Portland: February arrives and it’s time to think playoffs

The trophies lie in wait and the memories are waiting to be made, but before we can move on to the winter sports postseason, there remains some unfinished regular season business.

The end of the girls’ hockey regular season is just days away and boys’ and girls’ basketball wrap up their campaigns a week from Thursday, so much is yet to be determined.

Here’s a glimpse at where local teams stand with just days remaining to do something about it:

Girls’ basketball

Cheverus’ Maddie Fitzpatrick, along with coach Billy Goodman, shows off the ball signifying her 1,000 career points Fitzpatrick was honored prior to last week’s home win over Lewiston. Michael Hoffer / The Forecaster

Cheverus’ girls’ basketball team has a stranglehold on the top spot in Class AA North and is the prohibitive favorite to bring home a second Gold Ball in three seasons. Last week, the Stags continued the best start in program history, improving to 15-0 by downing visiting Lewiston (70-48) and host Edward Little (69-48). Prior to the win over the Blue Devils, senior standout Maddie Fitzpatrick was honored for becoming the first Cheverus girl to reach the 1,000-point plateau. Fitzpatrick, who was limited to just 19 games total her freshman and sophomore years due to the pandemic and injury, wouldn’t be denied her moment in the spotlight.

“I didn’t honestly think I’d get (1,000 points) considering my freshman and sophomore years, so I kind of put it out of my mind,” said Fitzpatrick. “(The coaches) told me the game before and I didn’t know I was that close. I think it’s just one of the goals I’ve had for so long. It proves to me that my hard work has paid off. It feels good to accomplish something I’ve wanted for so long. The Cheverus community is amazing. Coach (Billy) Goodman has been my coach for four years and I’ve known him since seventh grade. Coach (Carolyn) Freeman, Coach (Bill) Whitmore, my teammates, they’ve helped me stay motivated. Thanks to them and of course my family too.”

Fitzpatrick, the finest player in program history and one of the best ever from Maine, then raised the bar even higher against Lewiston by producing a dazzling stat line of 25 points, 11 rebounds, 11 steals and five assists. Megan Dearborn added 14 points and Ruth Boles had a double-double of her own with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

“Every day in practice, people are stepping out of their comfort zones and getting better and gaining more confidence and that’s been helping us,” said Fitzpatrick. “When it isn’t one girl’s night, it’s another girl’s night. That’s the environment we have. We all support each other.”

“Maddie’s unique,” said Goodman. “She fills the stat sheet like I’ve never seen. I’ve coached a bunch of years and I’ve never seen someone do so much. People love watching her because of the way she plays. She’s close to 500 (career) rebounds and she’s over 200 assists and steals. She just plays the right way. She lets the game come to her. And she’s very humble.”

In the win over the Red Eddies, Fitzpatrick had a triple-double again, scoring 23 points, adding 13 rebounds and 11 steals and registering seven assists, nearly a quadruple-double.

The Stags were at Windham Tuesday, then close the regular season with games Friday versus Bangor and Feb. 8 against Portland. Cheverus will then be the top seed for the Class AA North playoffs and will have a bye into the semifinals, which will leave the Stags idle for nearly two weeks.

“We can’t think about our record,” said Fitzpatrick. “We just need to keep playing. We’ll stay in the moment and keep getting better. My entire senior year, I’ve been reflecting on my time here and just how grateful I am to have chosen Cheverus. To have these coaches and teammates and teachers and friends, I’m just so grateful for what I’ve experienced. I love it here, but I’m also excited about what’s next.”

“We have a lot of young kids playing, so we have a lot to work on still,” Goodman said. “Our goal wasn’t to win every game. Our goal was to get better. We’re such a new team. Every game, I see what we didn’t do well and we go out and work on it in practice. We’re a very humble team. It’s nice to have our record, but we still have to improve.”

Portland fell to 2-12 and seventh in Class AA North after a 41-30 home loss to Windham last week. Baleria Yugu paced the Bulldogs with 18 points. Portland hosted reigning state champion Oxford Hills Tuesday, travels to Lewiston Thursday, then welcomes Bangor Feb. 6 and closes at Cheverus two nights later.

Longtime Deering girls’ basketball Mike Murphy, joined by seniors Sophie Hill, left, Maya Gayle, Natalie Santiago, Ariana Sibo and Shay Rosenthal, is honored at his final home game Saturday. Murphy, who has coached the Rams for 16 years, is retiring at season’s end. Courtesy Deering Athletics.

In Class A South, Deering was 7-8 and seventh following a 35-14 win at Fryeburg Academy, a 44-39 home loss to Gray-New Gloucester and a 54-37 home win over Kennebunk. Maya Gayle had 19 points in the victory over the Raiders. In the setback, the Rams couldn’t hold a halftime lead despite 15 points from Natalie Santiago and 12 from Angelina Keo. In the win over Kennebunk, Santiago had 17 points, Gayle added 16 and Keo nearly produced a triple-double, posting 11 points, 11 rebounds and seven steals. The victory came on Senior Day where five players were honored and longtime coach Mike Murphy, who will retire following the season, was saluted for his time with the program. The Rams were at Westbrook Tuesday, go to Greely Tuesday of next week and wrap up the campaign Feb. 8 at Mt. Ararat.

In Class D South, Waynflete was 10-4 and third after a 60-21 win at Traip Academy and a 42-35 home loss to Winthrop. Against the Rangers, Lucy Hart led the way with 21 points and Lauren McNutt-Girouard added 19. Hart had 17 points in the setback. The Flyers, in the midst of their best season since 2016-17, hosted Old Orchard Beach Tuesday, go to Hall-Dale Friday, visit Sacopee Valley Monday of next week, then close Feb. 7 at home versus St. Dom’s.

Boys’ basketball

Portland’s Pepito Girumugisha jumps for joy at the final horn of Thursday’s 55-54 home win over Windham. Michael Hoffer / The Forecaster

On the boys’ side, Portland extended its win streak to six games and improved to 12-2 and third in the Class AA North Heal Points standings after edging visiting Windham, the top-ranked team in the region, 55-54, in a down-to-the-wire thriller Thursday at the Portland Exposition Building. Kevin Rugabirwa led the way with 17 points, including the decisive free throw with 10 seconds to go, and Jeissey Khamis added 15 points and 15 rebounds.

“There was a lot of pressure,” Rugabirwa said, of his clutch foul shot. “It’s a little different because the game was on the line. I took a deep breath and made it.”

“We started off slow, but in the locker room at halftime, we talked it out and knew we had to pick it up in the second half,” said Khamis. “(The Eagles) were ranked number one and people thought we couldn’t beat them. We had to show everyone that we could.”

“That was a great high school basketball game,” added longtime Bulldogs coach Joe Russo, after his 475th victory as the coach of his alma mater. “I could tell by the crowd that there was a lot of excitement. They got to watch a nailbiter or a hair-puller, depending on who you were cheering for. Both teams did a great job and gave them an entertaining game.”

Portland went to Oxford Hills Tuesday and host Lewiston Thursday in a game which will see the legendary Peter Gribbin announce the lineups for the final time. The Bulldogs are home versus Bangor Feb. 6, then close the regular season with a pivotal showdown at Cheverus two nights later.

Speaking of Cheverus, it was 13-2 and second in Class AA North following wins last week at Lewiston (56-42) and at home over Edward Little (49-46). Against the Red Eddies, the Stags erased a 14-point deficit and got 11 points from Gio St. Onge and 10 from Leo McNabb. Cheverus had a huge home showdown versus Windham Tuesday (see our website for game story), welcomes Bangor Friday and closes at home versus Portland Feb. 8.

In Class AA South, Deering was 6-8 and fourth after Saturday’s 62-54 victory at Bonny Eagle. Evan Legassey led the way with 21 points, while Justin Jamal finished with 15 and Tayshaun Cleveland added a dozen. The Rams hosted South Portland Tuesday, welcome Scarborough Thursday, go to Thornton Academy for a makeup game Saturday (see our website for game story), then close at Sanford Tuesday of next week.

In Class C South, Waynflete was 11-4 and fifth in the standings following a 64-50 win at Traip Academy and a 38-30 setback at Winthrop. In the victory, Jed Alsup had 22 points and Sam Ribiero added 11. The Flyers hosted Old Orchard Beach Tuesday, welcome Traip Academy next Monday, then close at home versus St. Dom’s Feb. 7.

Hockey

Cheverus/Yarmouth’s Matthew Paradis scores a goal during last week’s win over Cape Elizabeth. Gregory Rec / Portland Press Herald

On the ice, the Cheverus/Yarmouth co-op boys’ squad improved to 8-2 and first in Class B South after beating host Cape Elizabeth (6-1), visiting Thornton Academy (4-1) and host Edward Little (4-2) last week. Against the Capers, the reigning Class B state champions, in a game played at the Cross Insurance Arena, Quinn McCoy led a balanced attack with two goals, while Andrew Cheever, Owen Cheever, Matthew Paradis and Owen Walsh also found the net.

“We moved the puck well,” said McCoy. “Give-and-goes, putting the puck on net.”

“We all went into this wanting to win and wanting to not let up, especially in this barn,” Andrew Cheever said. “We knew it was going to be a fun game. We had a fire in our belly. It was great to go out and beat those guys. We know who they are. It’s a great feeling to know we can trust everybody on the team. Every forward, every D. Everyone goes out and contributes and has each other’s back. We’ve developed a lot as a team. Our depth really helps.”

“We’ve been blessed with scoring up and down the lineup this year,” said Cheverus/Yarmouth coach Dave St. Pierre. “It’s a hallmark of our program. We have a lot of guys contributing, which makes us more difficult to defend. It was a great product of puck movement tonight.”

In the win over the Golden Trojans, the defending Class A state champions, Walsh had two goals and Sam Bradford and Evan Hankins also scored, while goalie Ethan Tucker made 23 saves.

“This is a big team win,” Walsh said. “It will put us on the map. ”

“It meant a lot to beat them,” said Tucker. “This boosts our confidence and shows us we can play with anyone.”

“Anytime we play a Class A team we want to show up,” St. Pierre added. “I thought Thornton Academy was one of the top teams in the league this year and to the boys’ credit, they bought into what we wanted to accomplish tonight and they went to work. That’s probably the best three periods we’ve put together this year.”

Against the Red Eddies, Andrew Cheever, McCoy, Colby Carnes and David Swift all found the net. Cheverus/Yarmouth was at Gorham Tuesday, then hosts Gorham Thursday before travelling to Kennebunk Saturday.

“We have the pieces to make a run,” St. Pierre said. “The league is tough. We won’t take anything for granted. I like what we have, but we have to continue to improve.”

In Class A, the Portland/South Portland Beacons were 6-5 and fifth after Thursday’s 4-1 home win over Biddeford. The squad played at Thornton Academy Wednesday and hosts Old Town/Orono Saturday.

Cheverus’ Brynn McKenney celebrates after scoring a goal in last week’s win over the Beacons. Ben McCanna / Portland Press Herald

On the girls’ side, Cheverus, the reigning state champion, was 14-1 and first in the South Region after home wins last week over Brunswick (5-3) and the Cape Elizabeth/Portland/South Portland/Waynflete Beacons (5-2). Against the Dragons, Mikayla Talbot had two goals, while Lily Johnson, Charlotte Miller and Caroline Rousseau, the program’s all-time points record holder for a freshman, all scored once. In the second victory, Lucy Johnson, who is one of three players in program history with 100 career points, scored two goals, while Miller, Talbot and Brynn McKenney also found the net. Goalie Ella Lemieux made 15 saves and joined Trinity Atwater as the program’s all-time winningiest goalkeeper with 33 victories. Cheverus closes the regular season Thursday at home against Gorham, then it will be the top seed in the South Region as it goes for a repeat title.

The Beacons, meanwhile, were 9-6 and third in the South after a 5-2 loss at Cheverus and a 3-2 loss at Gorham. The Beacons host Brunswick Thursday, then finish at home versus Yarmouth/Freeport Saturday.

Indoor track

Several Portland High runners had strong showings at the Boston University John Thomas Terrier Classic last weekend. Samantha Moore continued her dominant campaign by completing the girls’ mile in 4 minutes, 58.3 seconds, a personal best. Benjamin Prestes finished the boys’ 800 in 1:55.73, a personal best, and Nathan Blades ran the mile in 4:18.5.

Swimming

In recent swimming action, Cheverus swept Westbrook, as the boys prevailed, 66-58, and the girls won, 100-18. The Stags then were swept by Yarmouth, as the boys were beaten, 52-26, and the girls lost, 48-28.

Deering/Portland split with South Portland, as the girls were 97-71 winners while the boys lost, 78-63. Deering/ Portland then swept Bonny Eagle with the boys prevailing, 76-32, and the girls winning, 103-40.

Waynflete’s boys and girls lost to Thornton Academy Friday. The boys fell, 105-35, and the girls lost, 128-35.

Skiing

Portland’s Henry Morrison finished ninth in the boys’ Sassi Memorial Classic last weekend with a time of 16 minutes, 20.9 seconds.

Waynflete’s Leah Kramer was 16th in the girls’ race, with a time of 19:47.9.