2010-11 Winter Male Athlete of the Year:

RYAN COLLET, Senior-Alpine skiing

* WMC All-Star

Ryan Collet has known plenty of individual success during his time skiing at Freeport High. This winter, he achieved one of his biggest goals, helping the Falcons win a Class C state championship.

In his final season on skis, Collet was runner-up in both the slalom and giant slalom state races and Freeport wound up winning the combined Class C championship for the first time since he started high school..

For being a great individual and team member and for closing his career with a flourish, Ryan Collet is The Forecaster’s selection for Freeport’s 2010-11 Winter Male Athlete of the Year.

Collet grew up in Freeport and started racing in middle school. He made a mark from the get-go in high school. He was runner-up in the slalom as a sophomore and tied for second in the slalom and placed fifth in the GS his junior season, a year which also saw him named Freeport’s Winter Male Athlete of the Year.

This season, Collet was consistent all winter and was at his finest at the big postseason meets. He won the slalom and was third in the GS at the Western Maine Conference championships.

He went to states hoping for a first place finish, but was .64 of a second behind Livermore Falls’ Cody Jacques in the GS and three seconds behind Livermore’s Alexander Rose in the slalom. Freeport’s Alpine team was third, but when the Nordic scores were factored in, the Falcons had no peer.

Collet has decided that he doesn’t want to ski in college, but he has serious interest in staying on skis. He’s developed an interest in ski patrolling (“I’m used to getting picked up by ski patrol since I do a lot of falling,” Collet joked) and will serve as an outdoor emergency care volunteer in college.

Collet, who sprints in indoor track, has a pretty impressive off-slopes resume as well. He’s a member of Seeds of Independence, the Reducing Sexism and Violence Program and is a mentor for freshman. He plans to go to the Dominican Republic to volunteer in the sugar cane fields and is in the process of selecting a college. He’s interested in medicine and engineering.

That suggests he’ll be turning heads for years to come. Ryan Collet, Freeport’s 2010-11 Winter Male Athlete of the Year, has been a skier extraordinaire and a whole lot more.

Coach Eric Wallace’s comment: “Ryan’s success comes from how he approaches each training run. As an Alpine ski coach, you look for your athletes to train like they race and race like they train. Combine a hidden competitive spirit and you can quickly see why Ryan has been so successful.”

2009-10 winner: Ryan Collet (Skiing)

2008-09 winner: Jon Klages (Basketball)

2007-08 winner: Reid Christian (Basketball)

2006-07 winner: Danny Mehler (Basketball)

2005-06 winner: Nate Fuller (Skiing)

2004-05 winner: Dan Sandberg (Skiing)

2003-04 winner: Kegan Pettit (Hockey)

2002-03 winner: Frank Roy (Skiing)

2001-02 winner: Griff Leach (Skiing)

2010-11 Winter Female Athlete of the Year:

ELLY BENGTSSON, Freshman-Alpine skiing

* WMC All-Star

There’s little about Elly Bengtsson that suggests she’s only a freshman.

Poised and talented beyond her years, confident, yet modest, Bengtsson made an immediate impact on the powerhouse Freeport girls’ Alpine ski team this winter and will be a force to be heard from on the local, state and regional level for years to come.

For combining skill and maturity and for making the most of her opportunities, Elly Bengtsson is The Forecaster’s choice for Freeport’s 2010-11 Winter Female Athlete of the Year.

Bengtsson is from Freeport and started on skis at age three. She began racing at nine and while she also runs track and plays soccer, she’s become one of the elite skiers in the state in no time. She was a standout in middle school, where she emerged as one of the best skiers in the region, qualifying for the Junior Olympics. She trains hard at her craft, spending weekends at Sugarloaf.

Bengtsson, who admitted she set her goals high, made a mark in her first meet, Jan. 3, placing second in the giant slalom. A week later, she won the GS and was on her way to dominance.

At the WMC championships, Bengtsson placed third in the slalom and fourth in the GS.

Then, at Class C states, Bengtsson finished third in the GS and was runner-up in the slalom. Freeport won the Alpine championship and was second in the combined standings.

Along the way, she even topped Freeport’s Winter Male Athlete of the Year, Ryan Collet, in a race.

Following the season, Bengtsson qualified for the J3 Junior Olympics.

Bengtsson, who will run distance in outdoor track, is a high honor roll student, plays the flute and has big goals for the future. She hopes to compete at the Division I level in college.

We’ll be hearing plenty from her in the years to come. Elly Bengtsson, Freeport’s 2010-11 Winter Female Athlete of the Year, set the bar high and stands to be one of the region’s premier talents going forward.

Coach Eric Wallace’s comment: “With Elly it comes down to focus, she’s always the last one on the course for inspection and it’s that focus that allows her the confidence to a attack a course.”

2009-10 winner: Adrian Baker (Indoor track)

2008-09 winner: Molly Susla (Skiing)

2007-08 winner: Adrian Baker (Indoor track)

2006-07 winner: Abby Fuller (Swimming)

2005-06 winner: Lucy Garrec (Skiing)

2004-05 winner: Logan Crane (Indoor track)

2003-04 winner: Logan Crane (Indoor track)

2002-03 winner: Jessica Harold (Skiing)

2001-02 winner: Molly Pierce (Skiing)

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