Windham/Gorham Middle School Wolfpack wrestling shows improvement as season nears end

By Matt Pascarella

In one of their final meets of the season, the Windham/Gorham Middle School Wolfpack wrestling team hit the mat against Sanford and Thornton Academy at Windham on Thursday, March 21 and showed how much they’ve improved over the course of the season. The Wolfpack defeated Sanford, 54-11, but lost to Thornton Academy 39-18.

Windham seventh grader Nate Somma, right, faces off against
a Thornton Academy Middle School opponent on Thursday,
March 21 in Windham. PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA 

“It was great to be back on the mat again,” said Windham eighth grader Patrick Davenport, who hadn’t wrestled for a couple weeks because of health reasons. “I really love ... the intensity of wrestling, it’s a great sport. It was great to be back; I have nerves a lot but I didn’t have much hesitation; I wanted to come out and have fun ... I made the most of it and got a pin. I think overall we did very good as a team. We worked really hard on getting out from bottom. We struggle with that, and locked hands and we didn’t have one locked hands call, and we got out most of the time on bottom so I’m pretty proud of the team for that.”

During Davenport’s match, he got his Thornton Academy opponent off balance and then took him right to the mat. He worked hard and forced his opponent onto his back and got the pin.

Gorham seventh grader James Swan was quick to take down his Thornton Academy opponent and held him there, cradling. Swan pinned his opponent after three rounds. In his second match he brought his Thornton Academy opponent to the mat and got the pin.

In Gorham seventh grader Lucision Roy’s first match, he worked to get his opponent’s shoulders on the mat and got the 9-5 win after three rounds.

Gorham seventh grader Devon Paradis escaped being pinned by a Sanford opponent. He battled for three rounds and eventually pinned him in the third round.

Windham eighth grader Jake Burke fought hard against Thornton Academy, and did avoid getting pinned, but lost, 7-1.

Gorham sixth grader Jimmy Costello was very aggressive during his match against Sanford. He won with a very impressive 15-0 score.

Windham eighth grader Maddox Butler brought his Sanford opponent to the mat in mere seconds and a very short time after that secured the pin.

Windham seventh grader Jullian Nappi pinned his Sanford opponent; Windham sixth grader Grady Johnson also pinned his Sanford opponent.

Windham seventh grader Nate Somma wrestled the current Thornton Academy Middle School state champion Quentin Cofone. in his match. He’d faced Cofone a few times before, and although he lost – he was able to force a sudden-death round and only lost by one point, 2-1.

“It was a really big moment for me because I wrestled him twice and the first time he beat me in the third period by pinning, and the second time he sprained my leg,” said Somma. Losing by only one point was really good.”

Somma thought Windham/Gorham performed well in the meet. They’ve been struggling for the past two weeks to listen and participate but they pulled it together and did a lot better by cheering each other on since the last meet.

Windham eighth grader Tristen Merchant took down his Sanford opponent. Merchant worked to flip him and get the pin; although he didn’t, Merchant won 12-0.

“The kids have been steadily improving all year showing what they’ve been working on in practice,” said Wolfpack wrestling coach Nick Buckley. “They wrestled hard; great sportsmanship that I always like to see, they supported their teammates well which always makes us coaches proud. I thought we got the first takedown almost every match ... to wrestle with a lead, gave us a win. We got a young team; we’ve taken our lumps but we’re improving; we need to ride tougher on top.” <

Raymond Roadrunners soccer comeback effort falls short against Durham

By Matt Pascarella

The Raymond Roadrunners came back from a 3-1 deficit to force a 3-3 tie, but a late goal gave Durham the victory during a middle school soccer game on Tuesday, Oct. 11 at Jordan-Small Middle School in Raymond.

Raymond seventh-grader Niko Powers keeps his focus as he
takes the all to the goal during a coed middle school soccer 
game against Durham at Jordan-Small Middle School on
Tuesday, Oct. 11. PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA
 

The coed Roadrunners squad played this game a little different than the traditional two halves; instead, they played three periods. The teams were scoreless after one period and Raymond was up 1-0 after two periods of play.

In the third period, Durham jumped out to a 3-1 lead. Raymond was quick to tie it. Eventually Durham went ahead 4-3 with just a few minutes left.

“I think we played really well,” said Jordan-Small seventh-grader Sean Lebel, who scored two of Raymond’s three goals. “I think just playing in the midfield and being able to get a stop before it went on to [Durham’s] side [went well].”

Lebel said compared to the first time they played Durham earlier in the season, Raymond had a better offense and defense in this game.

The match began with very high energy from both sides. The first period was a match of two very strong offensives and even stronger defenses. For the first 30 minutes neither team was able to score.

In the second period, Raymond defense remained tight with excellent hustle which stopped Durham from possible scoring opportunities. On a Raymond corner kick, seventh-grader Sabri Igiraneza was there to knock the ball past the Durham goalie giving Raymond a 1-0 lead.

Raymond seventh-grader Brooklyn Roi said she thought the game went well. Durham is tough team, but Raymond scored several good goals. Roi said that Raymond played much better game against Durham this time than previously. Roi said passing and improved communication on the field really helped Raymond; they were also aggressive and communicated with lots of crosses and passes.

Durham made up for lost time when they tied the game from a corner kick early in the third period. Durham took a 2-1 lead after another goal.

Lebel then scored to close the gap. Raymond kept up the intensity and Lebel scored again a few moments later when he kicked the ball from the top of the penalty area and it flew right over the goalie’s head and tied the game at 3-3.

Raymond fought hard during the remaining time, but Durham was able to score again with less than three minutes left and held onto the lead as the clock ran out.

“Our defense is playing way better than they have been,” said Raymond Roadrunners soccer coach Scott Allen. “Some of our starters getting after it, hustling; we were down 3-1 and ... they weren’t afraid to come back. The season has been great – our only loss has been to Durham. It’s rough, but it was a close one. We’ll get them next time.” <

Rising Eagles basketball program prepares middle-school athletes for future

Seventh-grader Tyree James goes in for a layup 
during a Rising Eagles basketball practice on
Thursday, Oct. 22 at the Manchester School courts.
The Rising Eagles program seeks to teach
student-athletes about basketball as well as character, 
both on and off the court.
PHOTO BY MATT PASCARELLA   

By Matt Pascarella

Windham Youth Basketball Association’s Rising Eagles program has opened this fall for Windham and Raymond seventh- and eighth-grade students.

They practice behind Manchester School in Windham. The boys’ varsity basketball program felt more should be done to prepare younger players who wanted to make the transition from youth basketball to high school basketball.

The ultimate goal of this middle-school program, which is provided at no cost to parents, is to help kids learn and enjoy the game.

Windham varsity basketball coach Chad Pulkkinen, assistant varsity coach Noah Estey, junior varsity coach Geoff Grigsby, former varsity player and captain Ivan Kaffel and former president of WYBA, Pat Moody, are serving as coaches in the first year of this program. They are helping middle school kids learn what it takes to reach their full potential, on and off the court.

On a car ride back from a coaching clinic over the summer, Pulkkinen and Grigsby dreamed up the idea for the Rising Eagles program. The high school basketball program had been trying to bridge the gap from youth basketball to high school basketball and Rising Eagles was a way to do it.

Seventh-grader Tyree James said the program was a good opportunity to get better at playing the game he loves.

“We think it’s important to give back to the community, give a financial break to the parents, and give
kids that chance to have fun with their friends in a pressure-free environment,” said Windham junior varsity coach Grigsby. “We really don’t have any expectations of the kids as far as performance. It’s all about improvement and learning.”  

It teaches the fundamentals of basketball and helps the athletes understand spacing, timing, movement, and unselfishness. The program stresses the importance of good sportsmanship and character. It wants to give athletes an idea of what is expected of them on the high school court.

Eighth-grader Connor Janvrin wants to get better at basketball and Rising Eagles teaches him skills to get up and down the court.

“Our town has some incredible kids who are hungry, hard-working, respectful and talented,” said Pulkkinen. “Selfishly for us coaches it allows us to understand and gain relationships with young student athletes well before they reach the high school level.”  

In addition to practices, the coaches have been entering the athletes in Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) tournaments. Windham has done extremely well; applying the lessons they’ve learned during practices. It’s not wins and losses that are important, but how they compete, fight through adversity and enjoy themselves on the court.

“It’s important for us to give back to our community to help be a small part in their athletic development ... as they progress through middle school into high school,” said Pulkkinen. “The
willingness of our staff to give back and volunteer their time has been incredible; it will really help start a foundation for our program and it will allow our youth an opportunity to work with former players and current coaches at Windham High.” <

Middle School summer track team does well in state tournament

Jacoby Burton

By Matt Pascarella

Thirty-nine athletes competed in the state track meet held at Brewer Community School on Saturday, August 10^th. In order to qualify, athletes had to place in the top four in their event at the qualifier meet within their division. During states, the top six in each division for each event are recognized for their achievement with a medal as they compete against towns from all over the state.

Over the summer, athletes from kindergarten through eighth grade competed in a series of developmental track meets each week to gain experience in their events, to get the chance to compete against kids from different towns in southern Maine. There were 70 athletes on the roster, making this was one of the largest teams in recent years. This year’s team was twice the size of last year’s team.

The meet itself was packed with athletes from everywhere in Maine. As I watched Windham athletes compete in the various events, I saw determination and focus. The heat couldn’t stop these Eagles from giving 100%. The Windham team had been working hard all summer and it showed. Here are some of the results:

Annalynne Goodwin finished first in the girl's eight and under shot put and sixth in the high jump. Katie Martin finished fifth in the girl's nine and ten 200-meter race Ava Gerrity finished second in the 11 to 12 girl's high jump, fifth in the girl's 11 to 12 grade 200-meter race, and fourth in the 11to 12 grade girl's long jump. The boy's eight and under 4x100 relay of Cody Ruth, Callum Crockett, Jacoby Burton, and Landyn Crossman came in first place. Cooper Dickson placed fifth in the eight and under boy's race walk. Jalen Stephens placed fourth in the nine and ten boy's shot put. Paris Knight placed sixth in the boy's nine and ten race walk. Lukas Hammond placed fourth in the 11and 12 80-meter hurdles and second in the 11and 12 boy's long jump. Daniel Hancock placed sixth in the 80-meter hurdles. The 11 and 12 boy's 4x100 relay team of Marek Slomczynski, Nick Verrill, Karl Longstreth, and Jason Marsh placed fourth. Jason Marsh placed fifth in the 11 and 12 boy's race walk. The 13 and 14 boy's 4x400 relay team of Garrett Crossman, Jackson Kingsley, Creighty Dickson, and Nick Marion placed third and took almost 11 seconds off their seed time. The 11 and 12 coed relay team of Daniel Hancock, Demi Nicholas, Meg Kingsley, and Dylan Crockett placed sixth.  The 13 and 14 coed team of Adriyanna Edge, DJ Stephens, Garrett Crossman, and Caitlyn Marsh placed fifth. “The goal of the summer track program was to develop interest and enjoyment in the sport of track and field through the use of instruction on event basics, work outs, games, and activities. We also stress the importance of sportsmanship and team work,” remarked coach Philip Jackson. “This was a very hard working group of athletes who used what they learned in practice and applied it to the meets. As a coaching staff, we stressed the importance and belonging of each athlete on the team and had the belief that everyone has something to contribute to the team. The kids really enjoyed the aspects of competition, making progress in their events, and the friendships that are developed with teammates and kids from other towns.”