BY GARY HAWKINS
Correspondent
Skowhegan, Gardiner and Winthrop all finished atop their respective divisions according to final Heal points released by the Maine Principals’ Association.
Three time defending Class A state champion Skowhegan finished the regular season as the only unbeaten, untied team in the state at 14-0 and will be a favorite to win its fourth straight title and 19th overall. Elsewhere in Class A North, Mt. Blue edged Cony for the second overall spot and will host Bangor in a quarterfinal game next week while Cony will host No. 6 Oxford Hills, a team it defeated 2-1 this season. Mt. Ararat secured the No. 4 spot and will host No. 5 Messalonskee, which won the regular season meeting 3-1. Skowhegan, which will enjoy home-field advantage untilt eh regional final, hosts No. 8 Edward Little.
Gardiner finished at 13-1 in Class B North but there are a half dozen teams that could make a run at the regional title, including defending Class B state champion Maine Central Institute which handed the Tigers their only loss.
“It’s always nice to have success,” MCI coach Nancy Hughes said. “But once it’s over, it’s over.”
The Huskies finished fifth at 10-4 and will travel to No. 4 Belfast, a team that beat them 2-1 in the regular season.
“That was a great game,” Hughes said. “We out-shot them handily. Moving forward every game is a close one.”
Foxcroft Academy (13-1) finished second in the division followed by Winslow and Belfast, both 12-2, MCI, Lawrence, Old Town, Nokomis, John Bapst and Erskine. Winslow will host Lawrence, having beaten the Bulldogs twice in closely contested games in the regular season. Lawrence has a win this season against MCI, a team that defeated Winslow
Gardiner plays the winner of the John Bapst-Nokomis preliminary roud game while Foxcroft meets the winner of the Erskine-Old Town contest.
Defending regional champion Winthrop breezed through the regular season in Class C North until sustaining a 3-2 loss to Class C South leader Mountain Valley ih the regular-season finale..
“It’s absolutely a good thing, a good reality check for them,” Winthrop coach Jess Merrill said of the loss.
The Ramblers who split with Mountain Valley in the regular season dominated the second meeting except on the scoreboard.
“We controlled midfield,” Merrill said. “We just didn’t control their long balls.”
Winthrop is playing its quarterfinal game Wednesday against Boothbay in Lewiston on turf, where the team can execute its passing game.
“Our field is so bumpy,” Merrill said. “We didn’t want to take any chances with the bonces.”
The rest of Class B North includes Dexter, Mt. View, Piscataquis, Orono, Maranacook, Sterans and Boothbay. Maranacook began the season at 0-4 but finished 5-5 over its last 10 games to readh the tournament. The Black Bears will travel to Thorndike to play Mt. View (9-5) and team it lost to 3-09 in the regular season.
“I’m pretty excited,” first-year Maranacook coach Ashley Work said of reaching the tournament. “It’s a big victory.”
Maranacook and Mt. View each benefited from playing a Class B schedule.
“Playing Class B helps our skill level,” Work said.
Oak Hill (9-5) finished fourth in Class B South and will host No. 5 St. Dominic, which won the Class C state title a year ago. The teams did not meet in the regular season.
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