An era ended Tuesday when Ella Millard scored an overtime goal to lift sixth-seeded Waynflete to a 1-0 victory against third-ranked Georges Valley in a Western Class C girls’ soccer quarterfinal at Thomaston.
It was the last game for the Buccaneers. Next year, Georges Valley will merge with Rockland to form Oceanside High in Rockland.
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“It’s very difficult for me to deal with it right now,” said Darryl Townsend, who became the Georges Valley coach in 1994, midway through its first varsity season. “It hasn’t quite sunk in, totally. But when I think about it, it’s awfully hard to talk about it.”
Instead of competing as a Class C team in the Mountain Valley Conference, the Mariners, the mascot for the new high school, will play in the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference’s Class B division.
“There’s no doubt in my mind my girls can play in that league,” Townsend said.
In their 17 varsity seasons, the Bucs never failed to make the playoffs. Georges Valley won the Class C state championship in 2009 and the Western Class C title in 1997.
“Even though the Rockland program has not been successful, they’ve got some good athletes, and I expect the new team to be competitive and will at least try to make some noise,” Townsend said. “I expect them to go over there and compete with the Winslows, the Gardiners, the Camden Hills and the Medomak Valleys.”
At this point, Townsend, a Georges Valley graduate, isn’t sure whether he will follow his girls to Rockland.
“I have to make a decision by Thanksgiving,” he said. “I just need some time to talk to my family.”
One benefit of playing in the MVC is the girls’ and boys’ games are on different days. In the KVAC, games usually are scheduled on the same day at different sites.
Townsend’s oldest son, Drew, just finished his second varsity season at Georges Valley. Next season he will play for Oceanside.
“He’s got two more years,” Townsend said. “Because we played on off days in the Mountain Valley Conference, I saw just about all his games.”
UNBEATEN BRUNSWICK will have to pass through several teams from the KVAC’s North Division to make its second consecutive trip to the Class A final.
During the regular season, the Dragons, the defending state champions, play teams from the KVAC South. They didn’t play any of the teams left in the Eastern Class A tournament.
“To see someone different, I think, is kind of good,” Coach Martyn Davidson said. “When you play a team and you’ve already beaten them twice (during the regular season), and you’ve got to play them again (in the tournament), that can be a problem. The other team has got absolutely nothing to lose in that situation. They come in and just give it a go.”
Top-seeded Brunswick will host No. 5 Hampden Academy in a regional semifinal Saturday. The winner will advance to next Wednesday’s regional final to play the Waterville-Bangor winner.
THE MAINE soccer coaches’ 16th annual Senior Bowl is Nov. 14 at Hampden Academy.
The girls’ game starts at noon and the boys’ game at 2:30 p.m.
The organization will hold its 37th annual soccer coaches’ banquet Dec. 5 at the Spectacular Events Center in Bangor.
Staff Writer Paul Betit can be contacted at 791-6424 or at:
pbetit@pressherald.com
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