Contests have officially begun for many of Sanford High School’s winter sports teams and there is a lot to get excited about. We’ve reached out to each varsity coach on their team’s goals, expectations, and challenges for the upcoming season. If you aren’t already, be sure to follow @Sanford_Athletics on Instagram to stay up-to-date on game days, highlights and results!
Updated Dec. 20, 2022
BOYS BASKETBALL
HEAD COACH: Jake mills
Coach Jake Mills, a 2012 Sanford Alumn, returns for his fourth season as the head coach of the boys varsity basketball team.
How did your 2021-2022 season go? What was your record?
Overall, we had a very successful season in 2021, finishing with a record of 10-5. We lost to Massabesic in the quarter-finals of the playoffs.
Who are the top returners, and/or newcomers this season you are excited about?
Our top returning players from last year are Makai Bougie, Tanner McCann, and LJ McFarland. We are excited to have Alex Sevigny and Liam Gendron back from injury and we are excited to see what Gavin Haskell and Shawn Puffer can do at the varsity level. AJ Anderson, Brandon Kennedy, and Tyler Sevigny are also returning varsity players that are looking to contribute. Brady Adams as a sophomore is our youngest player looking to make his mark on the team.
What are your goals and expectations for this season? Any challenges you anticipate?
After graduating five seniors last year, we are looking to establish our identity over the first half of the season. Our expectations for the year are to be playing our best at the end of January heading into February.
What are you most looking forward to this season?
I am most excited about the group of players we have this year. I am looking forward to creating strong relationships with each of the players and helping them reach their individual and team goals.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
HEAD COACH: Rossie kearson
Coach Kearson enters his sixth season as the varsity girls basketball coach.
How did your 2021-22 season go? What was your record?
I’d say we had an okay season. We fell short a handful of times and finished with a 7-11 record.
Who are the top returners, and/or newcomers this season you are excited about?
Top returners are senior Riley Hebler and juniors Julissa McBarron, Hailey Tarbox and Shelby McLeod. I’m excited about our freshmen, Ava Hudson, Annalise Stimmell, and Sophie Olivo.
What are your goals and expectations for this season? Any challenges you anticipate?
The goal is to win 10 or more games and go deep in the playoffs. The challenges are believing it can be done and bringing the energy to every practice and every game.
What are you most looking forward to this season?
I’m most looking forward to watching my girls compete! When they get after it, they are dangerous and I like that.
Anything else you’d like to share?
I’d like all students to attend every home game to support both the girls and boys teams when they can. We need your support!
You can follow the @Spartan_Girls_Basketball team on Instagram.
CHEER
HEAD COACH: KENDRA O’connell
Coach O’Connell is in her 15th season with Sanford Varsity Cheer.
How did your 2021-2022 season go? What was your record?
Our 2021-2022 Season was excellent! We placed 3rd at our SMAA competition, 2nd at Regionals and 5th place at states.
Who are the top returners, and/or newcomers this season you are excited about?
We are excited to have very experienced seniors Lydia Doiron and Audrey Coleman back. With their experience on the competition floor we can’t wait to see what this team does! A newcomer we are looking forward to watching out on the floor this year is junior Jack Sevigny. He brings a new energy and enthusiasm (along with strength) to our team. He will be fun to watch!
What are your goals and expectations for this season? Any challenges you anticipate?
Our goals for this season are definitely top three finishes at all our competitions. We absolutely have the potential!
What are you most looking forward to this season?
I am looking forward to working hard with this team this season. Although we are a small (but mighty) team we have some great athletes who are extremely motivated. They have been a blast to work with so far and looking forward to working thru all the challenges that come with winter competition season.
Anything else you’d like to share?
We are so excited that we will have some big competitions right here at Sanford this year! We will be hosting the SMAA competition on January 28th, and also the big regional competition on February 4th. We are hoping to have a lot of Sanford fans pack the stands and cheer on our team!
You can follow @SanfordVarsityCheer on Instagram.
INDOOR TRACK
HEAD COACH: MAGNES LEWIS
Taking on the new indoor track program at Sanford is Magnes Lewis, a familiar face in the Sanford community and Spartan Athletics. Lewis helps coach outdoor track and girls soccer.
Year one as a new program! How are you feeling?
We are excited to see how we compete against other programs that have been around for a while!
Who are some notable athletes from outdoor track that you are excited about? Any newcomers to the sport?
Junior Jake Doughty is a returner from competing in indoor track at a club level from last year and also outdoor track this past year. His strongest event is the triple jump. Junior Tucker Walker is a newcomer to indoor track but very successful in outdoor track. He is looking to compete in the shot putt. We are looking to make a strong run at these events and others at the state level!
What are your goals and expectations for this season? Any challenges you anticipate?
My goal is for each one of my athletes to accomplish their goals this season. Track is a great sport that shows our athletes how they are progressing all year. The only challenge coming our way right now is seeing how many athletes from our team can qualify for the state meet.
What are you most looking forward to this season?
I’m looking forward to bringing the teams great camaraderie to track meets!
Anything else you’d like to share?
If you are looking to join a sport this winter, feel free to join our team! It’s not too late!
SWIM
HEAD COACH: Kerry Chamberlain
Sanford swim teams up with Massabesic this season; home meets will be conducted at the Sanford-Springvale YMCA. Answers below are provided by senior swimmers Abbey Gifford and Kora Eckelman.
How did your 2021-2022 season go? What was your record?
Overall the season went well, we ended up losing a lot of seniors but luckily, we gained a stronger team by combining with Massabesic.
How has it been swimming alongside Massabesic?
It’s been nice to have a larger team and an involved coach. We now have enough people for more relays and the freshmen swimmers are already showing a lot of great potential.
Who are the top returners, and/or newcomers this season you are excited about?
For Sanford, returners include seniors Abbey Gifford, Kora Eckelman, and a few others like junior Jace Hale and sophomore Sam Dunbar. For newcomers, some of the Massabesic parts of the team have trained in middle school so it is nice that we have swimmers with previous experience. The new swimmers have also made a lot of progress in such a short time.
What are your goals and expectations for this season? Any challenges you anticipate?
We are working towards improving sportsmanship and having many swimmers qualify for states. Challenges will probably be increasing difficulty in training to drop time.
What are you most looking forward to this season?
We are looking forward to helping other swimmers learn/improve their swimming.
Anything else you’d like to share?
We are looking forward to a great season!
WRESTLING
HEAD COACH: nate smith
Coach Smith enters his twelfth season as head coach. After winning the Dual State Championship last year and sending four wrestlers to the National Championships, expectations and potential for the Spartans are at an all-time high: The Portland Press Herald deemed Sanford the #1 team to watch in southern Maine.
How did your 2021-22 season go? What was your record?
We were the Class A Dual State Champions and the Class A State Runner-Up!
Who are the top returners, and/or newcomers this season you are excited about?
Top newcomers include freshmen Ricky Callis, Chris Chaplick, Gabe Roberge and Andrew Nickerson. All five key returners are co-captains this year and include:
- James Blood, senior: undefeated State Champion, 3rd at New England, National Runner up
- Mason Van Gieson, junior: Regional Runner Up, 3rd Class A States
- Luke Callis, sophomore: 3rd in Regionals, 3rd in Class A States
- James Chaplick, sophomore: Regional Runner Up, 3rd Class A States
- Canton Hill, sophomore: Regional Runner Up, 3rd Class A States
What are your goals and expectations for this season? Any challenges you anticipate?
My hope for this season is to continue to grow as a program in terms of culture and overall team chemistry. Get some wins under our belt and be able to bounce back from a tough loss together. Our league is very competitive, the entire season will be a challenge but in a good way!
What are you most looking forward to this season?
I’m looking forward to some shocking results from our freshmen and tremendous performances from our leadership. It will be a few matches until we are full strength but when we are it will be a fun season to watch!
Anything else you’d like to share?
On Dec. 21 at our first home meet, we will be unveiling our new State Championship banners. Be there to celebrate and support your team in a tough battle against Class B favorite Wells.
You can follow the wrestling team on Instagram and Facebook.
The Spartan Times 