Gorham’s Emily Fluet hoists the Gold Ball after the Rams beat Thornton Academy 3-1 in the Class A volleyball state championship. (Daryn Slover/Staff Photographer)
GORHAM — The ball sailed out of bounds, the final point went on the board, and the celebration was on. Luna Button fell to the floor in relief. Lauren Dunbar slapped the hardwood and screamed at the ceiling. Moments later, their teammates joined them off the bench, leading to a joyous pile on the court.
Winning may be becoming routine for the Gorham volleyball team. The feeling, though, is anything but.
Gorham returned to the Class A summit Saturday, defeating Thornton Academy, 3-1, at the University of Southern Maine for its third straight championship. Gorham won the first two sets, 25-20 and 25-23, dropped the third 25-21, and then clinched the title with a 25-18 victory in the fourth.
Abigail Stevens of Gorham returns the ball during her team’s 3-1 victory over Thornton Academy in the Class A volleyball state championship match Saturday at the University of Southern Maine in Gorham. (Daryn Slover/Staff Photographer)
“Oh my goodness, it feels so amazing,” coach Emma Tirrell said. “I’m so unbelievably proud of the girls. We had a couple of hard losses during the season. … It’s all about growth and failing forward, and the girls wanted it so bad.”
Four matches into the season, Gorham (14-3) was 2-2 and in the middle of changing up its scheme and core strategies. Those struggles were a distant memory Saturday, merely a reminder of just how far the team had come over the course of the fall.
“Last year, it was not necessarily easy, but a lot of people had said we got it handed to us,” said junior setter Liana Edwards, a URI commit who finished with seven kills. “We came into this year wanting it so much.”
Abigail Stevens had nine kills, Edwards and Ava DeVinney had seven apiece, and Adyson Hutchins and Addyson Simcock both served three aces for third-seeded Gorham, which stopped Thornton Academy’s Cinderella run through the tournament.
The fourth-seeded Golden Trojans had never made a semifinal, let alone a state final, but took down No. 1 Scarborough to reach the brink of a Gold Ball.
“I’m just incredibly proud of this group,” said coach Corey Huot, who got 11 kills from Marta Semino and nine from Adelaide Bracy, as well as two aces apiece from Ruby Anderson and Cecilia Acquistapace. “They’ve brought volleyball excitement to the school. We had fans here, full stands, and it was all based on what they did this year.”
The Rams charged to start the match, never trailing in the first set and erasing a quick 5-1 deficit before winning the second. Semino and Bracy had four kills apiece in the third set as Thornton (12-5) sought to regain momentum by winning the third, but Gorham’s poise and experience allowed it to pull away in the fourth.
“Last year was a big shock to me when I got out on the court, and all these fans are cheering. I was really scared to touch the ball,” said Simcock, one of three captains along with Dunbar and Emily Fluet. “Once you have that experience and you know what to expect, it’s so much easier to feel comfortable.”
It was a new feeling for one of the Rams. DeVinney had to celebrate from afar last year, as pneumonia kept her from playing.
She couldn’t have been closer to the action Saturday.
“It’s the most special feeling,” DeVinney said. “This year, knowing that I got to start and finish on the court, it was really exciting for me.”
Women’s Track & Field Rookie of the Week – Lola Gitlin
Lola Gitlin won the 3,000-meter race by more than 12 seconds at Cornell’s Southern Tier Invitational as she clocked a time of 10:37.55. Gitlin’s time is good for 24th nationally.
Women’s Track & Field – Field Performer of the Week – Lily Seyfert
Lily Seyfert placed third in the shot put at the Cornell Southern Tier Invitational with a mark of 12.72 meters, which is just shy of her top mark of 12.78 this season (17th in Division III). Seyfert also finished third in the weight throw at 16.20 meters and ranks eighth in the country after that performance.
Men’s Track & Field Rookie of the Week – Raphael Campanile
Raphael Campanile placed fifth in the pole vault with a mark of 4.50 meters at the Cornell Southern Tier Invitational on Saturday and currently ranks 25th in Division III with that performance.
HONOR ROLL
Matthew Zenker totaled 44 points on 18-of-31 shooting, to go along with nine rebounds and three steals in a 1-1 week for Ithaca. Zenker netted 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting in a 101-72 win over RIT and followed up with 24 points and eight rebounds as he shot 10-of-15 from the floor in a loss to Union.
Junior forward McNamara delivered a pair of strong performances despite setbacks against RIT and Union. Against the Tigers, she was flawless from the floor, going 3-for-3 while adding seven rebounds and two blocks. She carried that momentum into the Union matchup, coming just shy of her first career double-double with nine points and eight boards.
Shenandoah University men’s volleyball freshman Simon Bellenbaum was named the ODAC’s Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.
The York, Pennsylvania, native accumulated six solo blocks and eight digs in SU’s two matches against Randolph and Regent, with three blocks in each game and five digs versus the Royals.
Boys’ basketball: Sherando 48, Strasburg 44
STEPHENS CITY — Sherando defeated Strasburg for its fourth straight win on Monday. The Warriors are 9-4.
Girls’ basketball: Strasburg 39, Sherando 29
STRASBURG — Strasburg completed a season sweep with a win over Sherando on Monday.
The Warriors (3-11) trailed 18-7 after one quarter, 23-10 at the half and 29-22 after three quarters.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Two Keene State College student-athletes honored by the Little East Conference for their achievements accomplished for the week of January 5-11.
Men’s Swimming and Diving
Freshman diver Keegan Johnson (Durham, N.H.) was named the LEC Diver of the Week and the Rookie Diver of the Week from his dives across the Owls’ final two home meets this season over the past weekend. Against Eastern Connecticut State University, Johnson placed first in the 1M diving with a score of 129.75 on Friday afternoon, and on Saturday morning against Norwich University, he placed first in the 1M diving with a score of 141.38 and first in the 3M diving with a score of 170.31.
Johnson and the Owls return to action for a double-dual meet against Brandeis University and Bridgewater State University on Saturday, January 17 at 12:00 PM.
Men’s Indoor Track and Field
Senior Eden Damis (Nashua, N.H.) was named the LEC Field Athlete of the Week from his performance at the Middlebury Snowflake Invitational on Saturday for the Owls. In the long jump, Damis posted a mark of 14.00 in the triple just for a new personal record in his final attempt of the day. His mark became the 21st best mark in NCAA Division III on the season, just one position for qualifying for nationals later this season.
Damis and the Owls return to action at the Panther Invitational I at Plymouth State University on Saturday, January 17, at 10:00 AM.
PITMAN — The New Jersey Athletic Conference announced its women’s indoor track & field weekly honors for the week ending Jan. 11
TRACK ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
LUCIA GARCIA-BELTRAN • The College of New Jersey
Senior • Hopewell, NJ/Hopewell Valley Central
Garcia-Beltran earned NJAC Track Athlete of the Week honors after setting a new program record in the 60 meters at the Lions Indoor Invitational. The senior sprinter and Rutgers transfer clocked a time of 7.63 seconds, which ranks fifth in NCAA Division III.
FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
SARAH SCEPKOWSKI • The College of New Jersey
Senior • Garwood, NJ/Arthur L. Johnson
Scepkowski claimed NJAC Field Athlete of the Week recognition after clearing 1.60 meters in the high jump at the Lions Indoor Invitational. The senior’s mark ranks 20th in NCAA Division III and stands as one of the top performances in the conference this season.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
AMELIA VITALE • Farmingdale State College
Freshman • Hauppauge, NY/Hauppauge
Vitale was named NJAC Rookie of the Week after posting a time of 2:30.87 in the 800 meters at the Spartan Invitational. The freshman’s performance represents the top mark in the event thus far in the NJAC this season and establishes her as the conference’s early leader in the middle-distance event.
PITMAN — The New Jersey Athletic Conference announced its men’s indoor track & field weekly honors for the week ending Jan. 11.
TRACK ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
MAXIM RYCHKOV • The College of New Jersey
Sophomore • Robbinsville, NJ/Robbinsville
Rychkov earned NJAC Track Athlete of the Week honors after setting a new program record in the 400 meters at the Lions Indoor Invitational. The sophomore clocked a time of 47.95 seconds, which ranks sixth in Division III. Rychkov’s record-breaking performance also leads both the NJAC and NCAA Metro Region in the event.
FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
BRADEN PAULMENN • The College of New Jersey
Sophomore • Monmouth Junction, NJ/South Brunswick
Paulmenn claimed NJAC Field Athlete of the Week recognition after a strong showing in two throwing events at the Lions Indoor Invitational. The sophomore recorded a mark of 15.38 meters in the shot put (third place) and 13.98 meters in the weight throw (fourth place). His weight throw mark ranks third in the NJAC and 10th in the Metro Region. Paulmenn also owns the second-best shot put mark in the NJAC and NCAA Metro Region and is 26th in Division III.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
VICTOR AKINBOBOYE • The College of New Jersey
Freshman • Jackson, NJ/Jackson Liberty
Akinboboye was named NJAC Rookie of the Week after clocking a time of 35.54 seconds in the 300 meters at the Lions Indoor Invitational. The freshman’s performance ranks 18th in Division III and establishes him as one of the top first-year sprinters in the conference.
Oldani had a match-high and career-high 10 digs in BYU’s season opener Friday night in Provo. He added another three digs on Saturday. Oldani also had five blocks over the two matches, as the Cougars started the season 2-0 for the fourth consecutive season.
Oldani is one of three transfers from Grand Canyon on this season’s BYU squad. He was a key contributor as a freshman last season for the Antelopes and has picked up where he left off with the Cougars.
Oldani and the No. 8 Cougars won in back-to-back sweeps last weekend over Saint Francis and have two more home matches this Friday and Saturday, as No. 10 UC San Diego visits the Smith Fieldhouse.
