Alex Ezzy is a key player for the Caribou Vikings, who have put themselves in playoff position in Class B North. (Kevin Sjoberg | Star-Herald)
The soccer regular season is quickly coming to a close and many of the local squads are making a run at the playoffs.
Oct. 17 is the last playable day for matches before the playoffs get underway Oct. 20. A look at the boys soccer teams in the region follows:
Ashland Hornets
Coach Trevor Hews’ squad endured a rough start to the season, losing its first three games, but have since bounced back to go 5-2-1 in its last eight and still could get into the playoffs.
Heading into Tuesday’s home match against Central Aroostook, the Hornets were in 15th place in Class D North. Games against Fort Kent and Wisdom remain as the team hopes to get in the top 14 and reach the post-season.
“We are continuing to search for ways to become a better offensive team,” said Hews, who had the tough task of having to replace his top two scorers from 2016 in Kyle Beaulier and Lucas Craig.
Ashland has a very capable veteran goalkeeper in Steven Bellanceau anchoring a strong defense, which includes fellow seniors Isiah McIntyre, Drew Condon and Baily Clark along with newcomer Josh Celestre, a freshman who has become an important cog in the back line.
The primary midfielders are Mason Deabay (five goals), Mason Moro and Alex Kaiser, all seniors, along with sophomore Weston Robinson. Dylan Haley, the team’s top goal scorer with six, joins Parker O’Clair (four goals) as the starting strikers.
“We are a team fighting to get into the playoffs and if we do get in, I feel we can beat anybody,” Hews said.
Griffin Guerrette has been the leading scorer for the Presque Isle Wildcats this season. His team has an 8-2-1 record and is near the top of the Class B North soccer standings. (Kevin Sjoberg | Star-Herald)
“I believe we have played very well and have had several unfortunate results,” said sixth-year coach Scott Hunter. “We have played even with or better than our opponents in nine of our 10 games, but the reason we have fallen short is because we haven’t been able to score enough goals.
Caribou has scored just seven goals in its last seven games, going 2-5 during the stretch.
The starting 11 includes Noah Hixon, the goalkeeper who is in the midst of an excellent season, according to Hunter, along with senior Brandon Manter and sophomores Parker Deprey, Tiernan Barbosa and Jacob Berkoski as defenders.
Nic Sleeper, a senior captain, sees time on defense and at midfield. Junior captain Alex Ezzy, who is Caribou’s top playmaker and scorer, leads a midfield group that also includes sophomores Cullin Caverhill, Hayden Hunter and Alex Bouchard and junior Austin Findlen, who is just returning from injury after missing a handful of games. Junior Tommy Pinette, who played at LCS/MSSM prior to this season, is the striker.
Ethan Holdsworth is the lone freshman and sees action at wing. Bailey Griffeth, a senior who has been nursing a foot injury most of the season, returned to score a goal against Ellsworth Saturday. Juniors Theo Strid and Alex Hyde and seniors Liam McMillon and Trevor Hale help provide depth.
“At this point in the season, our talented young players have almost two full seasons of varsity experience, which will hopefully serve us well as we close out the season and move into the playoffs,” Hunter said. “We just have to get and stay healthy, play with confidence and focus, and pick up the scoring.”
Central Aroostook Panthers
Central Aroostook has put everything together under Wallace Endy, who begins his second stint as the head coach.
The Panthers were 10-1 and in third place in Class D North heading into their match at Ashland Tuesday. CA features offensive firepower which comes from a number of different players and the team has good cohesiveness.
“We’ve been passing and playing together, just playing good soccer,” Endy said.
Central Aroostook’s only loss came during harvest recess and was to Fort Fairfield at home. The Panthers had beaten the Tigers earlier in the season.
Endy had recently served as the junior high coach and knows his personnel, having coached all but two of the players.
“I know how they play and know when they are not playing to their potential, so I am able to fix things and push through things that may otherwise be problems,” Endy said.
Goalkeeper Brayden Bradbury has surrendered just 10 goals in the first 11 matches, including five shutouts. Senior captain Luke Kearney anchors the defense with his sure foot and veteran knowledge of the game. Lane Grass and Harden Kearney are wing backs and senior captain Colby Kingsbury is a reliable stopper back due to his strength and ability to move the ball well.
Jacob Carvell and Ben Thomas are the wing midfielders, with Caleb Harris playing in the middle. All three are capable scorers, which has bolstered the attack. Hayden Kingsbury and Taylor Campbell play forward wings and Hunter Wardwell, the team’s top scorer, centers the front line.
“So far, my team has been playing well, but we’ll have to adapt to the weather as it changes and it is important to stay healthy, play hard and play one game at a time,” Endy said.
Easton Bears
The Bears have battled inconsistent play, which is expected from a team that came in with limited experience at the varsity level, but coach Ryan Shaw is hoping the recent three-week break from games due to harvest will help put things in order for the stretch run.
“We have had games where we have looked very good, but we have had some games where our compete level was not where it needs to be and the games got out of hand,” Shaw said. “Mistakes are always going to be made, but your compete level must always be high to minimize the damage.”
Shaw said he’ll be tinkering with the lineup the rest of the way “to try to find the combinations that will give us the greatest chance for success.” Easton was 5-5-1 and in 11th place in Class D North entering Tuesday’s home match against Van Buren and has two other games remaining.
Senior goalkeeper Steven Bellanceau, in his third season as starter, is one of the reasons the Ashland Hornets are in the hunt for a playoff position. (Kevin Sjoberg | Star-Herald)
Central Aroostook Panthers
Central Aroostook has put everything together under Wallace Endy, who begins his second stint as the head coach.
The Panthers were 10-1 and in third place in Class D North heading into their match at Ashland Tuesday. CA features offensive firepower which comes from a number of different players and the team has good cohesiveness.
“We’ve been passing and playing together, just playing good soccer,” Endy said.
Central Aroostook’s only loss came during harvest recess and was to Fort Fairfield at home. The Panthers had beaten the Tigers earlier in the season.
Endy had recently served as the junior high coach and knows his personnel, having coached all but two of the players.
“I know how they play and know when they are not playing to their potential, so I am able to fix things and push through things that may otherwise be problems,” Endy said.
Goalkeeper Brayden Bradbury has surrendered just 10 goals in the first 11 matches, including five shutouts. Senior captain Luke Kearney anchors the defense with his sure foot and veteran knowledge of the game. Lane Grass and Harden Kearney are wing backs and senior captain Colby Kingsbury is a reliable stopper back due to his strength and ability to move the ball well.
Jacob Carvell and Ben Thomas are the wing midfielders, with Caleb Harris playing in the middle. All three are capable scorers, which has bolstered the attack. Hayden Kingsbury and Taylor Campbell play forward wings and Hunter Wardwell, the team’s top scorer, centers the front line.
“So far, my team has been playing well, but we’ll have to adapt to the weather as it changes and it is important to stay healthy, play hard and play one game at a time,” Endy said.
Easton Bears
The Bears have battled inconsistent play, which is expected from a team that came in with limited experience at the varsity level, but coach Ryan Shaw is hoping the recent three-week break from games due to harvest will help put things in order for the stretch run.
“We have had games where we have looked very good, but we have had some games where our compete level was not where it needs to be and the games got out of hand,” Shaw said. “Mistakes are always going to be made, but your compete level must always be high to minimize the damage.”
Shaw said he’ll be tinkering with the lineup the rest of the way “to try to find the combinations that will give us the greatest chance for success.” Easton was 5-5-1 and in 11th place in Class D North entering Tuesday’s home match against Van Buren and has two other games remaining.
Senior Collin Sotomayor, who began the season as the starting goalkeeper, has since played some midfield and will most likely see time at forward the rest of the way.
“He is a smart player who can put the ball in the back of the net,” Shaw said.
Isaac Currier, a junior, is a versatile and skillful player who will be asked to control the midfield. Senior Keagan Kinney missed the first six games of the season while completing military basic training and has worked hard in getting back and will contribute on the defensive end. Alex Harvath, Gavin Pangburn and Noah Hanscomb are other key veterans.
Freshmen Paul Bonner and Camden Michaud have been dependable contributors who can play many positions and classmate Kody Carter is the starting goalkeeper. Freshman Kyle Flewelling, sophomore Kooper Kinney and senior Ryan West are other important players for the Bears.
“We need consistent intensity and must do a better job taking care of the ball,” Shaw said. “We need to play a high-pace game where we are controlling the possession time and when we play our game, I feel we can play with anyone.”
Fort Fairfield Tigers
Despite suffering two losses in their first three matches, the Tigers have reverted back to their winning ways.
Fort Fairfield, the 2015 Class D state champion, is now 9-3 and in second place in Class D North.
“We knew it was going to take some time to get players comfortable with new roles as some major slots were lost to graduation, said coach John Ala. “Our three losses were all games we were in until the end and we have been able to take pieces of those losses and work on different skill sets to make us a more dangerous team.”
The Tigers have scored 54 goals and have allowed 11 so far. Fort Fairfield has a strong senior presence with eight seeing plenty of action. That group includes goalkeeper Malcolm Langner, backs Jared Harvey, Colin Goshorn and Dylan Jandreau; midfielders Isaac Cyr and Alex Sprague and strikers Chris Gill and Lorenzo Viano. All are Tiger veterans except for Sprague, a transfer from Limestone, and Viano, an exchange student from Italy.
Juniors Jonah Daigle and Jonas Armstrong and sophomore Dawson Watson round out the starting 11. Senior Nick Krause, who provides depth to the defensive lineup, is among the seven reserves.
“We want to come out of the fall break still playing at a high level, ready to take on our next challenge and we are hoping for a good playoff run,” Ala said.
Presque Isle Wildcats
Presque Isle has a revamped lineup, especially on the defensive end, but the team has recovered from a slow start to become one of the top teams in Class B North with three games remaining.
Coach Joe Greaves is pleased with how the backfield has played. The senior leaders are R.J. Gross and captain Adam Paterson, solid leaders who control things out of the air. Junior Jonah Hudson is the only returning starter on defense and also has provided leadership and the last line of defense in front of goalkeeper Jason Dumais, who Greaves said is the best goalkeeper around when he is at his best. Juniors Torey Levesque and Jacob Sjoberg are the starting outside backs.
Juniors Kyler Caron and Drew Cameron are outside midfielders and junior Zechariah Morse and senior Randon Mortland man the middle of the field. Caron and Cameron provide speed from the edge, Morse has the ability to score from anywhere and Mortland is a three-year starter who serves as the quarterback.
Ryle Mortland has battled a torn meniscus and would have been a huge weapon if healthy. Greaves has been impressed with how he has handled the injury and the positive attitude he has maintained.
Griffin Guerrette, a senior striker, was recovering from a broken foot during the preseason and after a slow start has turned into one of the top goal scorers in the division.
Connor DeMerchant, Gage LeTourneau, Colby Carlisle, Jack Beaulieu, Jack Bonville and Cameron Lahey are reserves who have contributed to the team’s success along with Will Bridges, a defensive replacement, and Mason Young, Dumais’s backup in goal.
Washburn Beavers
Coach Ben Goodwin’s Washburn squad has shown steady improvement. After losing their first 11 games, the Beavers broke into the win column against Katahdin Sept. 25. They resume their schedule Oct. 12 against Van Buren in hopes of making it two in a row.
The team is out of playoff contention, but Goodwin has been impressed with how the team has come along on both sides of the field.
“Our biggest improvements have been within our defense,” Goodwin said. “Their decision making and ability to trust that everyone will do their job have been the reasons.
“Offensively, we are slowly improving and there are a few athletes that have taken the lead from game to game,” he added.
Aidan Churchill, a freshman, has stepped into the sweeper position on defense and the team has responded. After allowing 14 first-half goals in the first meeting against Class D power Central Aroostook, the Beavers allowed just three in the rematch at Mars Hill.
Josh Jackson starts in goal, with Churchill, Edwin McLaughlin, Steven Nader, Devon Maynard, Jacob Maynard, Jovanni Taveras, Konnor Jordan, Daniel Arce, Colby Hewitt and Shane Scott the other starters. Braedon Campbell is a spot starter who otherwise gets key minutes off the bench.
“We are looking to have a strong outing against Van Buren,” Goodwin said. “We played them close the first time and I strongly believe that with our improvements, we can come out victorious.”
