It’s pretty rare to have as many front-page headlines from a sports season as we did this winter.
From when first practices began on Nov. 18, 2024 through this week’s edition, Lincoln County teams and student-athletes appeared on the front page nine times, a few of which were in the same edition.
That count doesn’t include news items such as the deaths of longtime Lincoln Academy coach Dan Pinkham or Wiscasset’s Tim Flanagan, the sudden midseason departure of the Wiscasset varsity girls coach Daniel Wall, or an update on LA alum and basketball legend Brie Wajer’s new coaching post.
It also doesn’t include the feature on Phil Page’s impending retirement, which leads the front of this week’s edition.
We celebrated the Wiscasset Middle High School girls varsity team’s first win in eight years in the Jan. 16 edition. Medomak Valley dominated the front page the following week, with twins Shamus and Grady Pease earning their 100th wins and Kytana Williamson scoring her 1,000th point.
Williamson pulled off the rare feat of back-to-back front page appearances when she broke the all-time leading scoring record for the girls program, set by Julie Littlefield in 1992.
The Feb. 13 edition saw Lincoln Academy’s Cole Workman earn his 100th win as well as a come-from-behind win in overtime by the Bristol girls to become the Busline League champions.
Individual state titles were celebrated on the Feb. 20 cover, with Medomak’s Grady Pease and Lincoln Academy’s Jakobi Hagar wrestling their way to championships in their respective weight classes and fellow Eagle Jordan Anderson winning the 55m while setting an LA indoor track and field record.
This week spotlights the Medomak Valley boys basketball team, which had an incredible run up to becoming the Class B South regional runner-up.
If we look beyond the front of these editions, the sports pages were filled with plenty of headlines that could have found their way above the fold in a given week.
Lincoln Academy wrestler Adam St. Cyr reached – and subsequently passed – the rare milestone of 150 wins. Medomak’s cheerleaders came in fourth place at the state meet. The Wiscasset boys basketball team improved on its 9-9 record from last year to finish the regular season at 11-7.
LA swimmer Charley Carleton was the runner-up in the 200 IM. Grace Townsend represented Medomak Valley on the state title-winning Cheverus-based cooperative hockey team. The LA JV boys went undefeated for the second season in a row, perfectly capping the career of coach Rand Maker. The Wiscasset girls closed their season with another win!
The Medomak boys and girls basketball teams were named the KVAC Class B champions. The boys previously held this title in 2022 while the girls last won it back in 1985. The last time both teams were league champions was in 1972, predating the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference.
None of what’s mentioned above includes the state basketball tournament, which the LA boys kicked off with a triple overtime win in the quarterfinal round. The ninth seeded LA girls – led by senior guard Mariam DeLisle, who logged 28 points in the game – forced the top seeded Spruce Mountain Phoenix to fight for every single inch in order to advance.
The Wiscasset boys lost a close one in overtime to Telstar, the Medomak girls had Oceanside on the ropes until the very end, and the Medomak boys could only be stopped by a fellow undefeated team.
Needless to say, this was a season for the books, and for some it’s not (completely) over. St. Cyr and Grady and Shamus Pease still have the New England interscholastic wrestling championship on Saturday, March 8. Medomak standout Gabe Lash is one of three finalists for Mr. Maine Basketball, which is presented to a senior player by the Maine Association of Basketball Coaches. (Fellow Panther Williamson was a semifinalist for Miss Maine Basketball.)
But now, while the dust has mostly settled on the season, we want to say how proud we are of all our student-athletes. The stories mentioned above don’t begin to capture the countless hours of practice and skills training these students put in over the years, all while balancing their academics and other commitments outside of school.
To our senior athletes who concluded their high school careers this season, we hope you look back on your accomplishments with pride. If you still have spring sports to contend with, we wish you luck and look forward to seeing your reappearance in our pages.
To the coaches, athletic directors, referees, book keepers, score board operators, booster club members, parents, and all other adults who were involved in the season, thank you. The work you do is appreciated beyond words.
Finally, a tip of our hat to our own Paula Roberts and Mic LeBel, who covered these headlines and more during the marathon season. May they both get some well-deserved rest before spring sports begin!
