The fall sports season has come to an end for Cape Elizabeth and South Portland after a trio of setbacks last week

One on the pitch and two on the gridiron.

Overtime blues

Cape Elizabeth’s girls’ soccer team came as close as one can to advancing to states without actually doing so.

The Capers, ranked second in Class B South following a terrific 10-1-3 regular season, had no trouble with No. 7 Fryeburg Academy in the quarterfinals (winning, 4-0), then survived No. 3 Freeport in overtime in the semifinals (2-1, on Addie Miller’s goal).

Last Wednesday in Fryeburg, Cape Elizabeth squared off against No. 1 Greely in the regional final and after the teams played to a pair of ties in the regular season, it came as a shock to no one that extra time was needed once more.

The Capers struck first, as standout Noelle Mallory scored in the 18th minute, but the Rangers answered late in the first half. After no one scored in the second half, it was on to overtime and there, Greely got a goal 6:51 into OT to win, 2-1, and end Cape Elizabeth’s campaign at 12-2-3.

“The game was another battle, however, this one couldn’t end in a draw and a winner needed to be decided,” said Capers coach Branden Noltkamper. “This is a tough one to swallow, but I couldn’t be more proud of the team and the seniors. We had a great season and although the ultimate goal was not achieved, we accomplished so much along the way. They are a great group of soccer players but more importantly, a great group of people.

“The dedication, commitment, leadership and pride of the senior class will be tough to replace. We couldn’t be more grateful for our three captains, CC (Duryee), Elena (Rosenberg) and Campbell (DeGeorge). There are some big shoes to fill.”

Cape Elizabeth will be right back in the title hunt in 2025 and could take that elusive final step.

“We look to contend again next year, as we have a lot of returning players, and I think the final message from the senior class has inspired next year’s team to get going,” Noltkamper said.

One and done

Cape Elizabeth’s football team enjoyed a nice season, despite low numbers.

The Capers split their eight regular season games, finished second in Class C South and earned a bye into the semifinal round to face two-time reigning champion Leavitt, the No. 3 seed, last Friday night.

Cape Elizabeth fell behind, 14-0, after one period, but battled back behind a 1-yard Danny Gray touchdown run and a Eli Halter 10-yard TD scamper to make it 14-14 at the half. After the Hornets retook the lead, Brady Inman connected with Eli Smith for a 37-yard touchdown pass late in the third period, but the Capers missed the extra point and trailed, 21-20, heading for the final stanza. There, Leavitt scored on an interception return and held on for a 27-20 victory, ending Cape Elizabeth’s season at 4-5.

“These guys battled all season long,” Capers coach Peter Cekutis said. “They fought even when things didn’t go our way. They kept battling the whole time. Nobody ever quit.”

South Portland, meanwhile, the No. 4 seed in Class A South, had to go up against top-ranked, defending state champion Thornton Academy in its quarterfinal last Friday.

The Red Riots trailed, 7-0, after one period and 22-0 at the half, then got on the board in the third quarter on an 11-yard touchdown pass from Parker Reny to Addison Blais. Reny then hit Alex Horton for an 8-yard score early in the fourth period to make things interesting, 22-12, but the Golden Trojans pulled away with a pair of TDs and prevailed, 36-12, ending South Portland’s season at 5-5.

New England track results

The cross country season wrapped up last weekend with the New England championship meet in Manchester, Connecticut.

South Portland’s Evan Small had the 160th-best time in the boys’ meet (17 minutes, 38 seconds).

Sun Journal staff writer Haley Jones contributed to this story.