There were many accomplishments for athletes last year, and this year-in-review summary will touch upon some of those feats.
January
Kenzie Clark, daughter of Bruce and Jayne Clark of Houlton, was doing very well on the ski slopes under the direction of Central Aroostook ski coach Dennis Larrabee. Clark was finishing regularly in meets in the top four positions.
There were two 1,000-point high school scorers to start the year in Southern Aroostook’s Dakota Sleeper (who received All-Aroostook honors in soccer, basketball and baseball, and he was named All-East in soccer) and Greater Houlton Christian Academy’s Chad Duff (who also played baseball). Duff became the third GHCA boys player in school history to reach the milestone.
The Houlton High School cheerleaders had a good season, finishing as runners-up at the Aroostook League Championship, along with receiving a special award for tumbling, while Brandon Murphy was recognized with an individual award in jumps. The team went on to finish second in the Class C regional cheering competition, as well.
February
Kolleen Bouchard, daughter of Marty and Karen Bouchard of Houlton, came in second at the Maine Elks Association State Hoop Shoot in Brewer.
On the ice, the Southern Aroostook Minor Hockey Association Bantam team, coached by Dave Wilson, won the Camden National Bank’s Youth Hockey Team of the Year award. Team members who went to the Alfond Arena to be recognized for the award included, Chase Brewer, Ethan Nickerson, Chenise Tingley, Alaina Stewart, Lucas Grant, Brandon Malone, Tyler Bartlett, Josh Sullivan, Steven Phillips, Jesse Tracy, Alex Carr, Gage Hunt and Alex Casillas.
Another high school basketball player reached the 1,000-point club, but this time it was a Houlton girl. Vanessa Sanderson, daughter of Chuck and Debbie Sanderson, was named among the elite. Sanderson also played soccer and softball for Houlton High School and received numerous awards.
The Houlton High School cheerleaders finished their season, placing fourth in the Class C state meet. The Houlton squad included Franki White, Megan Maker, Jennifer Farrar, Stephanie Kreyssig, Amber Carmichael, Sarah Bouchard, Ashley McNinch, Lauren Bragan, Jordan Findlater, Eryanne Howland, Kristen Farwell, Mikaela Tuttle, Taylor Forest, Brandon Murphy, Melissa Peabody, Danielle Daigle, Taylor Lindsay, Marcy Hernandez and Maggie Russell.
And, in February is the annual Eastern Maine High School Basketball Tournament in Bangor, several teams made the tournament from the local area. The Greater Houlton Christian Academy Eagles were the first-ever boys team to reach the postseason trip in school history. They fell to defending state champion Schenck, 75-43, in the quarterfinals. The Southern Aroostook Warriors lost their quarterfinal game to Fort Fairfield, 67-61, while the Houlton Lady Shires were defeated 45-38 in their Class C quarterfinal game against Washington Academy. In the Class D semifinals, the Southern Aroostook Lady Warriors were tripped up, 51-42 by Fort Fairfield. The Lady Warriors won their quarterfinal game against Deer Isle-Stonington, 67-39.
Houlton’s Vanessa Sanderson was named a Miss Basketball Finalist and Honorable Mention in the Class C All-Tournament team, while Southern Aroostook’s Liz Goodall was named to the Class D All-Tournament Team, with teammate Lauren McGary picking up Honorable Mention.
Named to the McDonald’s Senior All-star team were Houlton’s Sanderson; Southern Aroostook’s Goodall and Dakota Sleeper.
To finish basketball season, the Houlton junior high girls and boys teams both captured the championship at the Southern Aroostook Invitational Basketball Tournament in Dyer Brook. The Houlton girls topped Southern Aroostook, 41-31, while the Houlton boys defeated the Southern Aroostook boys, 55-48.
Playing for the Houlton girls were Tessa Lilley, Abby Deveau, Alana Pratt, Destiny Russell, Teasha Crockett, Samantha Keegan, Breanna Boynton, Jessica Dickinson, Tanika Toby and Breanne Longstaff. The team was coached by Paul Cleary.
Members of the Houlton boys team were David Jewell, Jacob Drew, Isaac Cone, Nick Guiod, Noah Holmes, Kole Buzzeo, Nick Guy, Jacob Condon, Connor Cleary, Kyle Bouchard, Elyjah Crockett, Barrett Dunn, Ryan Tribou and Daniel Howe. The team was coached by Rob Moran and Matt McCluskey.
Named to the girls all-star team were: Sable Altvater, Southern Aroostook and the tournament’s Most Valuable Player; Samantha Keegan, Houlton; Lauren Rockwell, Southern Aroostook and Destiny Russell, Houlton; Rylee Warman, GHCA and Morgan Livezey, Katahdin. The boys All-star team included Robert Rockwell, Southern Aroostook and the tournament’s Most Valuable Player; Nick Guiod, Kyle Bouchard and Elyjah Crockett, all of Houlton; Kaleb Burpee, Southern Aroostook and Deyrell Vargas of GHCA.
March
Senior athletes showcased their skills at the Aroostook League all-star basketball games at the University of Maine at Presque Isle. On the boys side were, Sleeper of SACS, Seth Cropley of East Grand; Duff and Zach Straubel of GHCA; Chris Williams and Dan McGillicuddy of Hodgdon; Jordan Bragan of Houlton and Lucas Craig of Katahdin. For the girls, Chelsea Sloat of Hodgdon; Sanderson and Martha McPartland of Houlton; Olivia McNally and Melissa Duffy of Katahdin; Goodall and Rochelle Nadeau of SACS, were on the team.
The Houlton Aroostook Youth Basketball League (AYBL) girl’s grade 3-4 team finished the season 22-0, capturing the AYBL title and three tournament championships — the AYBL NMCC 3-4 grade championship, the Hampden Bronco Classic and the Old Town YMCA Bob Messier Youth Basketball Tournament. Playing for the team were Amelia Hanning, Kolleen Bouchard, Kristen Graham, Rebecca Mooers, Abbie Worthley; Janelle Goff, Aspen Flewelling, Caroline Mooers and Alexis Miller. Coaching the girls were Shawn Graham and Marty Bouchard.
Named as All-Aroostook all-stars were: Chelsea Sloat, Daniel McGillicuddy and Chris Williams, Hodgdon; Sanderson, McPartland, Jordan Codrey and Corey Woodworth, Houlton; Mariah Wiley, Chad Duff and Micah Wiley, Greater Houlton Christian Academy; McNally and Brandon Robinson, Katahdin; and Goodall, Jasmine Rockwell and Sleeper, Southern Aroostook. All-Aroostook honors in Alpine girls skiing went to Clark of Houlton.
Sleeper was also named to the Bangor Daily News Honorable Mention Class D All-Tournament team after his 30-point quarterfinal performance against Fort Fairfield.
Students at Mill Pond School’s After-School program were treated to a Boston Celtics game. Attending were Lexi Bartlett, Morgan Bolling, Orient; Noah Nash, Dawn Bossie, Nancy Ellis, Jason Ellis, Fawner Thomas, Alyssa Carmichael and Hal Britton, Houlton; Brandon Wallace, Shelbey Sanders, Austin Albert, Karen Sattler, Mike Brombosz, Josh Ganzel, Tabetha Ganzel and Brandon Tucker, Linneus; Luke Wiegand, Ludlow; Mikayla Wiley Bev Ivey and Valerie Estabrook, Hodgdon; Rob Goulet, Merrill and Brandon Smith, Cary.
Aroostook League Scholar-Athletes were nominated by their schools athletic administrator based on achievements in the classroom, in the athletic realm and on school citizenship. Each school could nominate one male and one female scholar-athlete. Named were Emily Little and Jaron Gray, Greater Houlton Christian Academy; Chelsea Sloat and Chris Williams, Hodgdon; Vanessa Sanderson and Jordan Codrey, Houlton; Kali Rush and Lucas Craig, Katahdin; and Alexandra Bishop and Logan Desmond, Southern Aroostook;
Daphne Hegreness, daughter of Bruce and Melodee Williams and granddaughter of John and Amanda Williams of Linneus, is planning on participating in the 2012 U.S. Paralympics in London as part of the U.S. Women’s Sprinting Team. Hegreness lost her leg to epitheliod sarcoma.
The Houlton-Hodgdon Black Hawks garnered awards at the Eastern Maine Class B Hockey Banquet. Overall, the team had 10 players picking up individual awards. Ben Ward, First Team All-star forward and an Academic All-star; senior defensemen Jake Peabody, Third Team All-star, Academic All-star and named to the Senior All-star Team; Jared Tapley, Class B Honorable Mention defenseman, Senior All-star and named to Senior All-star Team; Cody Briggs, Third Team Forward and Academic All-star; Malik Abouliesh, Class B Honorable Mention as a goaltender and Academic All-star; Ian Gervais, Nick Chase, Logan Holmes and Dylan Gard, All-academic All-stars and Jordan Brown, All-Rookie Team.
April
Deb Lavine opened her farm in Monticello to those interested in learning how to handle and goom miniature horses.
Houlton’s grade 5-6 girls basketball travel team celebrated a successful tournament run through the winter going undefeated, 17-0, as champions over the span of four competitive tournaments. The team’s offense scored a total of 568 points for an average of 33 points per game, while their stifling defense only allowed 267 points for an average of only 15 points per game. Playing for the team were Sarah Delano, Emma Drew, Rylee Warman, Victoria Holmes, Natalie Hill, Megan Collett, Allix Hanson, Chelsea Gentle, Katie Condon and Mariah Boyd. Coaching the team were Ben Drew and Cheryl Gentle.
Bangor’s Steve Abrahams took first place in the Aroostook Chess Championship knocking out Maine champion Roger Morin of Houlton in the last round.
Local and statewide paddlers were out on the rivers and lakes during March and April for the river racing series, organized by Maine Canoe and Kayaking Racing Organization. MaCKRO put together a High School division, which the East Grand students were very competitive in.
The annual Gun Show, sponsored by the Houlton Rifle and Pistol Club, drew 800 people to the Millar Civic Center.
Mark Faulkingham was named the new Houlton High School softball coach.
Dave Wilson presented Ben Ward, son of Jodi and Steve Ward of Houlton, with the G. Ivan Wilson Commissioner’s Award for the Southern Aroostook Minor Hockey Association (SAMHA).
Houlton was named the host of the District 3 All-star Tournament for 9-10-year-olds to be held in July.
The County Physical Therapy eighth-grade 13U team came away with the Youth Basketball Organization of America state title. Playing for the team were Lauren Doak and Chelsey Plourde of Fort Kent; Carmen Bragg, Nicole Olson, Mackenzie Worcester and coach Larry Worcester of Washburn; Parise Rossignol and coach Matt Rossignol of Van Buren; Krystal Kingsbury of Presque Isle; and Samantha Keegan and Bree Longstaff of Houlton.
May
Houlton’s Fred Ludwig was the overall winner of the annual Meduxnekeag River Canoe Race. He finished the course in 1:17:01. The event raised $2,000 for Dollars For Scholars. East Grand School also captured the High School Traveling Trophy for the eighth time in nine years.
Alexis Ireland bagged her first turkey — 20 pounds with a nine-inch beard and one-inch spurs — on Junior Hunting Day. Other first-time turkey hunters getting their prize were Jessie Tanner, who bagged a 12-pound Jake, with a four-inch beard and Jessica Drew, who got a 20-pound Tom.
The East Grand Adventure Race drew 63 challengers to the 20-mile race on rugged terrain. Southern Aroostook students Nick Tarr (Oakfield) and Morgan Gustin (Merrill) entered the mixed division and finished third in a field of 14, with a time of 3:33:38.
Ryan Blanchette, son of Tim and Kathy Blanchette of Hodgdon, skated against former Boston Bruin greats like NHL Hall of Fame defensemen Ray Bourque and Brad Park, along with Rick Middleton and Terry O’Reilly in a benefit hockey game.
Nick Cowperthwaite was the recipient of the Tom Matthews Spirit Award for the second year in a row. The award is given in memory of Tom Matthews, who was a hockey player, coach and a supporter of youth hockey.
Brian Carpenter and John Donato were part of the 1979 Woodstock Shiretowners team inducted into the Woodstock Sports Wall of Fame.
Southern Aroostook’s Dakota Sleeper threw a complete game shutout against Hodgdon in the team’s season opener. He struck out 15 and walked three. In his next outing, Sleeper threw a no-hitter against Katahdin, striking out 12 and walking none, as the Warriors took a 3-0 win. Katahdin’s Cody Cunningham pitched a complete game, striking out seven, while allowing three runs on two hits.
Houlton’s Ian Gervais pitched a two-hitter, striking out 10 against Hodgdon.
June
The Houlton Rifle and Pistol Club named its officers for the year — Curtis Harrison, president; Rod Hemingway, vice president; Tom Brown, range officer; Paul Harrison, secretary/treasurer and Tim Glossinger, publicity.
Before transferring to the University of Maine at Presque Isle, Taylor Jo Quint, daughter of Olin and Tracy Quint of Hodgdon, was recognized by the Commonwealth Coast Conference. As a sophomore, Quint maintained at least a 3.5 or higher grade point average on a 4.0 scale. She was a member of the Eastern Nazarene College basketball and cross-country teams.
The Female Athlete of the Year at the University of Maine-Presque Isle was Megan Korhonen of Littleton. She is a junior volleyball and basketball player at the college.
Local high school teams were in the spring playoffs, with the SACS boys losing to CAHS, 13-11 in the Class D semifinals. The Warriors defeated Wisdom 4-3, in the quarterfinals. The Katahdin Cougars were overtaken 7-4 by Deer Isle-Stonington and the Houlton boys fell to Orono, 4-3 in their respective quarterfinal matchups.
The SACS Lady Warriors overtook East Grand, 9-1, in the quarterfinals before defeating Katahdin, 10-9 in the semifinals. The Katahdin girls beat CAHS, 9-8 in an eight-inning quarterfinal. In the Class D finals, the Lady Warriors lost, 9-7 to Deer Isle-Stonington.
The 2010 All-Aroostook players honored for their accomplishments during the spring sports season were: Hodgdon, Destiny Ellis, Taylor McGary Nick Lunn, Chris Wallace and Ryan Wellington; Houlton, Megan Hannigan, Madison Lezotte, Sanderson, Ian Gervais and Josh Harvey; Greater Houlton Christian Academy, Olivia Lee, Kiandra Smart and Chad Duff; Katahdin, Melissa Duffy, Cody Cunningham and Brandon Robinson; Southern Aroostook, Goodalls — Liz, Evangeline and Pat; and Cody Robinson and Dakota Sleeper;
Tennis all-stars were: Houlton, singles, Luke Anderson, Zach Harvey and Hiba Bilal and in doubles, Cody Woods and Craig Thomas, along with Megan Gerath and Ashley Hannigan.
The Northern Maine Soap Box Derby winners were Sarah Bouchard in Super Stock, beating her brother Nathan, while Olivia White bested Emily Dickison. Special awards went to: Jason Collett and Courtney Dunton, Wayne Miller Sportsmanship and Alicia Dudzinski Spirit Awards, respectively; Matt Sloat and Brittany Fitzpatrick, Committee Awards; Cameron Clark and Gavin Chase, VIP car winners and Audrey Mailly and Rachel Graves, Best Decorated Cars.
The new Houlton Rotary Field was completed, with John Tribou, outgoing president threw out the first pitch prior to the Minor League championship. The field is located adjacent to Houlton Elementary School.
Machias Savings Bank was a two-time Houlton Little League Major Division champion with a 4-3 win over Houlton Farms Dairy. In the Minor League, Houlton Rotary went undefeated on the season, winning the town title 18-1 over Wal-Mart. Winning the Houlton Little League softball title was F.A. Peabody Co. over Aroostook Auto Glass.
