WHS field hockey stays neck-and-neck with Gorham but falls in second half

By Matt Pascarella

Windham High’s varsity field hockey team played Gorham at Gorham High School on Tuesday, Sept. 23 and despite a strong start for the Eagles in which they tied the game 1-1 at the half and 2-2 early in the second half, the Rams pushed ahead and outscored Windham 7-2 at the final buzzer.

Windham High senior Abby Trainor keeps the ball away from
Gorham defenders during a varsity field hockey game on
Tuesday, Sept. 23. PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA
 

"I think we did good; we wanted to win really bad,” said Windham sophomore Sarah Smyth, who scored Windham’s two goals. “We just ran out of energy; we put all our best in the second half with the most momentum, but some calls didn’t go our way. We need to come out with that energy that we did in the first quarter and keep it up throughout the second half of the game and keep wanting to win and be first to the ball. I think we did really well with our corners, everybody was where they needed to be, and I think that our fast breaks up the field worked really well, and we did well around defenders. I think just finishing in the circle (needs work), we had a lot of shots, especially in that first half. We had many shots around the goal; they just didn't happen to go in.”

In the first quarter, Windham moved the ball well and defense kept Gorham mostly away from Windham’s goal. Offense had several shots on goal, but nothing went in.

Smyth scored from the corner with less than two minutes remaining in the second quarter which tied the game, 1-1, at intermission.

In the first minute of the second half, Smyth scored on a corner shot as Windham took the lead.

Unfortunately, Gorham scored again and tied the game, 2-2, in the third quarter.

From this point on, Windham would fight hard, but Gorham took a big lead and scored goal after goal. The Rams held a three-point lead over the Eagles at the end of the third quarter.

“I think we definitely could have come out with more positive attitudes in the second half to defeat Gorham,” said Windham junior Morgan McLain. “We started to lose more and more hope after like two more goals (scored) in the third quarter, and I think that we all started to get really, really tired and ... then we couldn't just keep up with ourselves. We can take away from this to not let the scoreboard affect our emotions because we can obviously come back from whatever challenges we face because we are a strong team with a ... lot of good stamina. This has been our first game that's been a challenging one and we're not done. We still have a lot of motivation in us.”

The Eagles continued to fight hard, but Gorham made it difficult.

“(Windham) played the whole game, and they stayed in it,” said Windham varsity field hockey coach Maddy Perfetti. “We made the adjustments that we set out to make at halftime, and it just didn't work for us. There were a couple calls that ended up turning the momentum which was really tough. A lot of it comes down to momentum and who’s going to make more mistakes and who’s going to recover from those mistakes. It feels bad, but the attitude after the game and getting back to work is going to set us up for a good season. It was our first really competitive game, and it showed. We're ready, though. The first half was great; we were with Gorham, even into the third quarter, if not having more possessions than Gorham. Seeing those things and then seeing the attitude after the game, I feel strongly it’s going to be a great rest of the season.” <

Unbeaten Scarborough holds off Windham in boys’ soccer

By Matt Pascarella

Windham went up against undefeated Scarborough at Windham on Monday, Sept. 22 and while the Eagles made it especially difficult for the Red Storm in the first half and kept them scoreless for the first 60 minutes, Scarborough’s defense was equally as tough, and kept Windham scoreless for two halves. At the final buzzer, Scarborough won 2-0.

Windham sophomore Sean Lebel turns to quickly get by an
opponent during a boys' varsity soccer game against
Scarborough on Monday, Sept. 22 at Windham High
PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA 

“I think especially in the first 60 minutes we were creating opportunities,” said Windham senior Daniel Hancock. “We were possessing the ball, winning 50-50s, and that’s just the energy we need to keep the whole game. We were confident on the ball and that led to us getting more opportunities. We know we can play with any team in the state; it’s just playing that 80 minutes and scoring goals. That (scoreless for 60 minutes) gives us a little more confidence, but there’s still a lot of stuff to work on; it’s nobody’s fault, we just got to keep communicating and working at practice. If we fill those gaps in, we’ll be alright.”

Hancock said their problem all fall has been finishing; they need to score. He believes things are going to start clicking soon and they’ll figure it out.

Both teams started with incredibly strong defense. Windham went hard after the ball. Windham fired several shots at goal, but nothing got in.

Windham defense remained strong for the entire half as they made it difficult for Scarborough to score.

Senior Windham goalie Tate Robinson had several nice saves and the game was scoreless after one half of play.

“We prepared for the game really well and we expected to play with them,” said Windham sophomore Sean Lebel. “Our goal was to just hold them off as long as we could and put one in the back of the net, but unfortunately that didn’t happen. We had great opportunities in the first half, and we just ran out of gas in the second half. We were able to pair the ball really well we found marks in the back and when we were on the counterattack, we pushed the ball really quickly; we had a lot of good shots on net.”

Lebel said the mental and physical aspects need work. They need to build up more and stay connected.

In the second half, Windham came out with equal intensity as the first half, but it only lasted the first 20 minutes, which is when Scarborough scored.Windham kept their heads up and continued to fight.

Scarborough scored again, but Windham would not allow any more goals before the final buzzer.

“That first 60 minutes is the best we’ve played all year and that’s a huge success,” said Windham varsity boys’ soccer coach Jeff Neal. “The grind is there, the desire is there, the work rate is there, the believability is there in moments, but it’s not there consistently enough. We got to put the ball in the net and that’s something we’re working real hard at, and we’ll continue to work hard at and day-in-day-out. We had some great chances, it’ll come; everything seems to be right, but it’s not coming up right. We’re not going to get down on ourselves.

"We had some good combination play on the left flank in the first part of the second half but couldn’t connect that run on the finishing ball ... and when you're trying to push it a little bit that's a hard thing to sustain," Neal said. Hopefully we’re going to have some young players step up and we’re going to see some opportunities and just run, if it’s only five or six minutes if it gives some of our first-line guys a breather, I think tactically that’s something we need to look at more. Fuel in the tank – we ran out of it tonight.” <

Windham varsity football falls to Portland in waning minutes

By Matt Pascarella

Windham varsity football wasn’t going down against Portland without a fight in their season home opener at Windham High School on Friday, Sept. 12. The Eagles pretty much matched the Bulldogs touchdown-for-touchdown and led the game at halftime. Portland took the lead after the third quarter; but Windham answered and tied the game at 21 with 10 minutes remaining. Unfortunately, Portland scored late in the fourth quarter to edge out ahead and won, 28-21.

Windham junior Parker Sperry runs toward the end zone
during the WHS varsity football home opener against
Portland High on Friday, Sept. 12.
PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA

“The biggest thing I see is our improvement from last week,” said Windham junior Parker Sperry, who had 104 rushing yards in the game. “We just got to put this game in the past and I think we’ve (taken) a big step since last week and we’ve got to work as hard as we’ve been working at practice and keep getting better. I think we definitely put up a battle against Portland. We got to all focus on our own job, and if we all focus on our own job we can come out with the ‘W’ next week. Effort went well; last week we had bad plays and hung our heads, this week we gave it everything we had and that’s all we need to do to win.”

In the first quarter, Portland had possession of the ball early, but Windham turned them over and took over on downs. The Eagles moved the ball up to a third and goal. Sperry ran the ball into the end zone to put Windham ahead, 6-0, after the extra point failed.

While Windham defense was strong, Portland scored before the end of the first quarter. Windham blocked the extra-point attempt, and the game was tied 6-6 after one quarter.

After Portland scored a touchdown in the second quarter, Windham sophomore Beckett Bragdon returned the kickoff all the way to the Eagles’s 48-yard line. Sophomore quarterback Patrick Davenport, who had 74 passing yards in the game, then connected on a pass to junior Tegan Perkins. Sperry then took the handoff and raced 25 yards for a touchdown. Junior Luke Drottar caught the two-point conversion and Windham led 14-13 at the half.

“We have a lot of young guys out there, and these guys are taking big steps, learning more and more each week throughout practice,” said Windham senior Ty Stahle. “You can see the improvement. We’re all starting to figure out everything we can do and then come together as a team. This was a big game coming in and we’ve been destroyed by Portland before and I’m glad that we fought hard and didn’t give up; I’m pleased with how we played.”

Portland scored another TD in the third quarter, but Windham didn’t let that go unanswered.

On a first-and-goal in the fourth quarter, Davenport ran eight yards for a touchdown. The extra-point conversion was good, and the game was tied 21-21, with just 10 minutes remaining to be played.

With just a little over 2 minutes left, Portland found the end zone to break the tie and take the lead, 28-21.

“I thought we swarmed to the ball pretty well defensively,” said Windham varsity football coach Matt Perkins. “Offensively we executed a lot better, guys made some good plays. We were right in the mix; I saw some really big improvements in our blocking and moved the ball pretty well. We could get better at the defensive-run game for sure. We had a turnover, shot ourselves in the foot a couple times and it caught up to us, but the kids played really well and we drastically improved.” <

Strong second half earns Windham varsity girls’ soccer win over Sanford

By Matt Pascarella

The WHS girls’ soccer team significantly overpowered Sanford at Sanford on Saturday, Sept. 13. Windham led 1-0 going into the second half and really turned up the intensity. The Eagles scored four goals in the second half; two goals from senior Neve Ledbetter, one from junior Mackenzie Delewski and one from freshman Logan Curry and at the final whistle, Windham seized a 5-0 win over the Spartans.

Windham freshman Logan Curry prepares to score a goal
during the final 40 seconds of a girls' soccer match against
Sanford at Sanford High School on Saturday, Sept. 13.
PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA 

“I think in the first half we came out a little slow and we were probably not mentally prepared,” said Ledbetter. “In the second half we came out with more intensity, we worked harder, we played together more as a team and I feel like, overall, it was a better half for us mentally and physically. We played a lot better and showed ourselves in the second half.”

Windham attempted multiple shots at goal early on and their defense kept control of the pitch as Sanford had far fewer scoring opportunities.

On a direct kick late in the first half, Windham senior Marley Jarvais passed to Ledbetter who kicked in into the Sanford net putting Windham on the scoreboard, 1-0.

“Marley’s play was super creative,” said Windham varsity girls’ soccer coach Deb Lebel. “They did (the direct kick) indirectly, without us prompting. Once we made (Sanford’s) keeper go on her side – we knew she could save all those high ones – so we had to start putting it on the ground. (Sanford’s) keeper was extremely good and kept them in the game. We had some really nice shots. In the second half, we told them ‘you got to pick up the intensity just a little bit more.’ And they did. (Windham) started beating (Sanford) to balls, winning balls in the air; not giving up on balls and played through and that’s when we saw goals get to the back of the net.”

The increased intensity made a big difference on Windham’s side of the scoreboard. Delewski scored off a corner kick and a short time later, Ledbetter fired the ball from the side of the goal at just the right angle that it found its way to the back of the net.

With 23 minutes remaining Ledbetter scored again when she got out in front and fired the ball and sent it right past the Sanford goalie.

The Eagles’ defense continued to make things hard for the Spartans and Windham’s offensive attack did not let up the tiniest amount until the final whistle.

But before the match ended, Windham freshman Logan Curry scored her first varsity goal with just 38 seconds left.

"Maya (Dries) got the ball from a great pass and did a through ball right to me and I beat the defender and struck to the corner,” said Curry. “It felt amazing, I like varsity and that means a lot to score. Something that went well was playing the ball to each other and making passes and not just booting the ball. We need to work on pressuring the ball and making runs before the ball gets to the person you need to so we can make that run and potentially score.”

Lebel said this is a great win because the team has traditionally struggled playing at Sanford. She said she hopes this gives the girls confidence to know things are coming together, and if they keep at it, they’ll keep competing with good teams. <

Windham varsity golf works hard in early season match

By Matt Pascarella

Windham varsity golf now plays their home matches at a new location this season and are still getting the feel for the new course. They played Massabesic at home at Point Sebago in Casco, a par 36 course, on Tuesday, Sept. 9.

Windham senior Josh Logan concentrates before he putts
during a prep golf match against Massabesic at Point
Sebago in Casco on Tuesday, Sept. 9.
PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA 

While they lost to the Stags 8-5 in points, this was an improvement over their previous home match where they scored twice as many points this match and did significantly better stroke-wise. Windham hit 14 strokes more than Massabesic (230-244), compared to the 30-plus strokes they swung last week against Gorham. Several Windham players improved on their scores from last week too.

“I played it a little safer today and it was more of just trying to find the fairway rather than get the ball really, really far,” said Windham senior Devin Zachary who was tied with his opponent until the last hole. “My putting was significantly better today ... My distance on my chipping needs improvement. The putting was going great for me today.”

Top Windham scorers included: Zachary who registered a 44 against Massabesic and earned the team one match point, freshmen Riley Gallagher, who shot a 47 and earned the team two match points, and junior Matt Biggs, who shot a 49 and earned the team two match points. Freshman Hunter Pulkkinen also shot a 49 and was all square with his opponent, meaning they won the same number of holes.

“I won my match in stroke-play against my partner,” said Gallagher. “My short game was good, I only had 17 putts, just chipping ... just played good. My driver wasn’t too bad today, but if I can get a little more distance on it, a little bit straighter, that’d be good. My irons have been decent; my short game’s good. It was good (playing against Massabesic).”

Josh Logan, a senior, said last week’s match went a little better for him; he shot a 53 during this match. Everything else was dialed in, but he struggled with putting. His driver was great; on the last hole, he cut the trees and landed 40 feet from the green. His long game was good, but he’s going to work on his putting.

“I think we’re still trying to figure out the course; we’ve been at Riverside for eight years and then coming back here, there’s still a little bit of a learning curve,” said Windham varsity golf coach Adam Manzo. “We’re performing pretty good in practice and then matches come and there seem to be to one or two holes that eat us up or send us down the wrong path, right off the bat. It seems to be the first hole – you get off to the wrong start and ... when you’re five-over after the first hole, it’s hard to bounce back. The freshmen/sophomores seem to be doing pretty well so far; Riley today has been pretty steady. It’s the consistency piece we’re lacking and trying to get better at. The kids have to understand that one hole doesn’t make an entire match, and the kids have to figure out how to make use of the (remaining holes) in the match and not worry about one bad hole here or there. We’re trying to find some middle ground where we’re just a little more consistent day-to-day.” <

WHS varsity volleyball pushes Bonny Eagle to five sets in home opener

By Matt Pascarella

In their first home game of the regular season, Windham varsity volleyball showed they have what it takes to go up against tough teams. In a match that’s best three out of five sets; Windham forced a fifth set, but the Scots won this match, 3-2, at Windham High on Monday, Sept. 8.

Windham senior and team captain Sydney Harmon serves
the ball over the net during the varsity volleyball home 
opener against Bonny Eagle at Windham High on
Monday, Sept. 8. PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA  

“Bonny Eagle pushes back (in the fourth set), but we held our ground and dug deep when we needed to get the points,” said Windham varsity volleyball coach Chris Cloutier. “Our serving did pretty well tonight, we were getting our serves in, we were making (Bonny Eagle) earn their points off our serves, but once it started getting into play, we didn’t keep them involved as much as we needed to – letting our defense try to win the game for us, instead of trying to score all the points offensively.”

In the first set, Windham, along with server senior captain Josephine Sibley put six points on the scoreboard quickly. Bonny Eagle had a few good serves too and was now three points behind the Eagles. Windham had strong volleying and soon it was set point. Bonny Eagle made a small comeback, but the Eagles won this set 25-21.

In the second set, it was close early on; Bonny Eagle took the lead. Windham fought hard, but Bonny Eagle was able to stay out in front. The Scots won this set 25-20.

Set three was similar in that Windham led the Scots early. The game was soon tied, but Bonny Eagle pulled away and won this set, 25-20.

“I feel like it’s so early in the season, this game was a good building block for us,” said Sibley. “We really gave it our all. I feel like we’re going to go far in the ... season. I think (this match) sets us up to know that we can sub people in and they can be equally as successful as our starters. Our team cares for each other, and that they’re going to cheer us on no matter what. Our serving was really good and our serve-receive just needs a little bit of work, but it’s progressively getting better every single season. Our biggest struggle is communication and trusting each other, but that’ll come over time.”

The fourth set was make-or-break, and it was a close one. Windham came out playing aggressively and took a six-point lead. Bonny Eagle was not far behind. The game was tied at 15, then it was tied at 23. The Eagles forced a fifth set as they won, 25-23.

“Our fourth set, we pushed and pushed; our scores kept fluctuating throughout the whole set,” said Windham senior captain Sydney Harmon. “Toward the end of the set we got together as a team and (knew) if we lose this it’s over, and we wanted to win. We kept pushing and pushing, but I think we were all really tired for the fifth set. Our communication was gone because we were so afraid of making mistakes.”

Bonny Eagle jumped out ahead in the final set with a 10-point lead in a set that ended at 15. Windham slowly made a comeback and did avoid being shut out. However, Bonny Eagle had a big lead and won the deciding set, 15-6.

“We yo-yoed a little bit in that match,” said Cloutier. “We had some technical things to clean up that stood out to me and some stuff we’ve been working on like block-coverage, not making the unforced errors ourselves. Our energy yo-yoed as well. In this game you’ve got to be mentally tough in order to pull through, you got to be able to roll through errors and ... let the last error go. That’s a tough thing to learn.”

Harmon said she was pretty happy overall with how things went, although they wanted the win, this match showed they were consistent in important areas of the court and they need to tighten some things up. <

WHS Cross Country team excels in season’s first 5K

By Matt Pascarella

Windham High School’s Cross Country team competed in its first 5K of the season during the Dan Dors Invitational at Lake Region High School in Naples on Friday, Aug. 29. Thunder and lightning delayed the race, but these athletes were ready to give everything they had.

Windham seniors Sydney Broadbent, left, Lila Stanley,
back right, and Emma Fox run down a hill during the
Dan Dors Cross Country Invitational at Lake Region
High School in Naples on Friday, Aug, 29.
PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA

In an effort to beat the rain, both boys and girls ran at the same time. Windham had a strong showing as the girls’ team finished second – only one point behind the first-place school – with a score of 31. The WHS boys’ team finished fourth with a score of 93.

GIRLS

“There was a lot of adrenaline buildup because of the rain, thunder and lightning delays ... that kind of added to the excitement on the start line, starting with boys and girls running together,” said Windham senior Sydney Broadbent who crossed the finish line first for Windham and fourth overall, with a 22:37-minute time. “It was a really exciting way to kick off the season. It feels good to run as a whole team, you can run with the boys and pace with them. I think we did amazing ... for it being the first 5K this season.”

Windham senior Lila Stanley was second to cross the finish line for Windham, fifth overall, also with a time of 22:37.

Emma Fox, a senior, finished third for Windham, sixth overall, with a time of 22:40. Fox set a personal record for herself with this time.

Fifth to cross the finish line for Windham and 12th overall was Demetria Nicholas with a time of 24:54.

BOYS 

“We all did very good, we pushed ourselves,” said Windham senior Gavin Lawler who finished first for Windham, fifth overall, with a personal record of 18:45. “We had a meet two days ago as well, bouncing back from that was challenging. I had a good group to pace with, my teammates (junior) Mason (Bragdon) and (senior) Caleb (Saucier) with me. They pushed me as far as they could go and overall, I feel we did pretty good as a team. Running with the girls gave me more motivation to push further.”

Second to finish for Windham was Bragdon with an 18:56 time, seventh overall.

Saucier finished third for Windham, eighth overall, with a time of 18:58.

Reid VanDerburgh, a sophomore, finished fourth for the team with a time of 23:34.

Junior Morgan Willey finished fifth for Windham with a time of 24:15.

“We couldn’t do the course walk because of the weather,” said Windham Cross Country girls’ and boys’ coach Paula Pock. “Which I think a lot of the kids use to get mentally prepared. I told them to just trust it; if this isn’t exactly where you think you should be right now that’s ok. They ... rolled with it, so I was really proud of them. They all did a great job pacing. I know a lot of the girls got personal records, and we weren’t really gunning for that at all, so now they have a lot of confidence for the rest of the season and can use that as a building block for their next meet.”

Assistant coach Julia Parmakian said Windham looked really strong it was nice to see them pushing each other. <

Raymond’s Casual Kicks adult kickball group provides physicality in competitive, friendly environment

By Matt Pascarella

Raymond Parks and Recreation’s Casual Kicks adults-only kickball group has had a very exciting and community-building six to seven weeks each Wednesday night. They’ve been playing competitive, friendly games of kickball for most of the summer as a way to get out and exercise, while making friends with members of the town.

Raymond resident Samuel Glidden kicks the ball to the
outfield during Raymond Parks and Recreation's
Casual Kicks group kickball game at Sheri Gagnon
Memorial Park in Raymond on Wednesday, Aug. 27.
PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA

The Casual Kicks group had their final summer game at Sheri Gagnon Memorial Park in Raymond on Wednesday, Aug. 27.

“Personally, growing up I was a big soccer fan,” said Raymond Parks and Recreation Director Riley Silvia. “I wanted to do something ... everyone can do and something that’s chill for adults because we do a lot of youth programs and we’re trying to find something that adults can do and bring the community together during the summer. It’s been a pretty consistent group of at least 20 to 25 people every week. I think people kind of came the first week and didn’t know what to expect, and they were so happy to be here and wanted to return every week. It’s a great community event to bring the town together.”

The atmosphere was electric before, during and after the start of the game; everyone was mingling and having a good time. Since this was the final game of the summer, the group had a big cookout to celebrate the successful summer season.

“Some of our friends were joining and peer pressured us into joining and I’m so glad we did; it’s been a blast,” said Raymond resident Mandi Stevenson. “The whole family looks forward to Wednesday nights; the kids get together while we’re here and my husband and I get to get a little bit of exercise and also a little bit of social life, which we don’t normally get, so that’s nice. I just want to mention how awesome Riley has been organizing this – she’s been a rockstar for us.”

Samuel Glidden, a Raymond resident, said he joined the kickball group as a way to stay active while being with friends and the community, while showing the kids the importance of an active lifestyle. For Glidden, it’s been something he really looked forward to. He liked having that friendly, competitive spirit combined with community comradery and physical fitness.

“When (Riley) first brought it up, we were a little hesitant to do it because I’m 42, I’m going to hurt myself,” said Raymond resident Derek Milone. “Then everyone in the community said you got to do it, I signed you up. So, we said let’s do it. It’s been a great way to intermingle sport parents without being on the sidelines. It’s enabled us to scratch our own competitive itch and also stretch muscles and break things. The kids love it too, it’s almost like a juxtaposition, the kids get to watch us, and we get to have a little bit of fun.”

Raymond residents want other members of surrounding towns to know that Raymond Parks and Recreation are a super welcoming group and the more the merrier; residents and non-residents are welcome to sign up. The department is working hard to make sure that everyone, of all ages, are involved in something.

Milone says they are hand-over-foot improving the lives of Raymond residents.

“It’s a great community to get involved in, it’s a way to meet people,” said Silvia. “We have such a great community around us and (Raymond Parks and Recreation) is a great way to gather together, and to meet people. I see it growing. I’m really glad we made this decision this year and kickball will continue in the future.

For more details about available programs, visit their website at Raymond.recdesk.com or call 207-655-4742. <