It’s the third Sunday in June, and it’s more than Father’s Day. It marks the end of the fiscal year for anyone who covers high school sports for a living.

Here in the cozy confines of the Sun Journal toy department, we could celebrate this passage in a variety of ways.

— Imbibe moderately. But that’s bad for you, kids. And we don’t do that sort of thing. Often.

— Gather in a circle and sing “Auld Lang Syne.” This, however, would violate man law and musical good taste.

— Type up a laundry list of our local highlights and give all our champions and high achievers one final pat on the back. C’mon. Everybody does that. It’s exciting as reading the phone book.

— Wrap up the year with random, utterly unscientific power rankings. Weigh the accomplishments of all 20-plus high schools in our coverage area and rate the top 10 in order of across-the-board athletic prowess for the 2010-11 school year. Start arguments, cause trouble. Thrill some readers and offend others.

Yup, that sounds like fun. Away we go …

10. (tie) Oak Hill, Livermore Falls. Yes, this is a copout. I detest deadlocks and shared honors at a level of hatred that vegans reserve for pork sausage. But it’s my countdown, darn it.

The Raiders put together a sensational spring in girls’ athletics, reaching the Class B regional final in both softball and tennis. Seven months earlier, Oak Hill’s football team won a Class C playoff game. Livermore Falls made a run to the Western Class C girls’ basketball final. And the Andies might have saved their best efforts for the slopes, where Cody and Lindsey Jacques won their respective giant slalom skiing titles.

Plus, in this farewell year of the unforgettable Livermore Falls-Jay sports rivalry, there’s no way I would have left both schools off this list.

9. Lisbon. Those Greyhounds continue to thrive despite their constant residency on the fence that divides Class B and C. Lisbon is the largest school in some of its activities and the smallest in others.

Not surprisingly, the ’Hounds achieved most of their success this school year in the division where they’re a big dog. Lisbon was second in Class C wrestling, a finalist in Western Class C football, and a top-five team in both boys’ and girls’ track. Sounds like a team for all seasons.

8. Telstar. Athletes grow, athletes graduate, and Jim Lunney (softball) and Gail Wight (field hockey) continue to stock the shelf and cook up winners.

The Rebels will play in the Class C softball title game Monday for the third straight season and fifth time in the last seven years. Field hockey paid another visit to the regional final. Now if we could just take up a collection to help those girls buy some artificial turf for the top of that old hill in Bethel.

7. Dirigo. It wasn’t the clean sweep of 2009-10, but the Cougars chalked up another solid year.

Boys’ basketball won its third straight Western Class C title with a third different coach and appear to be in line to go 4-for-4 in each category next winter. Baseball won an MVC championship and fell one run shy in the regional title game. Football defended its state championship by returning to the playoffs with a roster dominated by freshmen and sophomore. Wrestling finished third at Class C states.

6. Edward Little. The Red Eddies were on the top step. They just never quite kicked down the door.

Boys’ basketball reached its fourth straight Eastern Class A final, something no other school had accomplished in 28 years. Girls’ basketball lost a tough one to eventual Eastern champ Hampden in the semifinals.

Track and field won the KVAC boys’ indoor title and swept the boys’ and girls’ outdoor conference crowns. At outdoor states, the EL boys were second to Bonny Eagle by a mere four points, while the girls were bronze medalists. Individually, J.J. Jackson won the Class A boys’ slalom championship and was the Sun Journal’s alpine all-region skier of the year.

5. Leavitt. The Hornets might not wow you with overall strength from September to June. In the high-revenue, high-attendance sports, though, they shone brightly.

Led by sisters Courtney and Kristen Anderson, their mother and coach Tammy, and Adrianna Newton, Leavitt went 23-0 and won its first Class B girls’ basketball championship. On the gridiron, the Hornets rolled through the Class B division of the Pine Tree Conference for the second straight year before stumbling in the state final against …

4. Mountain Valley. The Falcons did it with defense, scoring more touchdowns on interception and fumble returns than it allowed other teams to score in conventional fashion. To top it off, in a long-anticipated renewal of a dormant rivalry, Mountain Valley leveled Leavitt, 20-0, to win the state title in an even-numbered year in its fourth straight try.

With much the same cast of characters, the Falcons were equally dominant in capturing the Class B wrestling title.

3. Mt. Blue. You want a dynasty? I’ll show you a dynasty.

The Cougars were Class A girls’ skiing champions for the seventh straight season and 18th time in 20 years. Hannah Allen (classical) and Emily Ramsey (freestyle) were individual Nordic champs. And the boys’ won their fifth consecutive overall crown and 11th out of 12.

Boys’ team sports had a solid year with junior-dominated clubs. Boys’ basketball and football reached the regional semifinals. Baseball ended a recent drought and lost a quarterfinal game in extra innings. Wrestling continued its rebuilding project by annexing the KVAC Class A wrestling championship.

2. St. Dom’s. It was a big year that wasn’t far away from being a humongous year.

The Saints dominated girls’ hockey en route to its first official state title. That and another trip to the Class C baseball championship game — the Saints’ sixth in eight years — balanced out a year filled with playoff near-misses.

Girls’ soccer (regional finals) and boys’ soccer (regional semis) were the MVC’s best. Boys’ lacrosse went undefeated in the regular season for the second straight year. Boys’ hockey reached the Eastern Maine final before falling to Lewiston.

1. Lewiston. This wasn’t merely the best sports season in our area. The Blue Devils are in the conversation of best performances by an athletic program in the state over the last 25 years.

Tennis swept Class A championships. Cheering won its state championship and set a scoring record that might be unbreakable. The baseball, boys’ lacrosse and hockey teams all reached the Class A final.

Even the teams that fell just short of glory were in the mix and had a flair for the dramatic. Football was a chain link away from its first trip to a state final since 1987. Boys’ soccer finished the regular season with an 11-game winning streak and lost a playoff game on penalty kicks.

Dispute the rankings anywhere from double-digits to No. 2, if you must. But there’s no argument about the top spot. Paint it blue, baby.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to find a bottle opener and warm up my vocal chords.

Kalle Oakes is a staff writer. His email is koakes@sunjournal.com.

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