Football

Sport: Football

Coach: Aaron Filieo

Last year’s record: 9-2

Key players: Ezra Wolfinger, Tom Foden, Finn Melanson, Kyle Piscopo, James Martin, Brian Stephenson, Lucas Morin, Caleb Tracey and Brenden Shields.

Key games this season: York, Falmouth, Wells and Mt. Valley

Season outlook: Once again, the season (and home field advantage in the playoffs) could all come down to the Capers annual showdown with rival Mountain Valley. This year, the Capers have the advantage as the game is scheduled to be played at Cape’s Hannaford Field on Oct. 30 at 7 p.m.

But for that game to mean anything, the Capers have to stay focused and win the other games on their schedule. Filieo said that besides Mountain Valley, York, Falmouth and Wells would also be key games for Cape Elizabeth this season.

“We aim to be as competitive as we have been the past few years,” Filieo said. “We are rebuilding a bit on defense while we return all of our skill players from last year’s squad. We have a strong senior class that hopes to be a championship contender through hard work and a positive attitude.”

Boys soccer

Coach: Ben Raymond

Last year’s record: 10-2-2, lost to Scarborough in the Class A regional final

Key players: Ben Brewster, Brock Barritt, Will Desena, Harper Nelson, Jack Queeney, Cam Brown, Patrick Kelley, Tim Lavallee and Nick Breed

Season outlook: The Capers came close to a regional title last fall, and Raymond said he thinks that Cape can challenge again this season. “The expectations for the season are high, we return a group of solid players who are mixing very well with some younger players,” he said. “Throughout the preseason, the players have been developing well and are beginning to grasp our system of play. We expect to play quality soccer every single game and compete for a state title.”

Girls soccer

Coach: Gary Newell

Last year’s record: 6-8 regular season; defeated Scarborough in a prelim game and lost to No. 4 Greely in the quarterfinals

Key players: Seniors: Meredith Riker (Mid); Colleen Thibeault (Def); Emma Goldbas (Mid). Juniors: Abby Armstrong (Def); Lexi Weatherbie (GK); Karyn Barrett (Forward); Anna Darling (Mid)

Season outlook: Newell said that he is looking for the Capers to make another playoff push this season. He said he is impressed by what he has seen from his team during the preseason. “This year’s squad has chemistry, tremendous senior leadership and skill,” he said. “We look to make the playoffs and build upon last season’s success.”

Field hockey

Coach: Darci Holland

Last year’s record: 6-8-1

Key players: Kelsey Maguire, Bella Robinson, Julia Springer, Ruth Perkins and Gabe Donahue

Season outlook: The Capers will be fielding a young girls soccer squad this season, with only five players returning from last season’s team. Still, Holland said she had high hopes for the Capers. “The five that are returners are good leaders and I hope for them to play big roles for us this season,” she said. “We also have some newcomers that are promising and I am excited to watch their skills grow this year. I think this young team has a lot of potential and I’m looking forward to coming together as a team.”

Boys cross country

Coach: David Weatherbie

Last year’s record: 14-2

Key runners: Reid Douty, Peter Brigham, Thomas Bottomley, Bobby Yokabaskas, Leo Ledman and Sean Thomas

Season outlook: The Capers look to be in good shape this season, returning six of the team’s top eight from last year’s Western Maine Conference, regional and state Class B runner-up team.

“With the return of a healthy Reid Douty combined with the experience gained from last year’s championship season by Brigham, Bottomley, Yokabaskas, Ledman and Thomas, the team should contend for a top three spot in the state again this season,” Weatherbie said. “We will get a good look at Greely on Sept. 4 and that will give us a fairly good indication of how we stack up. We fully expect our great rivalries with Greely, Falmouth and York to continue. Our ultimate goal is to contend for the state championship. As always, it will come down to which team progresses more over the season and executes their race plan best.”

Girls cross country

Coach: Mary Ann Doss

Last year’s record: 5-1 regular season, won Class B state championship

Key runners: Emily Atwood, Hannah Doss, Kelsey Barton, Rachel Nichols, Catherine Tierney, Skyler Dunfey, Ellen Best and Emma Inhorn

Season outlook: The Capers return all five of their top runners from last season. Doss said that the goal for the team is the same that it is every year, win the state championship. “If everybody stays healthy, that shouldn’t be too much of an issue,” she said.

Volleyball

Coach: Rob Thompson

Last year’s record: 2-12

Key players: Seniors: Amelia Bothel, Alicen Johnson, Lily Kalikow, Morgan Pillsbury and Anya Staszko. Juniors: Lena Castro, Lucy Hewitt and Catherine Powell.

Season outlook: This will be the second year for Cape’s varsity volleyball program, and Thompson is excited to see the program continue to progress and grow. “Each of these players bring an incredible amount of enthusiasm, energy, and solid volleyball skills to the team,” the coach said about his seniors. “This year, Cape will be focusing on skill, hustle, sportsmanship and the value of teamwork as we attempt to maximize our potential.”

Golf

Coach: Bill McGary and Nick Sansone

Last year’s record: Missed regional tournament by one stroke

Key golfers: Will Pierce, Connor Moloney, Wilson LaPrade, Ben Morse, Will LaBlond, Ben Burman, Ian Leonard, Rob MacDonald, Brad Dickinson, Vinnie Dell’Aquilla, Sam Koslowski, Brandon Nagele and Connor Sullivan

Season outlook: McGary said the Capers, Class B state champs in 2007, are looking to make some noise in the tournament this season. “We’re going to be strong,” he said. “The toughest competition will be York and Falmouth. (But we’re) planning to make regionals this year.”