OAKLAND — Moments after his North Yarmouth Academy girls’ soccer team accepted the trophy for their 7-0 win over Rangeley in the Class D South final Tuesday, Coach Ricky Doyon spoke to his team. Enjoy this, Doyon said, but remember, you’re not done.
“Today was a really good day. Now we’re ready for the championship,” said NYA junior midfielder Angel Huntsman.
The top-seeded Panthers (16-0-1) will face Wisdom, which won the D North final with a 3-0 win over Penobscot Valley, in the Class D state championship game Saturday in Presque Isle. No. 2 Rangeley ends 11-4.
This is the third straight regional title for NYA. The Panthers won the Class D state title in 2018 and 2019. Because of the pandemic, there was no tournament in 2020, and those teammates who missed out last season were in the thoughts of the current NYA squad.
“This year is about more than the people here today,” Huntsman said. “A lot of seniors missed out last year.”
NYA cruised through the regional tournament, earning a 7-1 win over St. Dominic and a 5-0 win over Richmond to advance to Tuesday’s regional final.
“We knew this was going to be a battle, for a lot of reasons,” said Rangeley Coach Jeff Hawksley.
The Panthers were in control of this game from the start, and led 4-0 barely 12 minutes into the game when Anna Belleau scored on a penalty kick. NYA was helped by a pair of own goals put in by the Lakers defense as well. Jasmine Huntsman’s goal two and a half minutes into the game started the scoring for the Panthers, who were focused on a fast start.
Rangeley keeper Winnie Larochelle dives to try and stop a shot by North Yarmouth Academy’s Anna Belleau during the Class D South girls soccer championship game Tuesday at Messalonskee High School in Oakland. Belleau scored on a penalty shot. Michael G. Seamans/Morning Sentinel
“That was the key. The goal was to get out on them immediately. I know they only had a couple subs, so the goal was to tire them initially. Go out quickly and see what pressure they can take,” Doyon said.
Rangeley goalie Winnie LaRochelle had a strong game, making a number of good saves under near constant pressure from the Panthers attack.
“Winnie’s been strong all year long for us. Most of our season, she hasn’t been pushed very hard because we’ve been pretty strong in our conference. When she’s called on, she gets the job done,” Hawksley said.
“She made some great saves. She’s really good, one of the better (goalies) we’ve seen,” Doyon said of LaRochelle.
NYA keeper Charlotte Harper-Cunningham faced just one shot on goal, a Bree Quimby chance seven minutes into the second half.
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