Volleyball: Senior captains this season are Haley Burns, Ursa Steiner, and Meg Perry. Coach Emma Tirrel said the team is looking fierce on defense with some key returning players including Meg Perry, Caralin Mills, Haley Burns, and Talia Catoggio. The girls lost a few key players; however, they have seven returning seniors stepping up to fill the void. The team had a successful season last year going 16-1 and the expectation for this year is the same. Tough match ups on the schedule will be Scarborough and Falmouth; but along with the seniors, the team looks to rookies Skylar Price and Maddy Berry to make an impact.
Football: Coach Andy Hager is in his 6th year as Head Coach of the Rams. Players to watch this season are seniors Isaac Rollins, Kyle Ouillette, Jack Van Zandt, and Tyler King.
It is an experienced group heading into this season and the boys will be looking to compete in every game with the end goal to position themselves for a home playoff game. The Rams will be looking to lean on the experience of the upperclassman and in turn bring some younger players along in key positions.
At the Rams home opener against Noble, the team honored Wayne “Pooch” Drown and held Police Appreciation night beginning with the Gorham Police Department honor guard and a moment of silence. To cap off the night, the Rams celebrated a 34-7 win.
Field Hockey: Becky Manson-Rioux is in her 11th season as head coach. The girls had a great season last year with an 11-4-1 record. The team lost a few players; however, key players returning are Faith Dillon, Kacie Walton, Lauren Green, Lydia Gaudreau, Molly Murray, Kate Downey and Molly Rathbun. The team welcomes newcomers Julia Edwards, Maeve Donnelly and Sydney Connolly.
The Gorham Rams return their three captains: senior Faith Dillon, senior Kacie Walton and junior Lydia Gaudreau. Along with the captains, also adding to the starting lineup are leading scorer junior Molly Murray and tenacious defender senior Lauren Green. With speed, stamina and grit, the Rams look to earn one of the top spots in the SMAA. Key match ups are Westbrook, Thornton Academy, Massabesic, Scarborough and Falmouth.
Boys’ Soccer: The captains for the boys 2019 soccer team are seniors Andrew Rent, Brady King, Kyle Hamblen, and Travis Matheson. The boys had an incredible record last season of 16-1-1, losing to Lewiston in State Finals 1-0.
With the return of many starters and experienced players from last year’s team, the Rams are looking to build an identity while dealing with early season injuries. The hardest hit to the team was losing Andrew Rent, an All-American in 2018, to an ACL injury. Key offensive threats looking to step up and make an impact include senior Ryan Farr, senior Colby Christakis, senior Javin Stickney, and Hamblen. The defense is led by Matheson, King, junior Grant Nadeau, and sophomore Andrew Farr.
Girls’ Soccer: Coach Jeanne Zarrilli’s team comes off an impressive season with a record of 10-2- 2. Key players returning include Maddie Sweatt, Brittany Landry, Jill Nichols, Katie Kutzer, Gracie Forgues, Maddie Michaud, Lauren Fotter, Olivia Michaud, and Lily Courtney. Key newcomers hoping to add to the team are Lexi Waterman and Brylee Bishop.
Key match ups this season are against Scarborough, Windham, Bonny Eagle, Cheverus and Falmouth. The Rams competition is going to be strong across the board with a lot of parity in the league; the girls should compete in every game. Zarrilli said with some younger players in starting roles, the team will look to grow its game and chemistry over the course of the season as they prepare for an extremely tough playoff scenario.
Boys’ Cross Country: Coach Jason Tanguay shared the boys 2018 season ended with a 6th place finish at the Regional Championship and 12th place at the State Championship. Key returning athletes include senior Andrew Tinkham, junior Reed Henderson, junior Josh Lehmann, and sophomore Calvin Cummings.
The Rams will look to place at the Southern Maine Classic on September 14 and the Festival of Champions on October 5.
Tanguay said, “Our team does return some runners from last year, but I am not sure about where we stand in regards to depth of our pack.” The team’s top veterans have put in the necessary work over the summer. Tanguay said the boys are ready to make some big, positive strides this season and he thinks it will be exciting to watch unfold. With about a third of the team being new additions, the development of this group will be the key to whether or not they are able to compete for a spot in the post-season.
Girls’ Cross Country: The Rams 2018 season ended with a 6th place finish at the Regional Championship and 7th place at the State Championship. Key athletes returning are senior Kate Tugman, senior Iris Kitchen, senior Carson Battaglia, and junior Emily Paruk.
As with the boys’ team, the key meets are the Southern Maine Classic on September 14 and the Festival of Champions on October 5.
Tanguay said the summer looks to have been a good one for the program as many runners put in the necessary effort to either maintain or improve their fitness level. “We have a solid one-two punch on our team with Kate Tugman and Iris Kitchen with a few other veterans who appear to be ready to close ground on the lead packs,” he said. With the addition of some athletes who are new to the sport and incoming freshmen, Tanguay said he’s curious to see if they add some much needed depth to the team.
Golf: Coach Scott Nevers said the golf team should be really fun to watch this year. After graduating a few seniors last year, the team ha a new lineup with a couple returning players who are stepping up, looking to compete, and win their division.
Led by senior Aidan Owens and junior Aidan Enck, both captains, the team looks to have a good mix of upper and lower classmen. Golfers to watch are Aidan Enck, Bryce Lumbert, Sam Farr, Lucas Castles, Jacob Polchies, Jacob Graham and Aidan Owens.
Nevers said any of the top 10-15 players could compete on the Varsity team, it will come down to shooting good scores and consistency. Varsity will look to have a strong season and continue right into the State Championship at Natanis. The JV program should be strong as well, with 30 athletes in the golf program.