The regular season is over, and County softball now shifts fully into tournament mode.

The Class B, C and D North brackets all have County teams in the mix, led by unbeaten Katahdin in Class D North. The Lady Cougars finished the regular season 14-0 and earned the No. 2 seed behind Penobscot Valley, which also finished unbeaten.

Presque Isle will begin in the Class B North preliminary round, Houlton/GHCA opens in the Class C North prelims, and Class D North has several County teams ready to go, including Katahdin, Wisdom, Fort Fairfield, Ashland and Washburn/Easton.

Preliminary games are scheduled for Tuesday, with quarterfinals set for Thursday.

Class B North Softball Seeds

Hermon, 14-2
Gardiner, 13-3
Belfast, 13-3
Old Town, 12-4
Lawrence, 11-5
Ellsworth, 8-8
Presque Isle, 8-8
Nokomis, 9-7
Cony, 8-8
Mount Desert Island, 8-8

Class B North Preliminary Round: Tuesday

Seeds 7 through 10 will play in the preliminary round.

No. 7 Presque Isle vs. No. 10 Mount Desert Island

No. 8 Nokomis vs. No. 9 Cony

Class B North Quarterfinal Path: Thursday

No. 1 Hermon vs. Winner of No. 8 Nokomis/No. 9 Cony

No. 4 Old Town vs. No. 5 Lawrence

No. 3 Belfast vs. No. 6 Ellsworth

No. 2 Gardiner vs. Winner of No. 7 Presque Isle/No. 10 Mount Desert Island

Presque Isle Opens In Class B North

Presque Isle enters the Class B North tournament as the No. 7 seed after an 8-8 regular season.

The Lady Wildcats will open with a preliminary-round matchup against No. 10 Mount Desert Island, a team they split with during the regular season.

Presque Isle has shown plenty of offensive upside throughout the spring.

Peyton Jennings had one of the biggest late-season performances for the Lady Wildcats, finishing with a single, double and triple while driving in 5 runs. Peyton Boinske added four hits, drove in two runs and scored five times in that same game.

Kolbie Langley delivered one of the biggest swings of the season earlier in the spring with a two-RBI triple in the bottom of the seventh to finish a comeback win. Reagan Stubbs, Madison Brazier, Gan Curtis, Astra Laughton and Olivia Edgecomb have also had key moments throughout the season.

In the circle, Laughton and Edgecomb have both handled important innings for Presque Isle.

The reward for a prelim win would be a Thursday quarterfinal matchup with No. 2 Gardiner.

Class C North Softball Seeds

Bucksport, 15-1
Mattanawcook Academy, 14-2
Washington Academy, 13-3
Narraguagus, 11-5
Orono, 11-5
Central, 13-3
Houlton/GHCA, 9-4
Sumner, 9-5
Winslow, 8-8
Dexter, 5-11

Class C North Preliminary Round: Tuesday

Seeds 7 through 10 will play in the preliminary round.

No. 7 Houlton/GHCA vs. No. 10 Dexter

No. 8 Sumner vs. No. 9 Winslow

Class C North Quarterfinal Path: Thursday

No. 1 Bucksport vs. Winner of No. 8 Sumner/No. 9 Winslow

No. 4 Narraguagus vs. No. 5 Orono

No. 3 Washington Academy vs. No. 6 Central

No. 2 Mattanawcook Academy vs. Winner of No. 7 Houlton/GHCA/No. 10 Dexter

Houlton/GHCA Has A Pitcher Who Can Change A Game

Houlton/GHCA enters the Class C North tournament as the No. 7 seed after a 9-4 regular season.

The Lady Shires open with No. 10 Dexter in the preliminary round.

Houlton has leaned on Amelia Matwyko in the circle throughout the season, and she has put together several of the top pitching performances in The County.

Matwyko reached the 100-strikeout mark for the season during the final stretch. She also threw a seven-inning no-hitter with 14 strikeouts in a 2-0 win, later added a two-hit shutout with 15 strikeouts, and struck out 12 in a complete-game effort in the regular-season finale.

At the plate, Houlton has received production from Mylee Sylvia, Maddie Beals, Amelia Flewelling, Kylah Tuttle and Lainey Henderson.

If Houlton advances, it would move on to face No. 2 Mattanawcook Academy in the quarterfinals. Houlton and Mattanawcook split their regular-season meetings, with the Lady Shires handing Mattanawcook one of its two losses.

Class D North Softball Seeds

Penobscot Valley, 14-0
Katahdin, 14-0
Wisdom, 11-3
Fort Fairfield, 11-3
Penquis Valley, 9-7
Machias, 9-5
Stearns, 10-6
Schenck, 9-5
Ashland, 8-6
Jonesport-Beals, 8-6
Bangor Christian, 6-10
Deer Isle-Stonington, 7-9
Washburn/Easton, 7-7
Woodland, 8-8

Class D North Preliminary Round: Tuesday

Seeds 3 through 14 will play in the preliminary round.

No. 3 Wisdom vs. No. 14 Woodland

No. 4 Fort Fairfield vs. No. 13 Washburn/Easton

No. 5 Penquis Valley vs. No. 12 Deer Isle-Stonington

No. 6 Machias vs. No. 11 Bangor Christian

No. 7 Stearns vs. No. 10 Jonesport-Beals

No. 8 Schenck vs. No. 9 Ashland

Class D North Quarterfinal Path: Thursday

No. 1 Penobscot Valley vs. Winner of No. 8 Schenck/No. 9 Ashland

Winner of No. 4 Fort Fairfield/No. 13 Washburn/Easton vs. Winner of No. 5 Penquis Valley/No. 12 Deer Isle-Stonington

Winner of No. 3 Wisdom/No. 14 Woodland vs. Winner of No. 6 Machias/No. 11 Bangor Christian

No. 2 Katahdin vs. Winner of No. 7 Stearns/No. 10 Jonesport-Beals

Katahdin Enters Unbeaten

Katahdin finished the regular season 14-0 and enters the Class D North tournament as the No. 2 seed.

The Lady Cougars will have a bye through Tuesday’s preliminary round before opening tournament play in Thursday’s quarterfinals.

Katahdin has been one of the strongest teams in The County all season, with a deep lineup and strong pitching leading the way.

Polly Cullen has been a major two-way piece for the Lady Cougars. She closed the regular season with a 4-for-4 day, driving in 4 runs, while also pitching a complete game and striking out nine. Earlier in the season, Cullen also put together a 5-for-5 game with a double, two triples, 2 RBIs and five runs scored.

Dakotah Stevens has been one of Katahdin’s top offensive performers as well. She went 4-for-4 in the regular-season finale, added three-hit games during the final stretch and has been part of a lineup that has been difficult to slow down.

Lydia Qualey has supplied power, including a two-run home run in the regular-season finale and a three-home run, 8-RBI game earlier this spring. Emily McNally, Savannah McGraw, Emily Lane and Trinity Lane have also helped give the Lady Cougars consistent offense throughout the order.

A 14-0 record does not win a tournament by itself, but Katahdin has been one of the most complete County teams all season.

Wisdom Brings A Dangerous Offense

Wisdom enters the Class D North tournament as the No. 3 seed after an 11-3 regular season.

The Lady Pioneers open with No. 14 Woodland in Tuesday’s preliminary round.

Wisdom has had one of the most explosive offenses in Class D North. Kelsie Daigle, Ava Lerman, Emma Soucy, Riley Guerrette, Mikayla Michaud, Madi Cyr and Ellie Cyr have all had big games during the season.

Daigle had one of the top late-season performances, going 4-for-5 with 6 RBIs and four runs scored in one game, then adding another three-hit game later in the week.

Lerman has been a major piece both offensively and in the circle. She went 3-for-3 with 4 RBIs and five runs scored in one game, had four hits in another, and also threw a three-inning no-hitter with seven strikeouts earlier in the spring.

Soucy has also had a four-hit game, while Michaud, Guerrette and the Cyr sisters have all helped Wisdom put up big offensive numbers.

If Wisdom advances, the Lady Pioneers would move into a Thursday quarterfinal matchup against the winner of No. 6 Machias and No. 11 Bangor Christian.

Fort Fairfield Hosts Washburn/Easton In A County Prelim

One of the Tuesday preliminary games will be a County matchup, with No. 4 Fort Fairfield hosting No. 13 Washburn/Easton.

Fort Fairfield enters at 11-3 after a strong regular season.

The Lady Tigers have been led in the circle by Isabella Winters, who reached the 100-strikeout mark for the season in the regular-season finale. Winters has also delivered at the plate, including a five-RBI performance earlier in the spring.

Fort Fairfield has gotten big offensive moments from Addison Cole, Cadence Binnie, Avery Solomon, Sare Bernard, Madison Perry and others.

Binnie delivered one of the most memorable swings of the regular season with a go-ahead inside-the-park three-run home run in a nine-inning win. Cole had a five-hit game during the season, while Solomon and Bernard have each had run-producing performances.

Washburn/Easton comes in at 7-7 and has played its way into the Class D North tournament field.

The Lady Beavers moved back to .500 late in the regular season with a 17-2 win. Yrah Tismo had three hits, including a double, and drove in 3 runs in that game. Haily Campbell and Cassidy Pinette each had three hits and scored three times, while Finley Turner added two hits and 2 RBIs.

Journey Bragg has been one of Washburn’s biggest RBI threats, including a 3-for-4, 5-RBI performance during the final stretch.

The winner will move on to face the winner of No. 5 Penquis Valley and No. 12 Deer Isle-Stonington in Thursday’s quarterfinals.

Ashland Heads To Schenck

Ashland enters as the No. 9 seed after an 8-6 regular season and will travel to No. 8 Schenck in Tuesday’s preliminary round.

The Lady Hornets have shown they can produce runs in bunches.

Emma Doughty had a three-hit, 3-RBI game late in the regular season, while Macie MacLean added three hits and 2 RBIs in the same win. Sadie Trams has had several strong offensive games, including a four-hit performance, and Angel Hafford drove in 6 runs in a win over Wisdom.

Claire Bauzenberger also had one of Ashland’s biggest offensive performances of the year, going 4-for-4 with 5 RBIs.

Ashland also handed Wisdom one of its three regular-season losses, giving the Lady Hornets a strong confidence-building win heading into tournament play.

If Ashland advances, it would move on to face top-seeded Penobscot Valley in Thursday’s quarterfinals.

The Brackets Are Set

The regular season brought The County plenty of softball storylines.

Katahdin went unbeaten. Wisdom and Fort Fairfield both finished 11-3. Houlton has a strikeout leader in the circle. Presque Isle has a dangerous Class B offense. Ashland and Washburn/Easton are both in the Class D North field with big-game offensive performances behind them.

Now the bracket takes over.

Preliminary games are scheduled for Tuesday, with quarterfinals set for Thursday.

From here on out, every inning matters.