Hatch

Gallant

Male:

MICHAEL HATCH, Senior-Hockey

* Travis Roy Award finalist

* All-State, first-team, defenseman

* Senior All-Star

* Captain

Hatch was an offensive-minded defenseman who led the Stags to the cusp of the state final in his farewell high school season before being named a finalist for the state’s most prestigious hockey award.

Hatch, a Portland resident, started playing hockey at the age of five with the Casco Bay Break the Ice program and it quickly became his favorite sport.

“I love hockey,” Hatch said. “The speed and the flow are never-ending.”

Hatch joined the Cheverus varsity as a freshman and made an immediate impact on defense. By his sophomore season, he made the All-State team and scored a memorable goal in a playoff win over Biddeford.

“I love to get involved on offense,” said Hatch. “I love scoring goals.”

As a junior, Hatch again made the All-State team and helped the Stags reach the Class A South Final.

This winter, Hatch scored nine goals and added 11 assists and helped anchor a defense which allowed just over two goals per game. Cheverus won 14 games (its most since 2004-05) and again got the regional final, dropping a heartbreaker in overtime to Biddeford.

Following the season, Hatch was again named to the All-State team and was one of four finalists for the Travis Roy Award, given to the state’s premier Class A senior player (Falmouth’s Theo Hembre won).

“It was an honor to be a finalist,” Hatch said. “It was a goal of mine since sophomore year.”

Hatch’s motivation was one prevalent in premier athletes.

“I’m extremely competitive,” he said. “I don’t like to lose. I strive to be the best at everything I do.”

Hatch also plays attack for the always-competitive Cheverus boys’ lacrosse team, is a member of the school’s Key Club and Gold and Purple Club and plans to attend Fordham University in New York City next year, where he’ll study economics and political science and play club hockey.

Michael Hatch, Cheverus’ Winter Male Athlete of the Year, will long be fondly remembered for his contributions to the Stags’ hockey success.

Coach Dan Lucas’ comment: “Michael is a solid defenseman who played heavy minutes for us and played on the power play and penalty kill. He had a tremendous shot from the point and can play a skating or physical game. He is a character guy and a coach’s dream on and off the ice.”

Previous winners:

2016-17 Zeb Leavitt (wrestling)

2015-16 Michael O’Donovan (swimming)

2014-15 James Hannigan (hockey)

2013-14 Jake Dixon (track)

2012-13 Trebor Lawton (swimming)

2011-12 Trebor Lawton (swimming)

2010-11 Jack Terwilliger (track)

2009-10 Indiana Faithfull (basketball)

2008-09 Zander Markellos (skiing)

2007-08 Matt Libby (swimming)

2006-07 Matt Libby (swimming)

2005-06 Alex Arthur (hockey)

2004-05 Adam Horgan (hockey)

2003-04 Kevin Marchesi (hockey)

Female:

EMMA GALLANT, Sophomore-Indoor track

* Class A state champion, 200

* Class A state champion, 400

* State record holder, 400

* SMAA All-Star, junior 55

* SMAA All-Star, junior 200

* SMAA All-Star, junior 400

* SMAA All-Star, 600

Another transcendent campaign allowed Gallant to leave the rest of the state in her wake and as scary as it might be for the opposition, she’s only going to get better in her two remaining high school seasons.

Gallant, a Windham resident, started running in kindergarten, but soccer was long her top sport. By high school, Gallant was primed to dominate in soccer, as well as indoor and outdoor track.

As a freshman, she won the Class A title in the 200 and 400 and also placed third in the 55 indoors, then won the 100 and 200 outdoors.

On the pitch, Gallant has established herself as a top scoring threat, using her breakaway speed to leave the defense looking helpless.

“I’ve always liked being active,” said Gallant. “In high school, I’ve gotten in the best shape I’ve ever been in. I just get excited to run. It’s fun to chase people.”

This winter, Gallant raised the bar by dominating all season as the rest of the state wound up chasing her.

Gallant won the junior 55, junior 400 and junior long jump in the opening meet and never looked back. Gallant won the 300 at the Dartmouth Relays in January, then saved her best for the postseason, winning the junior 55 in 7.43 seconds, the junior 200 in 26.05 seconds and the junior 400 in 59.2 seconds at the SMAA Championship meet.

At the Class A state meet, Gallant set a new state record by winning the 400 in 57.8 seconds. She also won the 200 (with a personal-best time of 25.94 seconds) and was second to Scarborough’s Molly Murnane in the 55 (with a personal-best time of 7.34 seconds), accounting for 28 of the Stags’ points, as they tied Scarborough for the Class A title, the first in program history.

Gallant capped her individual season by placing seventh in the 300 at New Englands, with a personal-best time of 40.74 seconds.

“The season went really well,” said Gallant, who also belongs to Cheverus’ Key Club and plays club soccer. “I was feeling a little sick going into states, but it was really exciting to get our first title.”

Gallant, who credited teammate Victoria Bossong with pushing her to the next level, hopes to continue excelling outdoors, qualify for Nationals as an individual and perhaps set the state record in the 400. She’ll have plenty of college options when the time comes.

In the meantime, it will be fun to see just how much more Emma Gallant, Cheverus’ Winter Female Athlete of the Year, will continue to separate herself from the pack. 

Coach Steve Virgilio‘s comment: “Emma had a sensational sophomore indoor season. Emma can run. She has an ambitious and competitive spirit governed by a conscious and absorbent intellect. She can see a challenge or opportunity, decide it’s worth conquering or experiencing and assimilate what she learns into an effective plan of execution that her natural ability only augments. Emma knows and then Emma does. Her courage, ability to perform under pressure and the loyalty she possesses to herself, a cause, a team or whatever it may be, makes her who she is. The people around her love her.”

Previous winners:

2016-17 Annesley Black (Alpine skiing)

2015-16 Emily Turner (track)

2014-15 Abby Longstaff (swimming)

2013-14 Sarah Nappo (swimming)

2012-13 Brooke Flaherty (basketball)

2011-12 Fiona Hendry (track)

2010-11 Caroline Summa (track)

2009-10 Saundrine Lanouette (hockey)

2008-09 Caroline Summa (track)

2007-08 Jessica Groth (track)

2006-07 Jessica Groth (track)

2005-06 Caitlin Barber (Alpine skiing)

2004-05 Jill Horan (swimming)

2003-04 Alana Van Loenen (track)

Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter:@foresports.

Hatch

Gallant