CARIBOU, Maine — One of the best schoolboy soccer players in recent Caribou High School history is back as the Vikings’ head coach for the 2015 season.
Kyle Corrigan, who earned All-New England honors in his senior season at Caribou, replaces four-year head coach Scott Hunter, who is dealing with health issues. Hunter hopes to return to the varsity post in 2016.
Corrigan, a 2008 CHS graduate, went on to play basketball and soccer at the University of Maine at Presque Isle, where he graduated in 2013. He now works as an assistant accountant at Maine Mutual Group in Presque Isle.
Corrigan steps up to the varsity soccer post at his high school alma mater after coaching the school’s boys junior varsity team last year. He also was actively involved in coaching youth athletic programs at the Caribou Recreation Department for five years.
Caribou struggled to a 2-10-2 finish in Eastern Maine Class B last spring but returns seven seniors this season led by captain Michael Hunter.
“We have a great group of seniors this year that are all leaders and role models for the younger players on our squad and on the JV roster as well,” Corrigan said. “We have a very coachable group of young men that are willing to make personal sacrifices for the better of the team.
“Our goal as a team this season is simple: We want to show improvement every day and make the playoffs this year. We are coming off a disappointing record last year, and the boys are very dedicated to working hard to get this program back on the right track.”
Caribou dropped a 4-0 decision to Fort Kent in its season opener Tuesday evening and is scheduled to return to action at home against Presque Isle on Sept. 1.
Bangor-Brewer football rivalry to be renewed
The start of the high school football season remains more than a week away — officially.
But the enthusiasm level for the coming campaign suggests there will be high interest in this weekend’s exhibition games, those final dress rehearsals typically against nonconference opponents where teams will try to establish momentum to carry into the ensuing regular-season grind.
One preseason game that should attract plenty of attention is Friday night’s renewal of the Bangor-Brewer football rivalry.
This will mark the 104th meeting on the gridiron between the two teams since their inaugural clash in 1903 but their first game since 2010. While Bangor has dominated the series — leading 75-20-8 — both squads enter the 7 p.m. contest at Cameron Stadium with reason for optimism.
Bangor, coming off back-to-back trips to the Eastern Maine Class A semifinals, returns one of the state’s top running backs in senior Dane Johnson but may be looking to diversity its attack more under new head coach Al Mosca, a Bangor High School graduate and longtime assistant coach who was hired April 8 to replace the retired Mark Hackett.
Brewer, meanwhile, is coming off a comeback campaign last fall under first-year head coach Nick Arthers, which included an overtime victory over 2013 state champion Cony of Augusta en route to an Eastern Maine Class B playoff berth.
“The weather’s going to be great, and both teams are trying to use this as a measuring stick to see where they are going into the season, so the atmosphere should be great,” Bangor athletic administrator Steve Vanidestine said.
“We finished the baseball season last spring playing a close game with Brewer (a 1-0 Bangor win in the Eastern A final), so it’s been a real good rivalry lately and this a perfect way to start the new school year.”
Restoring the Bangor-Brewer football rivalry was a twofold process, according to Brewer athletic administrator Dave Utterback.
“First off, it took collaboration from Bangor. And when Steve Vanidestine and I first started throwing the idea out, we both felt it was a good time to bring the game back,” he said. “In particular, Nick Arthers and I felt with the roster returning for us that we could be ready for a test against a strong Class A team to get us ready for a grind of a season in a deep Class B East.”
Under the plan devised for the next two years, the home team for the Bangor-Brewer football exhibition game will be rotated with the home team for the Fill the Alfond hockey game played between the two schools at the University of Maine in Orono each season.
That means this year’s Fill the Alfond game and next year’s preseason football game with Bangor will be hosted by Brewer, while Bangor will host the Fill the Alfond game during the 2016-17 school year.
“Overall, we all felt it was a good time to meet again on the football field,” Utterback said. “Our people are excited, and I know the folks in Bangor are excited to host and renew the 100-plus-year football rivalry. We hope the two towns come out and give the kids a great experience with a large and lively crowd.”
A busy preseason schedule
Other exhibition games slated for Friday around Eastern Maine include Medomak Valley of Waldoboro at Camden Hills of Rockport and Mt. Blue of Farmington at Messalonskee of Oakland, both at 4 p.m.; Washington Academy of East Machias at Oceanside of Rockland-Thomaston at 5 p.m. and the following 7 p.m. contests: Skowhegan at Hampden Academy, Lawrence of Fairfield at South Portland, Nokomis of Newport at Cony of Augusta, Brunswick at Leavitt of Turner Center, Fryeburg Academy at Mount Ararat of Topsham, Foxcroft Academy of Dover-Foxcroft at Orono, Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln at Hermon, Houlton at John Bapst of Bangor (Husson University), Old Town at Stearns of Millinocket, and Mount Desert Island of Bar Harbor at Ellsworth/Sumner.
Exhibition games scheduled Saturday have Maine Central Institute of Pittsfield at Waterville, Bucksport at Winslow and Belfast at Mount View of Thorndike, all at 1 p.m., Morse of Bath at Freeport at 1:30 p.m. and Dexter at Madison/Carrabec at 7 p.m.
