FOOTBALL

Head Coach: David Turner, 11th year

Assistant Coach: David Jones, Gio DiFazio, Bob Pulito

Key returning players: Seniors Tucker Buzzell OL/LB, Reece Kneissler OL/LB, Oscar Saunders QB/DB, Arnold Jaber OL/DL, Josh Frye OL/DL, Kempton Maillett OL/DL, Nate Knapp WR/DB, Liam Harriman TE/LB, Caleb Bowles WR/DB.

Promising newcomers: Juniors Calvin Southwick RB/LB, Jack Campbell OL/DL, Ethan Burk OL/DL, Dawson Jones WR/DB.

Biggest challenges your squad is facing? We graduated several experienced skill position starters (who helped lead the Raiders to the conference finals) compromising the overall depth of that group. Our younger skilled positions must learn on the fly and get up to speed quickly.

Team strengths: Most of the offensive line, defensive front return with valuable playing experience.

Based on preseason work, what have you seen that you really like? The team’s hard work and competitiveness.

What will the team need to do to be successful this season? Improve each week and stay healthy.

Home Games

Fri., Aug. 31, Lisbon, 4:30

Sat., Sept. 15, Mt. Ararat, 1:30

Sat., Sept. 29, Gardiner, 1:30

Sat., Oct. 20, Lake Region, 1:30

Away Games

Fri., Sept. 7, York, 7 p.m.

Fri., Sept. 21, Yarmouth, 7 p.m.

Fri., Oct. 5, Leavitt, 7 p.m.

Fri., Oct. 12, Cape Elizabeth, 7 p.m.

FIELD HOCKEY

Head Coach: Dede Frost, 23rd season

JV Coach: Jen Bartlett

Key returning players: Seniors Tina LeBlanc, midfield, and Camiella Ghadfa, midfield; juniors Abigail Hewes and Bridget O’Neil, midfielders, along with Kaylee Emery, Ryan Duffy and Kirsten Wentworth, forwards.

Promising newcomers: Senior Addie Stone, midfield; juniors Julia Vitella and Kate Flynn, defense; sophomore Bailey Richardson, goalie.

Other roster members: Sarah Foster, Camden Jones and Maggie Powers.

Biggest challenges your squad is facing? We have a very small team and will need to make the most of each player’s talent, and avoid injuries to allow us to maintain both a varsity and JV team.

Team strengths: We have six returning varsity players and will capitalize on that experience as we fill gaps left behind by 2018 graduates.

Based on preseason work, what have you seen that you really like? Both returning players and newcomers alike are willing to be versatile and play positions that they may not be familiar with. They are putting “team” first.

What will the team need to do to be successful this season? With low numbers, it will be critical that we continue to focus on conditioning and endurance. We will need players that can remain on the playing field for the entire game and minimize substitutions.

Home Games

Thurs., Aug. 30, Lake Region, 3:30

Thurs., Sept. 6, Yarmouth, 4 p.m.

Sat., Sept. 8, Gray-NG, 11 a.m.

Mon., Sept. 17, Wells, 4 p.m.

Fri., Sept. 28, Freeport, 4 p.m.

Tues., Oct. 2, York, 4 p.m.

Thurs., Oct. 4, Poland, 4 p.m.

Away Games

Tues., Sept. 4, Freeport, 6 p.m.

Wed., Sept. 12, York, 4 p.m.

Thurs., Sept. 20, Greely, 4 p.m.

Sat., Sept. 22, Cape, 2:30 p.m.

Mon., Sept. 24, Lake Region, 4 p.m.

Wed., Sept. 26, Poland, 4 p.m.

Wed., Oct. 10, Sacopee, 3:30

GIRLS’ SOCCER

Head Coach: Antonio Barrionuevo, 2nd year

Assistant Coach: Jeff Juneau, who has been involved in soccer for over 30 years. “We are excited to have Coach Juneau working with the new soccer players and the new to the Academy athletes,” Coach Barrionuevo said.

Key returning players: Seniors Caroline Condon, Nicole DePaolo, Malina Voter, Silvia Sanchez, and this year voted captains, Brooke Juneau and River Lusky; juniors Maddie Darling, Victoria Hayes, Sophie Kummer, Audra Hamlin, Madi McIntyre, Kayla Willard and Abby Winterbottom; sophomores Sharlah Mae Day, Jordan Eastman, Lucy Hodgman-Burns, Karyn Johnson, Ella Baptista, Morgan Fusco and Luna Barrionuevo.

Promising newcomers: Freshmen Brooke Emery and Katy McIntyre.

Biggest challenges your squad is facing? Our challenge for this season is to be able to play as a team, connect with each other and finish the opportunities that we may create. The Western Maine Conference is very competitive so we cannot allow the opposing teams to play their game without pressure. Most of the teams that we will be facing have year-round soccer players at premier club level. We will have to do our best each and every time.

Team strengths: During the season, we can find strengths based on our possession of the ball and create a strong defensive line. There are some key players on our squad that can surprise the competition. They can display high-level soccer. If we can support them and play as a team then we can compete!

Based on preseason work, what have you seen that you really like? Preseason has been mostly focused on the conditioning aspect of the game, and within some of the preseason games, we saw some good stuff and plenty that needs improvement. As the season gets going, we can play better game after game.

What will the team need to do to be successful this season? To be successful this year? Depends on what the goal is…Take it a game at a time, play the best soccer we can play, compete and have fun.

Home Games

Tues., Sept. 4, Sacopee, 4 p.m.

Fri., Sept. 14, Greely, 4 p.m.

Thurs., Sept. 20, Gray-NG, 4 p.m.

Sat., Sept. 29, York, 1 p.m.

Tues., Oct. 9, Freeport, 3:30 p.m.

Thurs., Oct. 11, Lake Region, 3:30 p.m.

Sat., Oct. 13, Waynflete, 10 a.m.

Away Games

Fri., Aug. 31, Poland, 6 p.m.

Tues., Sept. 11, Lake Region, 6 p.m.

Tues., Sept. 18, Yarmouth, 6 p.m.

Sat., Sept. 22, Sacopee, 4 p.m.

Wed., Sept. 26, Wells, 6 p.m.

Tues., Oct. 2, St. Dom’s, 3:30 p.m.

Fri., Oct. 5, Cape Elizabeth, 6:30 p.m.

BOYS’ SOCCER

Head Coach: Bob Hodgman-Burns, 13th year

Assistant Coach: Aidan Black, fresh out of playing at Colby College

Key returning players: Gunnar Gurnis, a forward captain. Gaige Daigle a senior midfielder, who is also a captain. Nick Kenerson, another senior captain that plays back. Caden Daigle, a junior midfielder. Kim Bernard, a senior midfielder. Will Galligan, a sophomore midfielder. Cullen Pietriano, a junior midfielder. Manny Baptista, a senior back.

Promising newcomers: Frederik Mutz, a freshman midfielder. Matt Bonato, a senior back. Jayden Ming, a senior forward. Chandler Adams, a sophomore goalie. Liam Patterson, a freshman back. Marcos Barrionueva, a freshman midfielder.

Biggest challenges your squad is facing? The biggest challenge we will have is getting back to the playoffs after 10 years of being there until last season. We play in the toughest conference in the state and can’t take a game off.

Team strengths: Our strength is our depth and experience. We are also healthy at this point unlike last year.

Based on preseason work, what have you seen that you really like? I’ve been pleased with our work ethic and the fact we are scoring goals early. Our new additions have blended in well and that has been encouraging.

What will the team need to do to be successful this season? To be successful, we will have to beat the teams that are less experienced than us and sneak away with a couple of good results from some of the traditional powerhouses of our conference.

Home Games

Thurs., Sept. 6, Cape Elizabeth, 4 p.m.

Tues., Sept. 11, Lake Region, 3:30 p.m.

Tues., Sept. 18, Yarmouth, 4 p.m.

Tues, Sept. 25, Wells, 4 p.m.

Sat., Sept. 29, Sacopee, 10:30 a.m.

Tues., Oct. 2, St. Dom’s, 3:30 p.m.

Thurs., Oct. 4, Waynflete, 3:30 p.m.

Away Games

Thurs., Aug. 30, Wells, 6 p.m.

Fri., Sept. 14, Greely, 6 p.m.

Thurs., Sept. 20, Gray-NG, 6 p.m.

Sat., Sept. 22, Sacopee, 6 p.m.

Thurs., Sept. 27, York, 6 p.m.

Tues., Oct. 9, Freeport, 6 p.m.

Thurs., Oct. 11, Lake Region, 6 p.m.

GOLF

Head Coach: Chris Dutton

The Roster: Currently, the team consists of 10 members — three seniors, three juniors, three sophomores and a freshman. In the past, we been around or close to 15 members throughout so having 10 so far has its benefits of being able to do more evaluating and one-on-one teaching and working with certain skills, though it shortens options long-term.

It’s been a solid preseason to date as players are getting back or rolling into form as the season is about to start.

From last year’s starters, there are four to five returnees that have match experience. That will be a key to begin the year. The difficult part or biggest adjustment will be where in the lineup certain individuals will play. Last season, Addison Schwartz was the number 1 player and he graduated, so that’s a big shoe to fill and it shakes up the rest of the lineup significantly as to where they have to play.

Returning players: Senior Calvin Fox. Calvin played a lot in the #2 spot last season and he looks poised to take over the top spot on the team. I think he will do fine there, though the quality of play which be much better. The key for Calvin is to play his game and stick to what works for him and play within himself, not try and force the issue on the course. He has plenty of length and has improved his short game around the greens over the past couple of seasons to balance out his overall game. Just needs to mentally not beat himself up, and he will be in a good spot for our team and lead up to gaining points.

Senior Connor Chang. Connor is a dorm student, who will be returning for his second year with the team. He has good talent, but can be very streaky. Part of that is Connor has to make the adjustment to the greens and slopes of the courses here in Maine compared to home. It’s about building confidence and maintaining it on the course. Connor will be right near the top or middle of the lineup.

Senior Brayden Bartlett. A newcomer to the team. An unknown at this point as I just saw him for the first time in the preseason. He has played some, but not a whole lot of golf in the past. So far, he has shown some good quality play that may be useful and helpful as the season wears on. He is very competitive and always anxious to improve and compete, so it will be nice to have that around each day to try and rub off on his teammates.

Junior Jack Watson. Jack is a player who is always grinding. The good part of him is he wants to learn, put in the time and he enjoys the game. Sometimes, the issue is more on the mental side of things, of where he just needs to go out there and just play. Not get too caught up on a bad shot or hole, or mechanics. Just play. He has been improving in smaller steps than maybe he would like, but he’s trending more upward than anything.

Junior Josh Mattei. Josh got a lot of time as a regular in the lineup in his first two seasons from the 3, 4 and 5 spots. He will be asked to probably play out in the #2 or #3 spot this season. Josh has a good array of golf skills and talent. He is another one that sometimes puts a little too much pressure on himself, on the course, and at times worries too much about mechanics or struggles with confidence on the course. If he cleans up the little things, he will continue to be a productive asset to the team and, hopefully, take the next step up in the overall quality of his golf game. Looking forward to watching that grow

Junior Connor Delaney. Connor has received good experience in the first two years, and will be battling for a spot this season, as well. The good news is Connor is very consistent with his average. You know what you are going to get day in and day out. Now, the job will be to get him a little more advanced in parts of his game, to build more confidence in himself, and see about lowering the scores more frequently.

Sophomore William Fitzgerald. Fitzy, as we call him, was a regular starter last season and figures to be again this season. Good news was getting the positive experience as a freshman and having good success will help, as he might be bumped up in the order and could face stiffer competition daily.

Sophomore Kyle Littlefield. Kyle is in the same boat as Fitzy. Got a lot of playing time last season as a freshman, which should pay off and hopefully relax him going into this season. Kyle has shown some improvement in his game this preseason as he seems to have gained some added yardage, but seems more apt to be a game course manager than just a bombs-away-as-far-as-I-can-hit-it guy. Once he can figure that out and gets more confidence and sees better results, he will again produce well for the team.

Sophomore Aden Richardson. Aden looked like he would get a lot of time last season, but a freak injury to the wrist ended his season after one match. Aden is very into golf. He loves the game, always looking for that edge, willing to try new things, and uses his imagination on the course. Great kid to have. He will be a focal point and mainstay in the middle part of the lineup.

Freshman Patrick Fitzgerald. Patrick is a little new to the game, but has been quite positive this preseason and seems to enjoy being on the course. Patrick does well on the tee and drives it pretty well. It’s the inconsistent play from say 150 yards in and around the green that’s holding him back. Plenty of time to work it out for the future.

Outlook: So overall, you can see that we are somewhat balanced. We might not have the one or two top dog type of shooters day in and day out, but most days I feel like 1 through 6, we will be best suited with consistent play and good depth throughout the whole lineup which, in turn, will make us tougher on game days. Also, having the five to eight players relatively close in averages and talents should brew good competition daily and hopefully progress us mentally to be tougher and to be better suited in the heat of the battle on the course. Last season, we just missed qualifying for States as a team, which will be on the team’s mind this season, as they eagerly await the qualifying day in October at Willowdale to try to get back to States. It’s a fun group of players so far and I anticipate a good growing experience. Hopefully the results will be as good as their efforts and desire has been so far.

Home Matches

(Lake Kezar Country Club)

Tues., Sept. 4, Yarmouth, 3:30 p.m.

Tues., Sept. 11, Poland, 3:30 p.m.

Tues., Sept. 18, Freeport, 4 p.m.

Thurs., Sept. 20, Old Orchard, 3:30 p.m.

Away Matches

Thurs., Sept. 6, St. Dom’s (Foxridge), 3:30

Thurs., Sept. 13, Cape (Purpooduck), 3:30

Tues., Sept. 25, Gray-NG (Spring Meadow), 3:30

Thurs., Sept. 27, Wells (Old Marsh), 3:30

Thurs., Oct. 4, Qualifier, Willowdale, 10 a.m.

Sat., Oct. 13, Team States, TBA

CROSS-COUNTRY

Head Coach: Bill Reilly, 29th year

Assistant Coach: Dylan Alden, 11th year

Girls Cross-Country

Senior Zoe Maguire is captain.

Top returnees: Senior Madeline Choyce; Juniors Merys Carty and Alancieh Waiters; sophomores Samantha Carus, Madison Griffin, Sasha Maguire and Jenna Dodge.

Top newcomers: Junior Juliana Stanton; sophomore Ava Chadbourne; freshmen Alana Natulak and Willow Carter.

Outlook: Despite three seniors graduating, we have reloaded with experienced returnees and four newcomers. Train hard and the winning will come. We already have two solid 10-mile runs in and attendance has been strong for preseason. As usual, (the) goal will be to make the State Final as team.

Boys Cross-Country

Senior Alfie Walker is captain.

Top returnees: Seniors Osage Crie, Sam Paulding and Antonin Santarelli; juniors Elijah Howe and Ethan Reinbach; sophomores Will Marshall, Luke Reinbach, James Pullen and Luke Sekera-Flanders.

Top newcomers: Sophomores Jacques Dupuis and Shane Scolaro; freshman Liam Friberg.

Outlook: If the second season boys can improve from last year that will be the key to team’s success. Everybody is working hard in preseason. If you don’t give a 100% in practice, you will never compete at a 100% in meets. The boys came close last year and hope to make the State Final as a team.

Home Meets

(This fall, boys open at 4:30, girls follow)

Fri., Sept. 14, Old Orchard, St. Dom’s, Cape, 4:30

Away Meets

Fri., Aug. 31, Sacopee (Yarmouth/St. Dom’s), 4:30

Sat., Sept. 8, Hoka Classic, Gorham, 9 a.m.

Sat., Sept. 22, Manchester Relays, TBA

Fri., Sept. 28, Freeport (Greely/OOB), 4:30

Fri., Oct. 5, Sacopee (Gray-NG, St. Dom’s), 4:30

Fri., Oct. 12, WMC, St. Joseph’s College, 3 p.m.

Sat., Oct. 21, Regionals, Twinbrook, TBA

Sat., Oct. 27, States, Belfast, TBA