Hoffer's High School Sports
Hoffer's High School Sports
2026 Spring Sports Preview
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Michael and Tim talk about the upcoming spring sports season, focusing on baseball, softball and lacrosse. The podcast begins with a look back at the first year of Hoffer's High School Sports.
Seaport Credit Union is proud to sponsor Hoffer's High School Sports, demonstrating our commitment to supporting Maine's young athletes both in the classroom and on the field. We invite you to celebrate their dedication and achievements by tuning into Hoffers High School Sports podcast and visiting its website for the most comprehensive coverage of local high school sports. For all of our podcasts, as well as a lot of articles, features, polls, and more, feel free to visit our website at Hoffers High SchoolSports.com.
SPEAKER_00Well, welcome back to the Hoffers High School podcast. I feel like I could I could do that every single time. Do it in some uh ridiculous voice. Would that be alright with you?
SPEAKER_01You do whatever you like. You're uh I'm I'm giving you carte blanche here with the mic.
SPEAKER_00You should never do that. Well, uh we are in my favorite season. Uh we are podcasting today uh on uh April the 14th. Correct. And it is 70 something degrees outside and sunny.
SPEAKER_01It feels like spring, which it doesn't often this time of year.
SPEAKER_00And I don't think it's gonna last, but right now it does. I just I I from for me, I'm I'm watching you walk into the podcast studio in shorts and a t-shirt, and I'm so happy.
SPEAKER_01I'm still in Curacao in my mind. So good trip.
SPEAKER_00Let's do a quick, quick recap. Good trip.
SPEAKER_01Great trip, uh beautiful weather, nice relaxation, batteries charged. Uh yeah, definitely just what the doctor ordered. So but now I'm ready to roll. I mean, I've got all this spring preview knowledge rolling around in my head and you know. Looking forward to a great, I think it's gonna be a great baseball, softball across season, and uh it gets started here in about 48 hours.
SPEAKER_00It's a big uh is a is a big landmark uh date in your uh in your career.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00What happened?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yesterday was the one year anniversary of uh Hoffer's high school sports launching. So pretty exciting stuff. And you know, they say the first year is is the most critical for uh for new businesses, right? And you know, I certainly I was able to get to that threshold. And uh, you know, so many people to thank. Uh, you know, everyone that's subscribed, supported me, either in uh via email, in person, um, you know, all the people that have helped out with with photos and everything else, everything you do is certainly the podcasts have been a great addition to the site. And uh, you know, so all I can do is is be humble and say thank you to to everyone that that's helped make this a reality, and and now it's on to year two, and I'm excited about uh what's to come here.
SPEAKER_00I mean, you get in a in a short time, you get a lot of subscribers with with more pouring in with each each podcast. I like to think that it's a podcast that's doing it.
SPEAKER_01Writing your coattails.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, exactly.
SPEAKER_01No, it's a really good year one, and uh, you know, I'm hoping that the growth continues here in year two. And and certainly I got to shout out Seaport Credit Union. Uh, you know, they've they've been a huge part of this, uh, being my uh exclusive partner here since June. And you know, that's certainly helped me get off the ground and and thrive. And so, you know, like I say, I've got uh it takes a village, right? And I've got uh I've got so many people to thank, and not just the thousand subscribers, but uh, you know, everyone that's that's had a kind, supportive word over the last year.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, well you're you're doing you're doing great work. It's I've always said it's for the last I don't know, I've been coaching for 30 years and and you've been there the entire time for the most part. And I remember the early days of you sending me sending you articles and you you making them sound like they they they made sense and uh and and then to see where you've you've grown to and the appreciation that you're getting from from everybody is well deserved and I'm I'm psyched you're still doing it.
SPEAKER_01No, so am I. And uh no, it's you know I'm very lucky. It beats working for a living. I like to always joke and you know, very fortunate to do what I do, but but enough about me. What do you what do you think of me?
SPEAKER_00I I think you're I think you're wonderful. Uh uh please, you know, we'll take the first caller.
SPEAKER_01Uh yeah, we'll be waiting a while, I think, but no. So enough of that. But uh, you know, what do we got?
SPEAKER_00We gotta get a new spring season.
SPEAKER_01We got a new spring season. Um we're you know, we're about 48 hours away from first pitch from start of the lacrosse season here as we sit here and speak, and you know, we'll we'll we'll kick it off with baseball. I know that's near and dear to your heart. Your boys playing for Portland High this year. New coach uh Billy Barnard, who class of 2019, uh not that far removed from Portland High Baseball, and I know he's he's very uh committed uh to uh to bringing back the the bulldog pride and you know really building this from the ground up. It sounds like there's a really good young core there, and uh, I know there's a lot of excitement around that program, which I'm sure you can speak to better than me.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I mean it's uh you know, you know, not to say anything bad about Kevin because Kevin and uh you know he's got a tremendous amount of baseball knowledge, huge Portland uh Portland fan, uh, you know, alumni, the whole thing. Billy coached underneath him, so you can feel that same pride that that um that Winnie had in Billy's uh Billy's words. Billy's got a little bit more youth, and uh, you know, he's he's he's brought on a couple of new coaches, a couple of younger guys that are specific to you know, one for pitching in in uh in Jonah, uh Nomando, and then and then Tommy Joyce is a hitting coach, and of course Joe Miller uh is the the all-around bench guy.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, he's he's the brains behind the operation, right? But no, I mean sometimes you need an infusion of new blood, and I think you know it's great because you know numbers have been an issue with the program. I think you know having some younger coaches might might help that grow. And you know, it's hopefully they they have some success this year, and that'll that'll help even more. But you know, they're one they're one of the intriguing stories out there. I think you know, Class A South this year, to me, there's several really good teams. I don't know that there's a clear favorite. Yeah, um, you know, Thornton Academy, they were regional finalists last year. They should be excellent. Um maybe they're at the top of the heap at least to start the season, but you know, South Portland's gonna be loaded. Uh Hudson Iaquest is back for his final season. He's gonna be uh you know, not only a top hitter, but a great pitcher for them. Scarborough, they were the best team for 17 games last year, uh almost unhittable pitching staff until they ran into TA and got upset in the semis. You know, I expect they'll be back, even though Eric Swenson's now at the University of Maine. Uh Gorham, you know, talk about losing a great pitcher. Wyatt Neto's now at now dominant, you know, doing really well at Vanderbilt, which is awesome to see. It is really cool. Uh but they have some some terrific talent there still. I think you know they're gonna be very much in the mix. And then there's a lot, you know, can't ever write off Falmouth, right? Um, you know, Mike D'Andrea, coach team, you know, graduation did hit them hard. They got one of the great sluggers in the area, and Jacoby Porter. Yeah, uh, you know, he's gonna be someone that uh is gonna get pitched around a lot, I think. And those that don't pitch around them are gonna see baseballs flying very, very far away. So you know a lot of teams in the mix bitter for we haven't even talked about. They are the defending champs. You know, they snuck up on everyone last year. Uh what a great story they were, first championship in over 40 years. And Keith does a great job. And again, they you know they lost a lot, but I think you know they'll they'll be on the hunt too. And then, you know, you got a lot of these other teams that are just looking to improve over the course of the season. You got Portland, you got Westbrook, you know, Deering, Wyndham, some teams that struggled a little bit last season, you know, just hoping to kind of climb up the ladder a little bit, if all goes well, maybe even get a playoff game. Um, and that's what it's all about, too. I mean, you love to see these programs develop and teams that have struggled for a while kind of return to competitiveness. Uh, those are great stories too.
SPEAKER_00One of the uh one of my favorite things about baseball is is the fact that one rain out, you get it you you know, we have pitching rules now and it changes everything. One rain out forces three games in a week, right? And that changes the entire complexion of an entire season, potentially. And and one team could vault themselves into the playoffs. It's it's all about pitching matchups, pitching in defense, and uh and i if you can teach your kids how to play and stay in games defensively, you know, you're you're right there, and I think there's there's enough um diversity in the in the the groups of pitching staffs that you could you could potentially pull out some wins, you know. Westbrook's got a got a stud over there, then you know Portland's got a couple of kids that can throw and you never know the right matchup, you could you could get some good heel points out of it.
SPEAKER_01That's right, and you know, and weather kind of dominates the whole discussion of spring, right? Because I mean, you know, the season starts generally when it's not very nice out, and you hope to avoid rainouts, and even when you don't have rainouts, it's usually chilly, windy. Uh it's not a lot of fun to be outside, and then at the end of the year, sometimes it's almost too hot. So you know, the the the I guess the the there's light at the at the end of the tunnel, right? I mean, we are the better weather's coming, and when you do have a nice day like we do have today, you want to be outside and take advantage of it.
SPEAKER_00So ideally, guys play baseball. Is that what you're saying?
SPEAKER_01Well, that, and you hope that you have the game scheduled on the nice days as much as you get it. That if there's a nice press box to hang out in if it's cold.
SPEAKER_00It is good. That's your favorite. Yeah. Yeah. All right. Well, you got uh we got uh girl softball. Yeah, they're uh their similar situation, other than that one uh juggernaut.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, there's certainly a clear favorite, I think, in Class A South. And uh that would be Chevris. And you know, you've got Addison DeRoach coming back for her junior season. Yeah, she's now you know made her college decision, Florida State. I think that you know a lot of that stuff weighed heavily on her last year. Uh I think last year was a little more of a challenging season for her, and she still had an unbelievable year, but you know, Chevrolets did lose to Windham in the regional final. Um, you know, they're they're looking to get back where they were two years ago, uh, atop the heap. And it's not just her. I mean, they they're loaded, they've got so many talent. You know, Haley Lamontane's as good as it comes as hitters go. Uh you know, you've got basketball champion players like Anna Goodman and Kylie Lampsen and Abby Kelly and others. Um, some new kids coming in. Um, you know, I think that the the coach Eisenhart over there is gonna have a lot of juggling to do because he's got a lot of talent. It's hard to you know get everyone in that lineup and you know, you try to pinch hit on occasion, or you know, some games where you know might not be competitive, you start some of these other kids, and you know, you pinch run some kids, and that's their main role, and he's done a really good job of that. Uh so when you know these key situations do come and they'll have a few close games, I'm sure. You know, guys, these girls are ready to uh, you know, that yeah, taking an extra base might be the difference between uh going to a championship game and going home.
SPEAKER_00And Wyndham's still gonna be good.
SPEAKER_01Wyndham is still gonna be good, and and I know that they have a big chip on their shoulder because they know they're the champion, they know people are not talking about them as much, but they still have Addie Chiazzo, um, they still have Oakley McLeod, they still have a lot of girls back who Castopolis is. She had a phenomenal freshman season, great, great hitter. She hits Addison DeRoche as well as anybody. Yeah. Um, so you know, they don't have maybe the lockdown pitcher that they've had the last many, many years between Brooke Gary and uh and Kennedy Kimball last year, but you know, they'll do it by committee, and they they will certainly be there. And I'm hearing a lot about Bonnie Eagle. Bonnie Eagle is supposed to have a really, really good team. Uh it's young, yeah. They might still be a year or so away, but I think a lot of people feel like they might be the team that the best challenges Chevris when all is said and done. Uh Gorm's going to be very strong. They still have a really good pitcher in Bella McBrady. And then you've got, you know, the usual suspects. You know, I think South Portland, uh Scarborough. I think you know, teams like that will remain competitive too. Uh, but clearly, you know, the teams at the top are are pretty obvious here. And you know, we'll just see what what Addison DeRoche has in store for her third season because her first two have really been uh stratospheric.
SPEAKER_00For sure. Yeah, I just hope the coach doesn't screw it up over.
SPEAKER_01Well, that that's always the concern. And for the most part, you know, his record is pretty good. Well, he has good assistance too, which is true. I mean, that you're only as good as those around you, and and hopefully they'll rein him in. But no, I mean that that program's been unbelievable for the last couple years. And you know, Class B south's interesting. I think York's still gonna be really, really strong. Uh Freeport had a terrific year ago. They they did graduate a few kids, so they might come back to the pack. I think Yarmouth could take a step up. They've got some girls who have been part of either field hockey, soccer, or ice hockey great seasons this school year. You know, Adelaide Strout's gonna have a great season. She was part of that ice hockey championship team. I think they're a team that could be on the rise. You know, Greeley's always competitive. Um, so yeah, I mean, there's there's gonna be a lot, a lot of good stories. I mean, certainly the one will kind of dominate most, you know, take up most of the oxygen, but you know, you look around, there's gonna be some really good softball played all all over the area.
SPEAKER_00You know what we didn't do, we skipped over Class B. Baseball. Oh, yeah, let's let's not do that. My friends in Cumberland and Yarmouth and Cape Elizabeth and Freeport are not gonna be happy. 100%.
SPEAKER_01No, I mean, yeah, Greeley's the defending champ. I mean, just incredibly dramatic fashion. Last year, they win the regional title on a walk-off. They're down three runs going to the seventh inning of the state game against Ellsworth. They somehow pull that game out, win their first championship in a decade, and they return a ton. Uh, you know, Kyle Sol's gonna be one of the best players around.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Uh no question about it. Um, they maybe don't have the dominant pitching that they have, but they're gonna have really good pitching because they always do. And I think they're still gonna be right up there with the likes of Lake Region, Freiburg Academy. Really, you know, teams you don't normally talk too much about, although Freiburg got to the regional final last year. I think I expect Cape to still be really good. They were the best team in the regular season last year. They got upset by Freiburg in the quarters. Yeah. Uh they'll be there. You know, Yarmouth had a down year by their standards last season. I'd expect them uh to bounce back. But yeah, it'll be interesting there. You know, Greeley will certainly would love to repeat. It's been a decade since they've done that, but it certainly won't come easily.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Well, uh I'm I'm really looking forward to that that side of it. I love baseball and softball, as you know very much. But lacrosse, if it existed when I was a kid, I probably would have played that because of you know, you get to hit people and it's very exciting and the action. Yeah, it's great. It does have appeal. So uh let's start with the girls in uh in lacrosse as a couple of a couple of favorites potentially.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think you know, you look at class A, and last year Wyndham kind of took that final step. I wouldn't say they came out of nowhere, but I think they surprised some people by winning it all. Yeah, uh they won their last 17 games last season and and they were dominant, and they took care of Kennebunk in the state game, which was a little bit of a surprise. And uh, you know, they graduated one really, really good player, but they have a ton back, uh, including uh Abby Trainer, who scored over 200 career goals. She had 93 last year. Wow. I mean, she's just a scoring machine, and then you got Nev Ledbetter, a multi-sport athlete, uh, takes you know, draws, dominates in the midfield. You know, she can score goals too. I mean, you start with that, it's pretty impressive, and then there's a lot of talent uh in reserve. So, you know, they're they know what it's taking to win now. They don't know what it's like to be the hunted, so we'll see how that goes. And then you got Kenabunk, they're really, really hungry. They've always good, they're always good. They're always good, and they've lost two straight years in the state game. So I know they feel like they're due. And they've got three All-Americans back.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that's a rarity to have one on a team. Right, yeah.
SPEAKER_01And it's certainly returning. And so they're loaded, they're hungry. Uh, it's gonna be fascinating to see when those two. I think those two teams only match up once in the regular season, but that's gonna be an absolute battle. Yeah. Um, but they're not, that's not it. You know, Yarmouth had a bit of Yarmouth had been in every state game from 2013 through 2024. Last year they lost in the quarters. Uh, I think this year's team is gonna get be more like those previous teams and make a run uh and try to get to states. It won't be easy, but they're gonna be right there. Um ton of seniors, again, a lot of girls who either won a state title in ice hockey this last winter or you know, played on an undefeated field hockey team right until the regional final. So they've got some accomplished, uh terrific multi-sport athletes. They're gonna be really, really good. Um, I think you know, you you'll you we'll be talking about them and uh Falmouth, can't overlook them. Yeah, you know, Cape Elizabeth, I think you know, they're a team on the rise for sure. And and then you know, there's there's several others that that'll be chasing them down. I think Scarborough, you know, Thornton Academy, I neglected to mention. They had a great breakthrough season last year when they were a very young team. They're uh they've got a new coach, but they're gonna be right there again. Uh that's a team I've heard a lot about from other coaches, you know, going into the season. So I think you it's Chevris, another one. Goodness, I'm leaving people out here. Chevrus uh had a great regular season last year, got upset by Cape in the quarters, but you know, Sydney Brunel's gonna score a ton of goals for them. And uh Taylor Hogwin's another really good player for them. There uh so I think you know it's probably you know, if you tier it, you've got Wyndham Kennebunk probably not very far behind them, uh Yarmouth TA, and then right after that, Chevris Falmouth, and then you know Scarborough maybe trying to break into that tier. So there's a lot of good teams, which means we're gonna see a lot of good games. Yeah, and you know, nothing better than that. And these are all Class A teams, so they're all gonna be battling each other come playoff time. Yeah, and that's why we saw you know, Cape, uh, they were a sub-500 team last year. I think they were the 13 seed. Yeah, they wound up winning two games getting to the state semis. And you know, I wouldn't be surprised to see uh, you know, another team like that make an upset run. Anything's possible there.
SPEAKER_00That's unbelievable. Class B?
SPEAKER_01Class B, you know, Freeport's the defending champ. They were undefeated. They they graduated two generational players, yeah. Uh, you know, Mia Lavek and Lena DeRusso. So, you know, their departure is definitely going to be felt. Uh, but there's still a lot of talent there. I think it's gonna take them some time to hit their stride. They're not gonna go undefeated this time. They know that. They don't really care. I mean, it's about what happens in June, not April. So they'll probably take some lumps early, but I think they're gonna be very tough by the end of the year. Kind of opens the door for Greeley. Uh, they won 2022, 23, 24. Three years in a row, they almost beat Freeport in the semis last year. That game went to double overtime. They could easily be a four-time champ right now. Yeah. And that group uh returns just about everybody. So in my mind, they're probably the favorite. Uh, you know, Mount Arrow got to the state game last year. I think they'll be heard from as well. But, you know, eventually it's gonna come down to Freeport and Greeley. It's either gonna be in the semis or state final. You know, the chances are, you know, for one of those teams to win it, they're gonna have to go through the other. And that's the way it's been the last few years. And class C is kind of interesting now, too. I mean, it's gotten the point, you know, when when we went to three classes, it was kind of it's Wayne Fleet NYA, right? The longtime traditional powers. Now you've got Miranda Cook as the defending champ. You've got Trape Academy who was in the state game, almost won it last year. Wells has been really good in recent seasons. So it's nice to see some of these new worst, and that's kind of the whole point of going to the three classes, develop some of these smaller schools, these schools that don't have the long traditions, and you know, we're seeing that kind of bear fruit now, which has been uh been exciting.
SPEAKER_00It's funny how you uh as you're talking, I'm thinking about you know these these multi-sport athletes that follow kind of follow each other, if you will. But even if they don't, winning becomes contagious. Yeah, you know, because you you're in the same school, you're in the same classes with the kids that are winning, and it gets the kids thinking. You know, I just remember that deering run of ten years where every single sport, with the exception of maybe one, won a state championship. It it gets ingrained in just the expectation. Yeah, yeah, and the expectation of the coaches, and the coaches ramp up their expectations in it. It all of a sudden it snowballs, and you get these, you know, these uh groups of kids that go through together and maybe came up through together watching those kids win state championships. It's it's funny how it, you know, it just becomes ingrained, right?
SPEAKER_01And I don't know, it be maybe it's just anecdotal in my mind, but it feels it feels like there's more multi-sport athletes. It seemed like for a while everyone was concentrating. Um I think there's still a you know a fair amount of that, like in sports like basketball. But it does seem like I've I've got a lot of two and in cases, in a lot of cases, really good three sport athletes. Yeah, and it's nice to see because I th I you know I I want to see these kids, especially at this point in their lives, play as many sports as any as you can when it's free. And it's so and it's so good for you know developing other skills. And I think most even most college coaches will say that. They love it. They want they want multi-sport athletes, and you don't get burnt out as much. And there's just there's so many benefits to it. So that's been kind of cool to see. I mean, I can I can think off the top of my head of a lot of kids that that right now are not just playing three sports, but are excelling in at least two, and in some cases all three.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and lifting lifting their teammates, right? They're bringing they're bringing the level of play up and it's and it's elevating everybody's play. And the coaches, as you get better and better, you get to start coaching to that talent, and all of a sudden everybody's rising to that level, right? So it's fun to watch.
SPEAKER_01And sometimes you have you if you're a champion in another sport, you bring that over. It helps, you know. I you know, we'll we'll talk about TA Boys Lacrosse in a minute, but they've got kids from football, yeah. They've got kids from hockey that won state championships this year, and when you have that, it it can't help but you know, make it make the the spring team want to follow suit, right? You don't want to be the team that doesn't win.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, you look at Chevrous, Chevris girls are sure, you know, they the last couple of years, right?
SPEAKER_01Between field hockey, basketball, ice hockey, and and softball. I mean, they've won so many championships, and there's so many uh common denominators from those teams, right? Girls that play at least two, and in some cases all three of those sports.
SPEAKER_00So yeah, it's cool. It's cool when you see runs runs like that, and uh, and then and then you watch the kids later on in in life and you will can't you try to follow them through college, even though they might go out of town, but it's really it's really neat to watch. But uh all right, let's go let's get the boys uh boys class A uh class A hockey. Uh not hockey. Sorry. We're not there. I'm wishful thinking on that one, but no, no. We're in spring, we don't need to go back to it. Thank you. Thank you.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so boys lacrosse. I mean, certainly the story of the year last year was TA upsetting Falmouth in the state game. You know, we had talked for weeks about how this Falmouth team is gonna be going down in history is the best ever. Yeah. And it certainly, you know, they scored uh, I think 293 goals in their first 16, 17 games. Looked like they were completely unbeatable. It looked like they were gonna live up to that billing, and then June 21st at Fitzpatrick Stadium, TA just a masterclass of coaching, of ball control, of you know, playing the game the way you want to play it, dictating your terms. You know, TA upsets them eight six, wins the championship. No one saw that coming. I bet you give people in Sako sodium pentathal. Most people did not see that coming. Uh it was just one of those amazing upsets to see. And uh and the good news for TA is they've got almost everyone back. Yeah. And this year they'll be the hunted. Um, and but that's fine. They welcome that, and and they know that they're still really, really good. Uh, they've got an all-American caliber defense and men in uh Grady Hersey. Uh, you know, it's funny I mentioned about these multi-sport stars. Uh, you know, Jake Skillings is one of their top players. He just was the uh hockey player, not only the Travis Roy Award winner, he was uh the Hoffers High School Sports Player of the Year. Um, you know, he he was honored in in several different places as a player of the year. So, you know, he brings that over. Uh you've got Connor Ayub, the Fitzpatrick trophy winner from football. Yeah. Uh he uh you know he played basketball. He's never played lacrosse before, but he's gonna come over. They're gonna put a stick in his hand. He's gonna play defense. He might never even have to handle the ball, but are you gonna try to go against that goal when he's standing there waiting to knock you down? I I don't I don't think so. I don't think so. So I you know that again they're gonna be very loaded, and then Falmouth, you know, no motivation required, right? You suffer a loss like last year. The kids that do return, um, you know, they're gonna be able to do that. I know, but they're not talking about it now. And you know, they're all saying the right things, and the coaches are saying the right things, and they're focused on you know, that you learn the lesson and you move on. Um, but that was a tough lesson to learn. Sure is. And they they were hit hard by graduation. They have several kids from that last year's team that are now not only playing in college, but are playing at a pretty high level and and contributing. Uh it just goes to show you how great that team was. Yeah. And it's unfortunate they didn't win in the sense that you know they really would have been immortalized.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Uh they did win the year before, so thankfully they have that. But but this year's team, you know. They they have every bit what it takes. Um, you know, they they're loaded all over the field. They've got that that tradition now. It's called kind of like Cape Now where they just reload. And um, you know, they're reloaded and hungry. And uh, you know, we'll we'll see if it I wouldn't be shocked to see it come down to Falmouth and TA one more time, and that would be a great theater, no question. But you've got Yarmouth, the two-time defending B champ. They have moved up to Class A this year, and they're really good. And uh, you know, they're gonna they're gonna be battling these top teams. I think they're they're well equipped to do it. Uh Cape Elizabeth had a down year last year, but they don't have two down years in a row. I think you're gonna see them bounce back certainly. South Portland's still tough. Um, you know, Scarborough is a team that that that will probably be heard from here in the weeks to come. Um so no, it's it's gonna be you know, Wyndham had a really good season last year. There's there's a lot of good Class A teams, but it's pretty clear that at the top you've got the certainly the two, TA and Falmouth, and I and I think that Cape and Yarmouth are pretty close too. And those teams are gonna be playing each other multiple times. They're just gonna make for some great games in the regular season.
SPEAKER_00Do you do you love watching lacrosse for the speed?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean, it's it's it's a fun sport. It really is. And you know, it I I remember covering it back when it was still a relatively young sport. It didn't even get sanctioned by the MPA until 1998.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_01My first state game was 2001. So it was, you know, it was still relatively young. And in the first several years I covered it, there was one class. Yeah. And then they went to two, and then about a decade later they've gone to three. I mean, it's grown exponentially. And you know, from a baseball perspective, how many kids it's taken away. Sure. Um, you know, maybe that's balanced out a little bit over time depending on what town you're in. But I mean, the younger kids love it, boys, girls, whatever it is.
SPEAKER_00It's just it's fast, it's fast, it's fun. You're moving kids around, you're moving more kids in and out of the game.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, there's not a lot of standing around. God, no. And baseball, you know, if you love baseball, you appreciate what that's all about, but it's not for everybody. And you know, certainly a younger generation, they tend to be like to be overstimulated as opposed to under. Yep. Um, but yeah, no, it it's a it's a great sport to watch, and it's just been amazing to see how that's grown. And it's nice to see some of these, you know, like we talked about on the girls' side. You know, last year you had Morana Cook in the state game, NYA did win, they're a traditional power, but you know, it certainly wasn't easy for them to break through. Wells has been really good. And you've got a school like Waynefleet that was one of the original Boys Lacrosse, they don't have enough kids to have a varsity team. They're joining up with Chevrous this year as a co-op. So, I mean, you you never know, but I think in most communities it's grown dramatically. The class B will be interesting because now with the Yarmouth out, the two-time defending champ, York, who's lost an overtime to Yarmouth each of the last two years, they've got to feel like, all right, you know, we better take care of business this year. I think Reely is going to be dramatically improved. They've got a young core, I think they're going to be really good the next couple years. We'll see if they can quite get to that level this year. Uh, but you know, they'll they'll they'll be in the hunt, and you know, NYA is gonna make another runner at a class C. But I think, you know, they they were hit hard with graduation. They have a pretty small roster too, uh, but they'll find a way to be competitive. So no shortage of storylines on on any of these. You know, the next two months are gonna be fascinating, and you know, these the the big games are obviously gonna be camp missed, but there'll be some surprises in there too.
SPEAKER_00You're obviously looking forward to watching Portland play the most, though, right? Oh, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01I love I love sitting at Hadlock Field, you know. So no, that that will that will be fun. I I wish I could get spread around more. It is it's it's a quick season, right? Everyone more or less plays the same day, same time. So it is hard to get to as many games as I would like. Sometimes though, when things are spread out, you can get to a game at four, a game at 6 30 or something.
SPEAKER_00But maybe you can get Steve Schwartz and uh, you know, maybe he can start broadcasting some games away from you and then you could watch a game and well I'm I'm sure he'd love to do some baseball.
SPEAKER_01He doesn't really do anything in the spring. Uh he does a little umpiring, but I mean, you know, yeah, that's possible.
SPEAKER_00We'll we'll we'll just start expanding. We've got the podcast now for you, and uh next thing you know, we'll be you know, we'll be on TV.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, maybe maybe we should have him in as a guest sometime. We can talk all about that stuff. That'd be great.
SPEAKER_00He'd be he'd go off.
SPEAKER_01But no, I'm definitely looking forward to you know catching up with everyone here this spring. Um by the time this uh this drops, all the previews will be out. And uh, you know, that's that's a labor of love. It's a lot of work, and you know, it's you know 16, I think it was about 60 coaches that I had to get in touch with and you know, mention a lot of kids. That's kind of the whole point of this, is not just mentioning one or two players to watch. Yeah, I really like to I like to get as many kids' names in as I can and you know and go from there. And so yeah, it'll be fun. I think you know, hopefully people will read those and you'll be kind of well versed in on what to expect, and then we'll just kind of have to wait and see uh what drama ensues here over the next several weeks.
SPEAKER_00Well, happy anniversary from everybody who listens to you and reads reads you, and I know it's you are you're don't stop what you're doing because it's I I can't do anything else.
SPEAKER_01I wouldn't know what to do.
SPEAKER_00So I know I've talked to Angie, she told me that's it.
SPEAKER_01No, and she wouldn't want me to stop you. I mean, I can't imagine getting up early in the morning working for someone else. I just I mean, you talk about motivation, I just that's my you know it's my fear of failure because I I don't know I don't know what I would do with myself. So I'll do this as long as people will will let me, and uh hopefully that's many more years.
SPEAKER_00Well, we appreciate you and uh and and I look forward to another another spring of of watching you freeze as you're trying to write in the rain.
SPEAKER_01But the shorts will be on by May. I mean that that's pretty much a rule. So yeah, it'll it'll it'll it'll be a fun season. I look forward to seeing you out there.