An eventful week has come and gone and we draw ever closer to the winter sports postseason.

Here’s a glimpse at what’s occurred and what’s to come:

Boys basketball

Falmouth’s Davis Mann soars to the hoop during Saturday’s narrow home win over Noble. Courtesy Kneka Smith

Falmouth’s boys basketball team suffered just its second loss of the season last Tuesday, 64-59, at Scarborough, but the Navigators bounced back with victories at Westbrook (60-49) and at home over previously undefeated Noble (54-51) to improve to 9-2 and second behind the Knights in the Class A South Heal Points standings.

In the setback, Davis Mann had a team-high 18 points. In the win over the Blue Blazes, Mann went off for 31 points. Against the Knights, Falmouth avenged an earlier loss by scoring the final six points of the back-and-forth contest. Two Billy Birks free throws put the Navigators ahead to stay and super-sub Ezra Hamlin provided two more foul shots for a little insurance before a last-second Noble 3-pointer was off target. Mann had a game-high 23 points.

“My free throw numbers have not been great this year, but when it came down to it, I had to make them,” Birks said.

“I can’t even describe it, this was awesome,” Hamlin said. “It’s finally coming together. We wanted this one. We were all hyped up for it. We played really well together.”

“This was a fun one and it’s more fun when you win,” added longtime Falmouth coach Dave Halligan, after his 605th career victory. “We want to play the best. That’s how you find out what you’re made of. (Noble) didn’t quit. They came right back at us, but I have to give my kids credit. Usually against good teams, it’s the defensive end that makes a difference. Noble did a good job taking away what we were doing in the first half. We had to find some other things to do. It was like a chess match. That’s when it’s fun.”

The Navigators hosted reigning Class AA champion Windham in another key showdown Tuesday, then welcome Gorham Friday before going to Greely Monday of next week (see our website for game story).

“We’ll respect everybody,” Halligan said. “We just want to compete at a high level and we don’t want to take any steps backward.”

Greely is hot on Noble and Falmouth’s heels, ranked third in Class A South at 7-4 after home wins over defending Class A state champion Gray-New Gloucester (50-37) and Wells (61-50) and a 45-43 loss at Messalonskee. Against the Patriots, Andrew Padgett led the way with 14 points and Kade Ippolito and Ethan Michaud added a dozen apiece. In the win over the Warriors, Ippolito had a game-high 27 points and Michaud added 13. The Rangers were at Mt. Ararat Tuesday, host Cape Elizabeth Friday (see our website for game story) and welcome Falmouth for a pivotal showdown Monday of next week.

Freeport fell to 2-9 and 11th in Class A South following losses to visiting Fryeburg Academy (49-44), host York (63-46) and host Gardiner (60-41). Drew Pound had a team-high 15 points against the Raiders. In the loss to the Wildcats, Bryce Dwyer led the way with 23 points. Conner Smith had a team-high 17 against the Tigers. The Falcons were home versus Yarmouth Tuesday, go to Brunswick Friday, then travel to Cony Monday of next week.

In Class B South, Yarmouth extended its win streak to four games by downing visiting Wells (61-44) and host Gray-New Gloucester (67-51), then fell to 7-3 and sixth in the Heals with a 57-45 home loss to top-ranked, undefeated Medomak Valley. Against the Warriors, Bobby Wolff scored 13 points, while Ian Lawrence and Torrey Rogers added 12 apiece. In the win over the Patriots, Lawrence and Evan Oranellas tallied 22 points apiece. Lawrence also had 13 rebounds for a double-double. In the setback, Oranellas and Wolff scored 13 points apiece, but the Panthers dominated on the glass and forced 17 turnovers.

“(Medomak Valley’s) a very good team,” Yarmouth coach Ilunga Mutombo said. “We put together two weeks of preparation while we were playing other teams, as they were a team we were locking in on. We knew we had to bring the best we’ve got. These games go back and forth. It was a chess game. Size-wise, we tried to get deep into our rotation, but second half, we shortened our rotation and went with height. That helped us stay close.”

The Clippers were at Freeport Tuesday, host Poland Friday and welcome Lake Region Tuesday of next week.

“I’m very confident in my guys,” said Mutombo. “They’re committed to each other and the program. We’ve just go to keep competing and we just need to keep getting better defensively. We’ll be the best we can be in the eight games we have left. We haven’t even talked getting into the tournament. We just want to compete and gain confidence.”

In Class C South, NYA fell to 0-10 and 16th following losses at Sacopee Valley (66-45) and Boothbay (59-25). In the loss to the Hawks, Gage Kloza had 13 points and Mansuk Loboka added 10. The Panthers hosted Old Orchard Beach Tuesday and go to Monmouth Academy Monday of next week.

Girls basketball

Freeport’s girls’ squad is hitting its stride. After starting the season 2-5, the Falcons have won five in a row, capped by victories last week at Fryeburg Academy (62-36) and at home over York (50-29) and Gardiner (56-52).  In the win over the Raiders, Maddie Cormier had 18 points, Abby Giroux added 17 and Emily Groves finished with 10. Against the Wildcats, Cormier had 16 points and Giroux 10. In the win over the Tigers, Cormier tallied 16 points, Groves finished with 15 and Sydney Gelhar added 10. The Falcons (7-5 and fifth in the Class A South Heal Points standings) visited Yarmouth Tuesday, then host reigning Class A champion Brunswick for a pivotal game Friday.

Greely was 4-6 and seventh following losses at Gray-New Gloucester (46-18) and Wells (52-43) and at home to Messalonskee (31-26). Avery Bush had 14 points and Hannah Hussey added 10 in the loss to the Warriors. The Rangers hosted Mt. Ararat Tuesday, then they go to Cape Elizabeth Friday and Falmouth Monday of next week.

Falmouth fell to 1-10 and 11th in Class A South after home losses to Scarborough (69-25) and Westbrook (71-22). Maggie Young had seven points against the Red Storm. In the loss to the Blue Blazes, Gaby Herszkopf and Siobhan Nielsen scored nine points apiece. After hosting Windham Wednesday, the Navigators go to three-time reigning Class AA South champion Gorham Friday, then host Greely Monday of next week.  

In Class B South, Yarmouth fell to 3-6 and 12th following setbacks at Wells (56-37) and Medomak Valley (41-18). Giselle Jabar had a team-high 10 points in the loss to the Warriors. After hosting Freeport Tuesday, the Clippers travel to Poland Friday, then return home Tuesday of next week to face Lake Region.

In Class C South, NYA was 5-5 and eighth after defeating visiting Sacopee Valley (55-33) and Boothbay (54-25). Ella Giguere scored a game-high 26 points against the Hawks. The Panthers were at Old Orchard Beach Tuesday and return home to face Monmouth Academy Tuesday of next week.

Girls hockey

The Yarmouth/Freeport girls’ hockey team, the two-time reigning North Region champion, is back atop the region’s Heal Points standings at 10-1-1 following wins last week at Brunswick (2-1) and Gorham (2-0). Against the Dragons, Maya Nasveschuk and Drea Rideout scored third period goals. Nasveschuk and Adelaide Strout scored in the victory over the Rams. Yarmouth/Freeport hosted Winslow Tuesday and welcomes Falmouth/Scarborough Saturday.

In the South Region, Falmouth/Scarborough was 5-9 and fifth after home losses to the Beacons (6-4) and Lewiston (3-2). Falmouth/Scarborough travels to Yarmouth/Freeport Saturday, then hosts Edward Little/Leavitt Monday of next week.

Greely fell to 0-13 and seventh in the South following losses last week at Lewiston (4-3) and York (3-1). Against the Blue Devils, Zoe Trepaney scored three goals, Jane Flynn had three assists and goalie Charley Louie made 22 saves. Greely is idle until Jan. 22 when it hosts Biddeford.

Boys hockey

Cheverus/Yarmouth’s Owen Cheever possesses the puck during last week’s home win over Scarborough. Cheever was recently named the Class B South December Defenseman of the Month. Michael Hoffer / The Forecaster

On the boys’ side, reigning Class B champion Cheverus/Yarmouth improved to 9-0 and first in the South Heals following last week’s 3-0 home win over Scarborough. Ethan Tucker made 11 saves for the shutout and Matthew Paradis, Cole Putnam and Quinn McCoy scored the goals.

“It felt amazing,” said Putnam, after scoring his first varsity goal. “My family’s here, my girlfriend’s here. What more can I ask for?”

“I want to do what I can to help the team to win,” said Tucker. “I have a good defense in front of me. They’re great shot-blockers. I saw the puck well today. I was watching it good the whole way.”

“That’s a strong team there and they’ll be dangerous down the stretch,” Cheverus/Yarmouth coach Dave St. Pierre added. “I thought they out-competed us in the second period, but we stayed with our game plan and pulled it out. We lost a lot of leadership from last year, some heart-and-soul guys. We told guys they’d have to take over and learn from what they did. Those kids set a great example for everybody and it’s been easy for kids to step in.”

Cheverus/Yarmouth hosts Greely Thursday and welcomes York Saturday.

“We need to stay humble and keep working hard,” St. Pierre said. “It’s only the halfway point. We’re happy with our start, but we still have a ways to go and a lot to work on.”

Cheverus/Yarmouth sophomore Owen Cheever was named the Class B South December Defenseman of the Month after scoring four goals and adding seven assists in five games during the month. Cheever had a hat trick in a win over Windham/Westbrook.

Greely was 0-7 and ninth in Class B South. The Rangers didn’t play a game last week. They travel to Cheverus/Yarmouth Thursday, then host Mt. Ararat Saturday and play at Brunswick Monday.

Falmouth goalie Brandon White protects the puck during last week’s loss at Lewiston. Andree Kehn / Sun Journal.

In Class A, Falmouth fell from the ranks of the unbeaten last week with 1-0 losses at reigning state champion Lewiston and at home to Edward Little (in overtime). Brandon White made 17 saves against the Blue Devils, but the Navigators suffered their first loss of the season.

“There’s a whole number of teams that have a chance this year and it’s a good thing for Class A,” first-year Falmouth coach Hogan Tracy said. “There’s a lot of pressure that comes with being undefeated and being number one and I’m not going to say it’s great to lose a game, because it’s never great, but it’s good to have a little bit of a reality check every once in a while.”

White made 37 saves in the loss to the Red Eddies. The Navigators (7-2 and third in Class A) are back in action Monday of next week when they host St. Dom’s.

Indoor track 

Greely, NYA and Yarmouth took part in a nine-team Western Maine Conference indoor track meet last weekend.

In the boys’ competition, the Rangers were second to York, with the Clippers third and the Panthers eighth.

The girls’ meet was won by Greely, with Yarmouth placing second and NYA coming in eighth.

Falmouth’s boys and girls were both second to South Portland in an SMAA meet which also included Bonny Eagle and Massabesic.

Swimming

Yarmouth’s swim team swept Cheverus last weekend. The boys prevailed, 55-38, and the girls won, 70-13.

Greely swept South Portland, as the boys won by a score of 109-60 and the girls eked out a 85-82 decision.

Falmouth swept Freeport, with the boys prevailing, 70-19, and the girls winning, 63-19.

Sun Journal staff writer Nathan Fournier contributed to this story.

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