The Monday Five and Five: PVC Champions, Top-10 Runs and Big Rematches Ahead

Another week of fall sports is in the books across Aroostook County, and this one had a little bit of everything.

We saw County champions crowned on the golf course, local runners compete against one of the largest cross country fields they will see all season, a goal scored with less than a second remaining, and plenty of offense on the soccer field.

Now, with the regular season moving deeper into October, some familiar County matchups are coming back around and the stakes continue to grow.

Here is this week's Monday Five and Five.

The Five Best From Last Week

5. Hailey Plant Beats The Clock For Presque Isle

This one was about as dramatic as a regular-season soccer game can get.

Presque Isle and Foxcroft Academy appeared headed toward a 2-2 finish Tuesday before Hailey Plant scored the game-winner with less than one second remaining, giving the Lady Wildcats a 3-2 victory.

Carrlyn Buck and Emily Collins also scored for Presque Isle, while Delanie Cyr added two assists.

4. Ava Ezell Puts Together A Six-Goal Week

Houlton's Ava Ezell had a big week offensively for the Lady Shires.

Ezell scored four goals and added an assist in Houlton's 6-1 victory over Van Buren on Tuesday.

She came back Saturday with two more goals as Houlton defeated Old Town 4-2.

That gave Ezell six goals and an assist across the two Houlton victories.

3. Katahdin Scores 16 In Saturday Sweep

Both Katahdin soccer teams filled the net Saturday against East Grand.

The Cougar boys earned a 7-0 shutout, led by three goals and an assist from Conor Schmidt. Leighton Rodgerson added a goal and two assists, while Gage Phillips recorded the shutout in net.

Katahdin's girls followed with a 9-1 victory.

Add it together and the two Cougar teams scored 16 goals in one afternoon.

2. County Runners Make Their Mark At Festival Of Champions

Aroostook County runners went to Belfast Saturday and held their own against a massive Festival of Champions field.

Caribou's Pierce Gorneault finished seventh overall in the boys race with a time of 16:01.17, while Emma Graves placed eighth in the girls race at 19:06.96.

Houlton/GHCA put four runners inside the top 66 and finished ninth among 79 scoring boys teams.

Presque Isle had Lillian Johnson finish 19th and Aleah Rideout take 23rd, helping the Wildcats finish 12th in the girls team standings.

It was a strong showing for County cross country against competition from throughout Maine and New England.

1. Presque Isle Sweeps The PVC Golf Titles

Championship performances earn the top spot this week.

Patrick Collins shot a 74 at Hermon Meadows to capture the PVC boys individual championship, winning by two strokes.

Alice Korzekwa made it a Presque Isle sweep, shooting an 86 to win the girls championship.

Presque Isle also finished second in the team competition and qualified for the state championship.

Two individual champions and a state tournament berth made Thursday a big day for Wildcat golf.

Five Big Things To Watch This Week

5. Presque Isle Hits The Road

The Wildcats have a busy Class B North soccer week away from home.

The Presque Isle boys are scheduled to visit Orono Monday before the girls make the same trip Tuesday. The boys then head to Foxcroft Academy Thursday.

Saturday brings another road doubleheader, with Presque Isle scheduled to face Ellsworth in girls soccer at noon and boys soccer at 2 p.m.

With October underway, every one of those games becomes another opportunity to build momentum heading toward the postseason.

4. A Big Home Week For Caribou

Caribou also has plenty on the schedule.

The Vikings are set to host John Bapst in a makeup doubleheader Monday before Fort Kent comes to Caribou for Senior Night games later in the week.

The boys host Fort Kent Wednesday night, with the girls matchup following Thursday.

Then Hermon comes north Saturday for another Class B doubleheader, with the girls scheduled for noon and the boys at 2 p.m.

3. Fort Fairfield And Central Aroostook Meet Again

Thursday night should provide another good County doubleheader when Fort Fairfield visits Central Aroostook.

The girls are scheduled for 5 p.m., followed by the boys at 7.

Central Aroostook is coming off a sweep of Easton, while Fort Fairfield's girls beat Van Buren last week and the Tiger boys closed Saturday with a scoreless double-overtime tie against Bangor Christian.

It is another County rivalry worth keeping an eye on as the regular season moves toward its final weeks.

2. Presque Isle Golf Heads To States

After sweeping the PVC individual championships, Presque Isle now turns its attention toward the state tournament.

The Wildcats qualified as a team, while Patrick Collins and Alice Korzekwa are also among the individual qualifiers following their PVC championship rounds.

The MPA currently lists the Class B and Class C team and individual championships for Saturday, October 10, at Natanis Golf Course in Vassalboro.

After what Collins, Korzekwa and the Wildcats accomplished at Hermon Meadows, state championship weekend will be one of the biggest events involving a County team this week.

1. Two Big Rematches In Ashland

Tuesday may provide the most interesting night of County soccer this week.

Katahdin's boys return to Ashland after the Cougars won the first meeting 2-1 in double overtime earlier this season. Conor Schmidt scored both goals in that game, including the winner.

Then Central Aroostook and Ashland meet again in girls soccer.

Their first matchup was one of the best County games we have seen this fall, with Ashland edging Central Aroostook 3-2 in a meeting between two of the top teams we had been following in Class D North.

Two rematches, two established storylines and four familiar County programs make Ashland the place to watch Tuesday.