesic Monday.

Boys’ lacrosse

Yarmouth’s boys’ lacrosse team extended its win streak to four games and improved to 5-1 after downing visiting York in a shootout (20-12) and edging host Messalonskee Monday, 16-14. Against the Wildcats, Killian Marsh scored five times and reached the 100-goal plateau for his career. Matt Cain had six goals and Colter Olsen added four. After hosting two-time reigning Class A champion Cape Elizabeth Wednesday (see our website for game story), the Clippers welcome Scarborough Friday and go to Falmouth Monday.

Greely won at Kennebunk (13-9) and Gorham (12-9) last week, then fell to 3-5 with a 12-6 setback at NYA Monday. Against Gorham, Matt Kennedy scored five goals and Lukas Cook added four. In the loss, the Rangers fell behind 5-0 after one quarter and couldn’t catch up. Kennedy and Bez Mendelsohn both scored twice and Sam Dudek made 12 saves.

“It wasn’t our best day,” Greely coach Mike Storey said. “It was just one of those days where we didn’t click from the beginning.”

The Rangers welcome Gray-New Gloucester/Poland Wednesday, then play host to Wells the following Wednesday.

“You always want to keep building in the right direction,” said Storey. “We told the guys we’ve had two bad days out of 40 and this is something we can learn from and build from. We knew from the start we were building this year. We didn’t expect to come out of the gates really hot. We had a positive week last week. We have a lot to build on. There’s going to be ups and downs with a young team.”

Falmouth improved to 5-1 by beating host Windham (17-3) and reigning Class B champion Brunswick (18-8). Joey Guerrette scored seven goals, Gio Guerrette added four and Hayden Davis had three against the Eagles. In the win over the Dragons, Gio Guerrette led the way with six goals, while Joey Guerrette and Davis each added four. The Navigators welcome Portland Wednesday, have a showdown at South Portland Saturday, then host Yarmouth Monday.

NYA dropped a 9-4 home decision to Wells, then fell at York (12-9) last week before improving to 4-3 Monday with a 12-6 home win over Greely. Against the Warriors, the Panthers took a lead early in the fourth period before surrendering the final six goals of the contest.

“We expected it would be another tight game, another battle,” said NYA coach Peter Gerrity. “It didn’t feel like the bounces went our way. We were pretty frustrated with ourselves. We had a lot of chances. We’d like to be in a position where one or two posts won’t affect the outcome. Obviously, we wanted to be on the other side of the score, but it’s great to have several teams in the mix in Class C this year.”

In the victory, Brayden Warde scored four goals, including the 100th of his career, Zach Leinwand added four and goalie Jack Curtis made 15 saves.

“(100 career goals) feels great,” said Warde, who will play next year at Connecticut College. “I wouldn’t be here without my teammates, coaches and family members. I want to thank them. It’s been a great ride so far. I knew I was close. I’m really happy that I could get it today and we could come out on top.”

“Confidence is a big thing and so is playing with the lead,” Curtis said. “I’ve saved thousands of shots, so I just get in there, trust my instincts and react to the ball.”

“Today was great,” said Gerrity. “It’s a huge win for us. We needed those Heal Points. Everybody got involved in the offense and the defense. We were clicking. We’ve been talking about playing 48 minutes and we feel like if it wasn’t a full 48, we were pretty close today.”

NYA goes to Freeport Wednesday. The Panthers are then idle for a week before going to Lake Region.

“We’re getting where we need to be,” said Warde. “We have a big stretch of games coming up. We want to get back to state championship game and win it.”

“We just have to work together and do what we need to do,” Curtis said. “Our team chemistry this year is the best since I’ve been on the team.”

“We’re excited to be doing what we think we’re supposed to be doing,” Gerrity added. “Last year, we split games with (Freeport). They’ll be tough. We could be great, but we have to keep getting better.”

Freeport suffered its fourth straight loss last Tuesday, 13-4, at Biddeford, then improved to 3-4 with a 5-2 home win over Cheverus and an 18-6 victory at Cony. The Falcons host NYA Wednesday and welcome Morse Friday. 

Girls’ lacrosse

On the girls’ side, Falmouth made it four straight victories and improved to 4-1 after wins last week over visiting Cheverus (14-7), York (16-4) and Oxford Hills (17-6). Against the Stags, in a downpour, the Navigators shot to a 9-0 lead and didn’t look back as Sloane Ginevan had six goals, Lucy Tucker added four and goalie Patty Riley made 13 saves.

“It’s a group effort,” said Ginevan, who will play next year at Notre Dame. “We just trust each other and move the ball a lot. We have a ton of offensive weapons, it’s not just one or two people. It’s just getting everyone touches.”

“We talked before the game how important it was to overcome the conditions and if we wanted to establish ourselves as a contender, we have to play well in all conditions,” said Falmouth coach Ashley Pullen.

In the win over the Wildcats, Ginevan scored six more times, including the 100th of her career, and Taylor added five goals. Against the Vikings, Taylor led the offense with five goals, while Adelaide Tolley added four. The Navigators were at Gorham Tuesday, host Scarborough Friday and visit Windham Tuesday of next week.

“We’ll building on what we have to work with,” said Ginevan. “We have some challenges coming up and we’re excited to show what we’ve got.”

“I feel like we’re at a good point right now, but there are still some things to work on,” Pullen said.

Yarmouth was 5-2 at press time after an 8-7 loss at defending Class B champion Greely and a 12-6 home win over Scarborough. Lauren Keaney and Aine Powers both scored three times in the setback. In the victory, Brooke Boone and Sadie Carnes both had three goals. The Clippers go to York Wednesday and travel to Oxford Hills Friday.

Greely extended its win streak to six games and improved to 7-1 after wins last week over visiting Yarmouth (8-7) and Messalonskee (14-3). The victory over the Clippers was the Rangers’ first over their rival in Cumberland in 18 seasons. Charlotte Taylor scored four goals, including the winner with just over two minutes to go. Lauren Dennen added three goals. Against the Eagles, Taylor and Asja Kelman each scored four goals. Greely is at Waynflete Wednesday (see our website for game story) and hosts Fryeburg Academy Friday. 

Defending Class C champion NYA was 2-3 after beating visiting Morse (17-5) and falling at York (11-9). Vy Tran led the way in the victory with five goals and Lyla Casey added four. Clara Taylor scored three goals against the Wildcats. The Panthers welcome Lake Region Wednesday, host Gray-New Gloucester Friday and visit Cape Elizabeth Tuesday of next week.

Freeport bounced back from its lone loss with home wins last week over Gray-New Gloucester/Poland (16-1) and Brunswick (17-3). Against the Patriots, Mia Levesque scored three goals and 11 different players found the net. In the win over the Dragons, Maddie Knight led the way with four goals, while Levesque and Lana DiRusso added three apiece. The Falcons were at Traip Academy Tuesday and host Waynflete Monday of next week.

Outdoor track

On the track last week, Freeport hosted Yarmouth and Old Orchard Beach. The Falcons boys and girls came in first, while the Clippers boys and girls each placed second.

Greely hosted Cape Elizabeth, Lake Region, Sacopee Valley, Traip Academy and York. The Rangers boys came in first and the girls were runners-up to the Wildcats.

Tennis

Falmouth’s Sofia Kirtchev, Gracyn Mick and Charlotte Williamson, Greely’s Anne Alfaro, Emma Lindsey and Isobel Wright and Yarmouth’s Adea Cobaj qualified for the girls’ state singles championships, which begin Friday, May 19, at Bates College in Lewiston.

On the boys’ side, Falmouth’s Xander Barber and Sam Yoon, Greely’s Charles Segal and Yarmouth’s Will Best, Andi Cobaj, Quinn Federle and Andre Viollette all advanced.

In team action, Falmouth’s boys and girls were both 6-0 after recent victories over Bonny Eagle, Thornton Academy and South Portland.

Freeport’s boys entered the week 0-5, while the girls were 1-5.

Greely’s girls improved to 9-0 after blanking York, Lake Region, NYA and St. Dom’s in recent action.

The Rangers boys had their three-match win streak snapped Monday with a 4-1 loss to Cape Elizabeth to fall to 3-4 on the year.

NYA’s boys were 3-4 after a 5-0 loss to 13-time reigning Class C champion Waynflete.

The Panthers girls fell to 2-5 after recent losses to powers Greely, Waynflete and Yarmouth.

Yarmouth’s boys’ team, the three-time defending Class B champion, improved to 6-0 after a 5-0 win over York Friday.

The Clippers girls improved to 4-3 after a 4-1 win over NYA Monday.

Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net.

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