As September gives way to October, the drama is ramping up.

The first hardware of the fall sports season will be awarded Saturday and while the golf season might be coming to an end, things remain very interesting in football, soccer, field hockey, volleyball and cross country.

Here’s a recap of the week that was and a glimpse at what’s to come:

Football

Freeport’s football team improved to 3-0 Saturday with 14-7 victory at Fryeburg Academy. Quarterback Anthony Panciocco’s 11-yard touchdown run put the Falcons up, 7-0, at halftime. After the Raiders drew even in the third period, Panciocco scored again, from 8-yards out, midway through the fourth quarter for the winning points. Panciocco ran for 21 yards and two scores and went 5-of-9 passing for 119 yards. Adam Ulrickson gained 54 yards on 18 carries. Joe Coleman caught four passes for 118 yards. Defensively, Miles Panenka and nine tackles, Ulrickson had five tackles and an interception, Tre Morris made five tackles, Danny Fox had four tackles and three pass deflections and Treyvon Murhammer registered three tackles and a sack.

Freeport (fourth in the Class C Crabtree Points standings at press time) travels to 2-2 Cape Elizabeth Friday (see pressherald.com/forecaster-sports/ for game story). The teams didn’t meet in 2018.

The Falmouth/Greely co-op squad got back in the win column and improved to 2-2 after a 31-28 home win over Mt. Blue Friday. A 29-yard touchdown pass from Nick Mancini to Brady Douglas and a 29-yard TD run from Brady Nolin gave the Yachtsmen a 14-7 victory after one quarter. Sam Pausman added a 31-yard field goal in the second period for a 17-14 lead. Mancini scored on a 1-yard sneak in the third quarter to make it 24-14. A 9-yard Shane Allen TD run in the fourth period helped Falmouth/Greely hold on. Mancini finished 11-of-22 passing for 195 yards and a touchdown. Allen gained 100 yards and scored a TD on a dozen carries. Douglas had 100 yards and a score on five receptions. Allen also made seven tackles to spark the defense.

Falmouth/Greely (fifth in Class B North) is at 1-3 Brewer Friday. The teams didn’t meet last year.

Yarmouth’s eight-man squad fell to 1-3 after a 44-7 loss to Mt. Ararat in its home opener. It was 8-0 Eagles after one quarter and 28-0 at halftime. That score held into the fourth period, where Jack McGrath scored on a 46-yard TD run to get the Clippers on the board, but it wasn’t enough.

Yarmouth (fourth in the eight-man large division) is home against Gray-New Gloucester (1-3) Friday. Last year, the Clippers won, 55-6, at Gray.

Boys’ soccer

Falmouth and Yarmouth’s boys’ soccer teams were both undefeated entering the week.

Last week, the Yachtsmen blanked visiting Bonny Eagle (4-0) and edged host Cheverus (2-1) to improve to 6-0-1. Against the Scots, Rion Dos Santos and Gus Ford both scored two goals. Charlie Adams and Ford had the goals in the win over the Stags.

“We knew we weren’t the favorite (this year) and we feed off that,” Ford said. “Now that we’re undefeated, everyone knows we’re here to play and we have to get better every day.”

“We’ll take it,” said longtime Falmouth coach Dave Halligan. “It’s always tough to play here. (The Stags) play with emotion and heart and it’s a smaller field. We have to keeping working on a couple combinations and we can be a really good team.”

The Yachtsmen (second to Scarborough in the Class A South Heal Points standings at press time) hosted Windham Tuesday, go to Biddeford Friday and visit Thornton Academy Tuesday of next week.

Yarmouth had an eventful week last week, improving to 8-0 after decisive home wins over Fryeburg Academy (9-1) and Poland (7-0). Against the Raiders, sophomore Jared Conant stole the show. Conant, who has Duchenne muscular dystrophy, scored a goal. Conant has become a fixture on the sideline in his wheelchair as the progressively degenerative disease has taken a toll on his body and he’s wildly popular with his peers.

“It made me really happy,” Conant said. “I really liked how my team reacted.”

Alejandro Coury and Liam Ireland added two goals apiece against Fryeburg Academy, while Bohrmann, Steve Fulton, LaBrie all scored once. Against the Knights, Coury scored three goals, while Ireland, Aidan Hickey, Spencer King and Thomas Kuhn had one goal apiece. The game was dedicated to J. Philip Jones, Yarmouth School Committee member and former Yarmouth youth soccer coach, who passed away unexpectedly this past summer. The Clippers (second to Medomak Valley in the Class B South Heals) were at York Tuesday and host Cape Elizabeth Saturday.

Freeport improved to 5-2-1 and third in Class B South following wins last week at Cape Elizabeth (2-1), over visiting Wells (6-1) and at Traip Academy (2-0). Will Winter had both goals in the win over the Capers, in a rematch of last year’s regional final.

“Cape’s a hard team,” Winter said. “We haven’t had much luck here. It’s a good feeling to come here and get a win.”

“Cape never gives up,” said Falcons’ coach Bob Strong. “You never can relax against them. We expected a physical match against them and we got it and we were fortunate to come out on the winning end.”

In the win over the Warriors, Winter, Jesse Bennell, Owen Howarth, Chris Porter, Keigan Shea and Finn Sheehan all scored. Damon Butler and Sam Tourigny had the goals against the Rangers. Freeport was at Poland Tuesday, welcomes Greely Friday and plays host to York Tuesday of next week.

Greely held off visiting Gray-New Gloucester, 2-1, last week to improve to 4-1-1 and fourth in Class B South. Ethan Fraser and Aidan Melville had the goals. After going to Cape Elizabeth Tuesday (see pressherald.com/forecaster-sports/ for game story), the Rangers visits Freeport Friday.

Defending Class D champion NYA fell to 1-5-2 and sixth after a 3-1 loss at Lake Region and a 3-3 home tie versus St. Dom’s. The Panthers were at Richmond Tuesday, welcome defending Class C champion Waynflete Thursday and go to Traip Academy Tuesday of next week.

Girls’ soccer

On the girls’ side, Falmouth and Freeport each fell from the unbeaten ranks last week.

The Yachtsmen played host Bonny Eagle to a 1-1 tie last Wednesday, then fell to 4-1-2- and seventh in the Class A South Heals after a 3-2 home loss to Cheverus Saturday. Allie Cunningham scored the goal and goalkeeper Jordan Wolf made six saves in the draw. Against the Stags, Falmouth fell behind early, 2-0, but late in regulation, Lexie Bugbee set up Elise Gearan and Devin Quinn for goals to tie it. Cheverus would answer with 2:34 left, however, and held on.

“The girls feel like we can compete with Cheverus,” said Yachtsmen coach Andrew Pelletier. “They’re probably the best team in the state. We’re disappointed because we went punch-for-punch with them, but we feel like we gave the game away.”

Falmouth was at Windham Tuesday, hosts Biddeford Friday and welcomes Thornton Academy Tuesday of next week.

Freeport saw its five game run to start the season end with a 1-0 loss at Cape Elizabeth last Tuesday.

“They probably beat us on 50-50 balls,” lamented Falcons’ coach David Intraversato.”Our passes weren’t to feet. We were kind of out of our game a little bit.”

Freeport then improved to 7-1 and first in Class B South after a 6-0 win at Wells and a 3-0 home victory over St. Dom’s. Against the Warriors, Catriona Gould had four goals, while Carly Intraversato and Rachel Wall each had one. Gould scored twice more against the Saints, while Wall also tickled the twine. The Falcons were home versus Poland Tuesday, go to Greely Friday and welcome York Tuesday of next week.

Yarmouth was 5-1-1 and fifth in Class B South after a 10-1 win at Fryeburg Academy and a 5-0 victory at Poland. Against the Raiders, Parker Harnett had four goals, Anna Wallace added two and Anne Bergeron, Hannah Dwyer, Ava Feeley and Abi Hincks all finished with one. In the win over the Knights, Dwyer and Harnett scored twice apiece and Adrianna Whitlock also had a goal. The Clippers were at York Tuesday, host Gray-New Gloucester Thursday and visit defending Class B champion Cape Elizabeth Saturday.

Greely extended its win streak to three games and improved to 3-4 with a 4-0 win at Waynflete Saturday. Sawyer Dusch had two goals, while Ellie Holt and Kaci O’Grady also scored. The Rangers (11th in Class B South) were home versus Cape Elizabeth Tuesday and host Freeport Friday.

Defending Class D champion NYA was 7-0-1 and first in the Heals after a 3-1 home win over Traip Academy Saturday. Natalie Farrell, Riley McIntyre and Serena Mower had the goals. The Panthers were home with Richmond Tuesday, go to Waynflete Thursday and play host to Waynflete Tuesday of next week.

Field hockey

Freeport’s field hockey team suffered an agonizing 2-1, overtime home loss to defending Class B South champion York last Wednesday to fall to 5-3-1 and third in the Heals. The Falcons got an early goal from Kyla Havey and 16 saves from goalie Piper Sherbert and it looked like the lead would hold up, but the Wildcats earned a penalty corner just before the end of regulation and tied the score after time expired. York then scored in overtime to steal one.

“Disappointment is an understatement,” Freeport coach Marcia Wood said. “I don’t even know what to say. The girls played their hearts out all game. Its heartbreaking.”

The Falcons looked to get back in the win column Tuesday at Greely. After going to Cape Elizabeth Thursday, Freeport visits St. Dom’s Saturday.

Yarmouth was 4-4 and seventh in Class B South following Friday’s 2-1 home loss to Cape Elizabeth. Hannah Swift had the Clippers’ lone goal. Yarmouth was at Fryeburg Academy Tuesday, travels to Sacopee Valley Thursday, hosts Poland Saturday and welcomes Greely Monday.

Greely fell to 2-6 and 11th in Class B South after Friday’s 3-0 setback at Poland. After hosting Freeport Tuesday, the Rangers are at Lake Region Thursday and visit Yarmouth Monday.

In Class A South, Falmouth was 4-5 and seventh following a 2-1 victory at South Portland and a 1-0 home loss to Massabesic. Julia Danielson and Isabella Roy had the goals and Sarah Greenlaw made seven saves in the win. The Yachtsmen were at Marshwood Wednesday and host Portland/Deering Monday of next week.

In Class C South, NYA was 3-5 and fourth after an 8-2 loss at St. Dom’s and an 8-0 home victory over Traip Academy. Katie Larson and Lily Weinrich each had three goals, while Emilia McKenney added a pair in the win. The Panthers were home versus St. Dom’s Tuesday, visit Wells Thursday, go to Traip Academy Friday and host York Monday.

Volleyball

Falmouth’s defending Class A state champion volleyball team improved to 8-0 and first in Class A after recent 3-0 wins at Portland (25-17, 25-15, 25-13) and at home over Marshwood (25-19, 25-14, 25-14) and a come-from-behind five-set (26-24, 17-25, 16-25, 25-19, 15-7) victory at Cape Elizabeth Monday. Annika Hester had 16 assists and Katie Phillips 11 assists versus the Bulldogs. In the win over the Hawks, Hester had 14 kills, Phillips and Rose Riversmith each added six and Hillary Bouchard finished with 16 assists. Against the Capers, Hester had 26 kills, Phillips had 17 assists, nine kills and five blocks, Riversmith added seven blocks and five kills and Bouchard served up 13 service points and also had 23 assists.

“When you haven’t been pushed and all of a sudden, you are, someone has to take over,” Falmouth coach Larry Nichols said. “It can’t always be Annika. What’s good about this win, others stepped up. Rose ended it with a block. Katie did a little of everything, Hillary was great with her serving.”

“It’s nice to take this one,” Hester said. “We used teamwork and positivity to get through tonight. We kept our heads up and we knew we had to push through the adversity. It was fun.”

The Yachtsmen were at Biddeford for a playoff rematch Tuesday, play at undefeated Scarborough Thursday (see pressherald.com/forecaster-sports/ for match story), welcome Brunswick Saturday and play host to Gorham Tuesday of next week.

Yarmouth’s defending Class B champion was second to Washington Academy in the Heals at 7-1 after a straight set (25-15, 25-6, 25-8) home win over Nokomis and a 3-0 (25-7, 25-11, 25-15) victory at Brewer. Sophie Dickson had nine assists and six aces against Nokomis. In the win over Brewer, Evelyn Lukis had 11 kills and Maggie Murray added 10, while Dickson finished with 24 assists and seven aces. The Clippers were at Wells Tuesday, host Scarborough in a pivotal match Saturday, then welcome Greely Wednesday of next week.

Greely was 2-4 and in fifth in Class B following a five-set win at Mt. Desert Island Saturday. The Rangers hosted Nokomis Tuesday, go to Cony Friday and play at Yarmouth Wednesday of next week.

In Class C, NYA was 4-5 and fifth after a straight-set (25-14, 25-9, 25-17) home win over Westbrook and 3-0 losses to visiting Woodland (9-25, 15-25, 21-25) and Calais (22-25, 21-25, 19-25). The Panthers are at Nokomis Saturday and go to Wells Monday.

Cross country

Falmouth’s boys’ cross country team finished first at a six-team meet Friday at Westbrook. The Yachtsmen were led by Ben Greene (16 minutes, 24.01 seconds) and Benjamin Potter (16:25.30), who were the top two individuals. In the girls’ competition, Falmouth was second to Portland, even though Sofie Matson (17:44.59) and Karley Piers (19:20.75) were the top two individuals.

Yarmouth hosted Freeport, Maine Coast Waldorf, Gray-New Gloucester and Traip Academy. MCW was first in the boys’ meet, while the Falcons came in second and the host Clippers were third. Freeport’s Martin Horne was first individually (17:11.85). Odeh Rizkallah of Yarmouth was second (17:48.23). MCW was led by Seamus Woodruff (third, 17:53.39). In the girls’ meet, Yarmouth finished first, MCW was second and Freeport placed third. Olivia Reynolds of MCW was first individually (20:49.31). The Clippers were led by Sadie Cowles (second, 21:50.39). The Falcons’ top finisher was Jillian Wight (third, 21:59.92).

Greely played host to Cape Elizabeth, Waynflete and York. The Rangers boys were second to the Wildcats. Riley Franklin was second individually (17:27). Greely’s girls were runners-up to Cape Elizabeth. Marin Provencher was the individual runner-up in 20:38.

NYA hosted Old Orchard Beach and Wells. The boys’ squad was second to the Warriors. Chris Hamblett came in third individually (17:56). In the girls’ race, Emma Collins was third individually (24:23).

Freeport hosts NYA, Fryeburg Academy and Waynflete Friday and Falmouth, Greely, MCW, NYA and Yarmouth take part in the Belfast Festival of Champions Saturday.

Golf

The Southwestern Maine Activities Association golf state qualifier was contested Monday. Greely shot a 321 and had the best team score. Also qualifying was Falmouth, which had a team score of 330, good for third place. Falmouth’s Jack Stowell (an 18-hole score of 79), Charlie Pochepan (82) and Tyler Baker (82) and Greely’s Andrew Klein (76), Ben Rosenthal (80) and D.J. Kenney (81) all qualified as individuals.

In last week’s Western Maine Conference qualifier, Freeport was third in Class B with a team score of 349 and qualified for states. Yarmouth (408) did not qualify.

In Class C, NYA had a team score of 373 and qualified for states.

Freeport’s T.J. Whelan (78), NYA’s Carson Gall (87) and Cal Davies (87) and Yarmouth’s Quinn Federle (81) and Sam O’Donnell (84) qualified as individuals.

Falmouth finished the regular season 6-2, Freeport wound up 9-1-1, Greely had a record of 7-3, NYA ended up 9-5 and Yarmouth’s final record was 3-7.

The team state match is Saturday at Natanis Golf Course in Vassalboro.

The individual state match is Saturday, Oct. 12, also at Natanis.

Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @foresports.

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