A 2-1 road victory over Old Town Monday has greatly boosted the Caribou boys’ hopes of making the soccer playoffs.
The Vikings were able to create some separation between themselves and the teams behind them in the Class B North Heal Point standings. Caribou is now 4-6-2 and in 11th place, with only the top 12 moving on to the post-season. The team is now nine points ahead of 12th-place Gardiner and a comfortable 16 in front of both John Bapst and Hermon, teams that are currently 13th and 14th, respectively, and out of the playoff picture.
“I think this win really gives us a solid chance to get into the playoffs,” said coach Kyle Corrigan. “The Heal Points can be a little loopy at times, so it all depends on what the other teams do with the rest of their games as well. But that win was definitely one we needed to keep our hopes alive.”
Keying the victory was senior center midfielder Michael Hunter, who scored both goals. One came on a penalty kick and the other deflected off a Coyote defender and over the goal line. Ethan Plourde, the senior goalkeeper, was stellar in collecting 27 saves.
“[With] most games on the road this year, it seemed like we would have bus legs the first 10 or 15 minutes of the game,” Corrigan said. [On Monday], we came out hard, controlled the game for the most part and really put the pressure on their back line.”
The Vikings, who were beaten 1-0 in overtime at Fort Kent last Wednesday, take on Presque Isle in another road game Thursday before ending their season at home against Madawaska Tuesday.
The Caribou girls had a great week as they edged Fort Kent last Wednesday, 2-1, and blanked Old Town Monday, 4-0.
Maddie Doucette and Willow Whitten were the goal scorers in the victory over the Warriors, while Doucette, Hope Shea, Eileen Patton and Alexis Rodriquez had one apiece, all coming in the second half, at Old Town. It was the first of her career for Rodriquez, who is just coming back from an injury that sidelined her most of the season. Doucette picked up three assists on the afternoon.
Caribou is 8-4 and in sixth place in the Class B North rankings. With the squad vying for either a first-round bye or to secure home field for its preliminary playoff match, pivotal games remain tonight at No. 7 Presque Isle and next Tuesday at home against Madawaska, the third-place team in Class D.
The Fort Fairfield girls and boys recorded wins at Limestone Monday, with the girls taking a 3-0 decision and the boys prevailing, 7-0.
Morgann Towle, Taylor Churchill and Chelsey Pelkey scored the Tiger goals in the girls’ contest, with Sarah Watt picking up the shutout in goal, while Jonah Daigle and Ryan Player each had two goals and Chris Giberson, Chris Gill and Greg Jellison one apiece for the FF boys. Dalton Cassidy saved all eight shots he faced to earn the shutout in goal.
The Fort girls are 9-2 and in fifth place in Class D North, while the boys are now 10-0-1 and atop the division standings.
At Ashland Friday, the Tiger boys played to a 2-2 tie with the Hornets. Isaac Cyr and Giberson scored Fort’s goals. In the girls’ game, Ashland rolled to a 6-0 win to remain undefeated.
To begin the busy week, the Fort Fairfield girls had their offense going in a 7-3 triumph over Central Aroostook last Tuesday at home. Churchill had three goals and an assist, Towle had two goals and an assist and Pelkey a goal and two assists to lead the charge. Alexis Coiley chipped in with a goal and an assist.
The Tiger squads resume their schedule today with home matches against Southern Aroostook. East Grand is the opponent for home games Saturday before the regular season wraps up at Washburn next Tuesday.
The Beavers, who have been off for over a month due to the harvest break, host Van Buren Thursday and Southern Aroostook Saturday before closing with Fort Fairfield. The Washburn boys have a 6-4-1 record and are in eighth place in the D standings, while the girls stand at 1-9-1 and are in 15th.
Limestone-MSSM was at Madawaska last Tuesday, with the boys registering a 6-1 triumph behind Ahmed Beshir’s two goals and one assist. Tyler Simmons also had a productive game with a goal and three assists. The Eagle girls fell, 8-1, with Jackie Peers credited with the lone goal in the loss.
The teams were back to work Tuesday with matches against Wisdom in St. Agatha. The Eagles host Wisdom Friday before taking on Fort Kent at home next Tuesday to close out regular season action. The boys are currently in fifth place in Class C North with a 6-5 mark, while the girls are in last place at 2-9
