North Yarmouth Academy’s Jack Lent races to a third-place finish in the senior 55 hurdles at last weekend’s league meet. The Panthers were seventh as a team.

Freeport’s Mikaela Dorsey competes in the Maranacook Waves Nordic race Saturday. Dorsey was 40th individually, helping the Falcons finish in a second-place tie as a team.

Yarmouth’s Jonny Torres goes up over Freeport’s Colby Wagner during the Clippers’ 43-36 victory Friday night.

(Ed. Note: For the complete Freeport-Morse and Yarmouth-Freeport boys’ basketball and Freeport-Yarmouth girls’ basketball game stories, with photos, see theforecaster.net)

The past week featured its share of memorable, down-to-the-wire games which altered the standings entering the stretch run. With the regular season beginning to wind down, here’s a glimpse at where local teams stand:

Boys’ basketball

Greely’s defending Class A state champion boys’ basketball team was on the brink of history at press time. Friday, the Rangers started the year 12-0 after downing visiting Fryeburg Academy, 49-41. Jack Kane had 17 points and Zach Brown added 15. Greely took a 34-game win streak into Tuesday’s home game versus Westbrook (see theforecaster.net). A victory would eclipse the mark set by the 1996-98 Rangers. Greely (first in the Class A South Heal Points standings) welcomes Gray-New Gloucester Friday and plays host to Cape Elizabeth Tuesday of next week.

Falmouth took a 7-5 mark and the number four ranking into Tuesday’s home game versus Biddeford. The Yachtsmen welcome two-time defending Class AA South champion South Portland Friday and go to Marshwood Tuesday of next week.

In Class B South, Yarmouth was 8-4 and third in the Heals following Friday’s 43-36 win at Freeport. Noah Eckersley-Ray led the way with 14 points and 11 rebounds as the Clippers beat the Falcons for the 18th consecutive time.

“We knew (Freeport’s) a good team that could make outside shots,” Eckersley-Ray said. “We just tried to stay contained and get the boards we could and control our effort.”

“We haven’t had style points all year,” said Yarmouth coach Adam Smith. “We knew the intensity from Freeport would be up. Their crowd was great and they’ve been playing well. They’re scrappy. With the runs they can put on, we could be vulnerable, but we didn’t let that happen tonight. We didn’t let the excitement swallow us.” 

The Clippers were home with Cape Elizabeth in a pivotal showdown Tuesday, go to Wells Friday and host Lake Region in a makeup game Tuesday of next week.

Freeport split a pair of games last week, holding off visiting Morse, 72-65, then losing at home to Yarmouth, 43-36, to fall to 7-4 and 10th in Class B South (where only nine teams make the playoffs). In the victory, Eriksen Shea had 20 points, Toby Holt added 14 and Nate Thomas contributed 11 as the Falcons overcame 36 turnovers.

“It really came down to foul shots at the end,” Shea said. “It’s been fun. The last couple seasons have been tough, but we’ve come together. Our chemistry is good. We work on our quick pace. That quick pace tires other teams out. We love playing that way.”

“As disappointing as so many aspects of that game were, we still found a way to win,” said Freeport coach Bill Ridge. “We had a good second half and luckily, we got enough baskets late.”

Against the Clippers, Kaleb Barrett had a team-high nine points as the Falcons’ late rally fell short.

Freeport hosted Waynflete in a critical game Tuesday, visits Fryeburg Academy Thursday and Cape Elizabeth Saturday, then hosts York Tuesday of next week.

“We have a good schedule setting up for us with (Heal Points) available,” Ridge said. “If we get a few wins (the playoffs) are right there.”

In Class C South, North Yarmouth Academy was 4-8 and held on to the 11th and final playoff spot in the region at press time following home losses last weekend to Old Orchard Beach (62-45) and Traip Academy (67-45). Te’Andre King had 25 points and 11 rebounds against the Seagulls and added 29 points and 18 rebounds against the Rangers. The Panthers were home with A.R. Gould Tuesday and went to Poland Wednesday. They welcome Seacoast Christian Friday and Buckfield Tuesday of next week.

Girls’ basketball

On the girls’ side, Greely extended its win streak to seven games Friday with a 72-31 win at Fryeburg Academy to improve to 11-2 and first in the Class A South Heals. Anna DeWolfe had 33 points and Camille Clement added 19. The Rangers were at Westbrook Tuesday, play at defending Class B South champion Gray-New Gloucester Friday and visit Cape Elizabeth Tuesday of next week.

Falmouth was 4-8 and sixth in Class A South entering Tuesday’s game at Biddeford. The Yachtsmen visit undefeated South Portland Friday and play host to Marshwood Tuesday of next week.

Freeport won at Morse (65-40) and at home over Yarmouth (46-36) last week to improve to 9-2 and third in Class B South. Against the Shipbuilders, Allie Goodman had 28 points and Jessie Driscoll added 14. In the win over the Clippers, Goodman had 16 points, including nine in a row in a stretch where the Falcons extended their lead in the second half, Caroline Smith added 11 and Taylor Rinaldi finished with 10.

“I just needed to be more aggressive, assert myself more, look for holes in the defense and attack,” Goodman said. “I just try to get open as much as I can and look for my shot.”

“I just told the girls it wasn’t our prettiest win, but it’s still a good win because we had to gut it out,” said Freeport coach Mike Hart. “We made free throws and took care of the ball at the end. We were weak with the ball tonight, but we got better at that at the end of the game.”

The Falcons were at Waynflete Tuesday, host Fryeburg Academy Thursday and Cape Elizabeth Saturday, then visit York Tuesday of next week.

Yarmouth’s skid hit four games with tough losses late last week at Lake Region (44-40) and Freeport (46-36). Sara D’Appolonia had 18 points and Clementine Blaschke added 13 at the Lakers. In the loss to the Falcons, Blaschke had 12 points, while D’Appolonia played her final game before graduating early in advance of playing Division I soccer at the University of Delaware next year.

The momentum shifted when we missed a lot of shots and we got frustrated,” said Clippers coach Chris Strong. “(Freeport’s) a solid team with a lot of weapons. It’s fun to play them.”

Yarmouth (4-8 and clinging to the ninth and final playoff spot in Class B South at press time) went to Cape Elizabeth for a pivotal game Tuesday, hosts Wells Thursday and goes to Old Orchard Beach Wednesday of next week.

In Class C South, NYA was 6-6 and sixth at press time following home losses to Old Orchard Beaeh (56-34) and Traip Academy (38-23). Katie Larson had 12 points against the Seagulls. In the loss to the Rangers, Larson led the way with nine points. The Panthers hosted Hyde Tuesday, welcome Seacoast Christian Friday and play host to Buckfield Tuesday of next week.

Boys’ hockey

Greely’s boys’ hockey team extended its win streak to seven games and improved to 7-1 Saturday after a 6-0 victory at Brunswick. The Rangers (first in the Class B South Heals at press time) hosted rival Yarmouth Tuesday (see theforecaster.net for game story), welcomes Kennebunk Thursday and plays host to Gorham Wednesday of next week.

Yarmouth took a 5-2-1 record into Tuesday’s game at Greely. Saturday, the Clippers edged host Gardiner, 3-2. Cooper May, Dom Morrill and John Decker had the goals. Yarmouth (fourth in Class B South) visits St. Dom’s Saturday.

Falmouth improved to 7-4-1 and fourth in Class A South after Friday’s 5-2 win at Bangor. Theo Hembre had two goals and Marcus Cady, Owen Drummey and Garrett Tracy had one goal apiece. The Yachtsmen were at Portland/Deering Thursday (see theforecaster.net for game story) and visit York Monday.

Girls’ hockey

On the girls’ side, after Monday’s showdown at two-time defending champion St. Dom’s was postponed due to bad weather, the Greely/Gray-New Gloucester co-op squad was 12-1 and second in the North Region heading into Wednesday’s home game versus Brunswick. Greely/Gray-New Gloucester visits Lewiston Friday and returns home Tuesday of next week to face Yarmouth/Freeport.

The Yarmouth/Freeport co-op team was 3-11-1 at the start of the week after a 7-2 loss at Winslow/Gardiner, a 1-0 home victory over Mt. Ararat/Morse and a 3-1 win at Gorham/Bonny Eagle/Massabesic last week. Kyaira Grondin had the goal in the win over Mt. Ararat/Morse. Yarmouth/Freeport was seventh at press time in the North, but only six teams make the playoffs. Yarmouth/Freeport is at St. Dom’s Saturday and visits Greely/Gray-New Gloucester Tuesday of next week. 

Falmouth was 4-8-1 and holding on to the sixth and final spot in the South Region after a 3-2 win at Edward Little/Leavitt and a 5-2 home loss to Portland/Deering. Falmouth welcomes York Saturday, plays host to top-ranked Cheverus/Kennebunk Monday and welcomes Brunswick Monday next week.

Indoor track

Falmouth’s girls’ indoor track team was first at a five-team SMAA meet last weekend. The Yachtsmen got wins from Summer Staples in the junior 800 (2 minutes, 53.81 seconds), Maddie Marks in the junior 55 hurdles (9.75 seconds), Abbie Ryer in the junior triple jump (28 feet-7.5 inches), Caitlyn Camelio in the senior 55 (7.84), Sophie Marcotte in the senior 200 (27.36) and senior long jump (15-5.5), Danielle Casavant in the senior high jump (4-10) and their junior 4×200 (1:56.95) and open 4×200 (1:55.99) relay teams.

The Falmouth boys were third behind Deering and Bonny Eagle. First-place finishers included Quaid Guarino in the junior 400 (58.14), Ben Greene in the junior 800 (2:14.83), Joshua Bradford in the junior shot put (40-3.75), Kyle Bouchard in the senior 200 (24.13), John Auer in the senior 800 (2:08.67) and open mile (4:37.47) and the junior 4×200 (1:42.47) relay.

In the WMC, Greely swept a nine-team meet, which also included NYA. The Panthers girls were seventh and the boys eighth.

The Rangers girls got wins from Skylar Cooney in the senior 55 (9.49), Elizabeth Brown in the senior high jump (5-0), Carolyn Todd in the open mile (5:31.67), Julia Curran in the open two-mile (12:49.39) and Maggie McCormick in the open pole vault (8-9).

Boys’ first-place finishers included Naveen Caron in the junior 55 (7.21) and junior 200 (25.62), Michael Geary in the senior 200 (24.67), Gavin Poperechny in the senior 55 hurdles (8.68), Nicolas Brown in the senior high jump (5-6) and open long jump (18-11.75), Adam Bruder in the open 800 (2:10.52), Luke Marsanskis in the open mile (4:49.31) and open two-mile (10:28.97), Darien Drouin in the open pole vault (9-0) and the open 4×200 relay (1:40.48).

In the other meet, Freeport’s boys were second behind York while Yarmouth placed fifth. The Falcons got wins from  Brett Holden in the junior 55 (7.23), Jacob Gormely in the junior 200 (25.40), Nick Mitch in the senior 200 (25.02) and senior 400 (54.53), Rick Tucker in the senior shot put (35-1.25) and Joe Ashby in the open mile (4:54.14), The Clippers got first-place performances from Michael McNeil in the junior shot put (38-6.5).

In the girls’ meet, also won by York, Freeport finished fourth and Yarmouth was fifth. The Falcons got wins from Tara Migliaccio in the junior 400 (1:03.53) and Shaina Curry in the junior high jump (4-8).

Falmouth battles Scarborough, Westbrook and Windham in an SMAA regular season-ending meet Thursday. Friday, Freeport, Greely and NYA take in a part in a meet which also includes Cape Elizabeth, Gray-New Gloucester and Lake Region, while Yarmouth competes against Fryeburg Academy, Poland, St. Dom’s/Lisbon, Traip Academy, Wells and York.

Swimming

Greely’s swim teams split a meet at Kennebunk last week. The girls beat the Rams, 100-85, and the boys lost, 98-71.

Falmouth split with Thornton Academy, as the girls won, 113-54, and the boys lost to the Golden Trojans, 93-49.

Yarmouth swept Massabesic, as the boys prevailed, 117-35, and the girls won, 105-56.

Falmouth was at Bonny Eagle Wednesday, Yarmouth is home against Bonny Eagle Friday and Greely goes to Thornton Academy Saturday.

Skiing

Local Nordic ski teams took part in the Maranacook Waves race Saturday.

In the girls’ meet, won by Gould Academy, Freeport tied Maranacook for second, Maine Coast Waldorf placed eighth and Greely came in 23rd. The Falcons were led by Lily Horne, who was fourth individually with a time of 17 minutes, 57.9 seconds. Teammate Allison Greuel was seventh (18:35.9). Louise Ahearne paced MCW with an eighth-place finish (18:39.7). The top Ranger was Sam Galbraith (66th, 26:50.3). 

In the boys’ meet, won by Maranacook, MCW came in fourth, Freeport placed sixth and Greely finished ninth. MCW was led by Nick Neveu, who was third individually (15:28.9). The Falcons were led by Finn Johanston (18th, 17:05.5). The Rangers’ top finisher was Leif Harvey (27th, 17:28.0).

On the Alpine side, Yarmouth’s girls were first in a six-team giant slalom meet at Shawnee Peak. Greely was runner-up and Freeport placed sixth. The Clippers were led by individual champion Greta Elder, who had a two-run combined time of 1 minute, 4.54 seconds. The Rangers’ top finisher was Elizabeth Hanson (fourth, 1:08.38). The Falcons were led by Isabella St. Cyr (14th, 1:15.89).

In the boys’ meet, won by Cape Elizabeth, Greely was second, Freeport third and Yarmouth fourth. The Rangers featured individual runner-up Alexander Richard (1:04.69). The Clippers were led by Thomas Morris (third, 1:05.79). Liam Grogan paced the Falcons with a fifth-place finish (1:08.52).

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