Thornton Academy swimmers, from left, Anna Lefebvre, Lucy Perry and Mackenzie Shields, listen to Coach Kathy Leahy during practice Tuesday. Brianna Soukup/Portland Press He

GIRLS

1. Cape Elizabeth: The Capers have won six straight Class B titles dating to 2017, and it doesn’t look like they’re going to be much easier to beat this time. Hope Taylor (500 free), a senior, was a state champion, and classmate Lucy Shaw had runner-up finishes in the 200 IM and 100 butterfly. Those two, along with junior Audrey Alberts and sophomore Dove Brown, were part of winning 200 medley and 200 free relay teams. That’s as good a top four as there is in the area. Only two seniors graduated, and Emerson Gammon, Honor Tamir and Dunk McGonigal are freshmen who should impress.

2. Thornton Academy: It hasn’t been the Golden Trojans’ year yet, but they’re right in the title conversation this winter. It helps to have aces to rack up points, and Thornton has a pair in sophomores Lucy Perry (defending Class A champion in the 100 breaststroke and runner-up in the 200 IM) and Mackenzie Shields (200 and 500 freestyle champion). Sophomore Anna Lefebvre could earn freestyle, fly and backstroke points as well. The Trojans were six points shy of their first title last season, and if some depth pieces emerge to replace Allie Lefebvre and Nora Freeman, they could rise that final spot.

3. Falmouth: The Navigators are also aiming for Class A supremacy. They return all but one swimmer from a team that was the runner-up in Class A last winter. Kate Gorsuch, a junior, had top-five finishes in the 50 free and 100 back. Sophomores Calla Hehmeyer and Emily Chace were part of both the champion 200 free relay team and the second-place 400 free relay team, and senior Jillian James is a three-time diving champion. Falmouth was tied for second last year, but aside from James had no individual finish higher than third. Depth is no problem, but can the Navigators get the event wins they might need?

4. Portland/Deering: The champs from last year are well-stocked in their efforts to reclaim their title. The core four of seniors Kaia West, Anya Heiden, Sophia Harrod-Kim and Anica Spencer all had top-eight finishes in individual events, Nell Fernald is looking to reach that status as a sophomore, and Amelia MacDonald and Breen Whelan are freshmen who could be factors right away. Two seniors graduated, and one of them, Maria Delmonte, won a pair of events. Those are hard points to replace, but Coach Sarah Rasmussen said it’s “hard to count our girls out.”

5. Camden Hills: Who could challenge the Cape dynasty? Start with the team that fell only 13 points shy last year and won Class A titles the two previous seasons. The Windjammers bring back six of the seven swimmers who earned top-six finishes in individual events last season, a group led by distance swimmers senior Rana Abess (senior) and Flynn Layton (sophomore), sprinter Sally Vannini and backstroker London Nicolet, a sophomore. If sophomores Marguerite Worner, Alicia Widmer, Avery Weeks and Py Nakjaroen continue progressing after solid debut state meet performances, Camden Hills would be a title threat again.

Scarborough swimmers leap into the pool after winning the Class A championship last year. The Red Storm graduated several key swimmers but should be back in this mix this winter. Derek Davis/Staff Photographer

BOYS

1. Morse: Thanks to freestyle firepower, it could finally be Morse’s year. Gaffney McDonough (50 free) and Sawyer Wright (100 free) are returning state champions, and David Mitchell (50 and 500 free), Anders Savage (100 free) and Brady Chubbuck (100 breaststroke) had top-five finishes. McDonough, Wright, Mitchell and Savage again form a 400 free relay team that is aiming for state records, and all three of Morse’s relay teams are title hopefuls. A strong freshman class, led by Sam Coombs, Cameron Griffee and Max Couture, who in his debut meet had one of the 10 fastest breaststroke times in Morse history, helps make the Shipbuilders a favorite to earn their first Class B title.

2. Scarborough: Sure, the Red Storm lost some key pieces, but when you’ve won three straight championships, you’re a team to beat until you get knocked off. Repeating won’t be easy after losing Owen Kasper and Ryan Vigue from the winning 400 free relay team, but it helps to bring back Jacob Ducey, a third-place finisher in the 200 free and fourth-place finisher in the 500 free, and Stephen Ranger, a fourth-place finisher in the 100 back. Nolan Green, who swam on three top-eight relay teams as a freshman, will be counted on more as a sophomore, as will Ronan Hashimoto, who was 10th in the 200 IM.

3. Cape Elizabeth: The three-time Class B champions lost the heaviest hitters from last year’s team, but this is still a squad that crushed the competition at the state meet, and the Capers bring back key athletes. Senior Graham Plourde, the returning 200 IM and 100 butterfly champion, is a pivotal piece, but the Capers also have talent coming back in senior Tiger McCormick and sophomores Spencer Shaw and Will Harmon. “We are not as deep as we have been in the past few years,” Coach Ben Raymond said, “but we still have a lot of talented athletes that train hard and will be ready come championship season.”

4. Falmouth: With Class A up for grabs, the Navigators might have what it takes to rise to the top after coming in third last year. Malcolm Sprague leads the way after runner-up finishes in the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke, and sophomores Varada Nguyen, Ben Zaslavsky and Finn Malley should be top-10 and potentially top-five finishers in their events. Nguyen and Sprague, along with senior Sean Lowery, return from 400 free and 200 free relay teams that were second and third last year in Class A. The potential difference-maker, though? The Navigators have Class B diving champ Logan McVeigh in the mix after he transferred from Cape Elizabeth.

5. Greely: Always a steady and successful program, the Rangers are hoping to be in the Class B mix again after finishing fifth last year. Junior Ike Barr was third in the 200 IM and third in the 100 breaststroke last year, and Greely also brings back Reid Petrie, Asa Giffune, Hayden Petrie and Mason Rodgers from a 200 free relay team that took sixth place. Alex Wall, 11th in the 200 free and eighth in the 100 back, should score crucial points, too. Greely will need some swimmers to rise up in the results, but with 31 boys on the roster, the Rangers have the quantity and quality to compete.