Panther boys feature balanced
MARS HILL, Maine — Cody Tompkins begins his second year as coach of the Central Aroostook Panthers with a better feel for his personnel, and so far he likes what he sees.
“We are a talented group,” he said, “and our biggest strengths are our balance and our depth. Plus we sport a lot of leadership with eight seniors — seven of which are returnees from last year’s squad.”
The Panthers reached the Eastern Maine Class D post-season in Tompkins’ rookie campaign, going 6-8 to finish in 10th place, then losing to Fort Fairfield in the preliminary round.
Through three games this year, CA is 2-1 after picking up a pair of wins over Washburn and falling to Fort Fairfield.
The Panthers must make up for the loss of both Zach McClung and Cody Clayton to graduation. McClung anchored the defense as the team’s sweeper, while Clayton was a talented performer who consistently won 50-50 balls out of the air.
Central Aroostook will benefit from the addition of an excellent freshmen group, which Tompkins said is talented and collectively possesses “a great soccer IQ.”
The ninth-graders are Ben Thomas, Hunter Wardwell, Logan Millard, Bryant Grass, Mitchell Grass and Lane Grass.
However, the key to success will be the veterans and how well they lead the first-year players.
Those with experience from last year are Caleb Harris, Dustin Pryor, Zach Crouch, Taylor Campbell, Logan Grass, Chandler Garrison, Alex Boulier, Riley McGrath, Clark Bradbury, Nick Dominique, Dane Kingsbury, Colby Kingsbury, Cameron Todd and Luke Kearney.
The 22-player roster gives Tompkins plenty of flexibility, as he says every player contributes in their own way.
“I always think that everyone should know their role on a team, so that is something we have tried to establish [in the early going] and hopefully they can progress in those roles by season’s end,” Tompkins said.
The coach is confident that despite playing in a very competitive division, his Panthers have a great opportunity to be one of the last teams standing.
“We need to stay focused and prepared at all times and not overlook anyone,” Tompkins said. “Hopefully after harvest we are at peak performance — mentally and physically — and can make a deep run in the playoffs.”
