If there was a year to topple Richmond from atop the East-West Conference and Western Maine Class D, it might have been last year.

The Bobcats had graduated nine seniors and had a young team entering the spring. Still, that group managed to keep the Richmond winning tradition alive with a second straight state title.

Now, the Bobcats are back with another potent team. Richmond isn’t so young and inexperienced as last year. The Bobcats had no seniors last spring and just three juniors, three sophomores and seven freshmen. That means the Bobcats will be the team to beat in the EWC and Western D.

Greenville lost to Richmond in the regional final and was a young squad as well. The Lakers had just two seniors, one of which didn’t even play in the regional final because she was on vacation. That means Greenville should be a solid club once again and should challenge for a return to the regional championship.

Vinalhaven was the second seed last year but lost to Greenville in the semifinals. The Vikings should be a contender again with a little more seasoning. Vinalhaven has a strong young group of athletes coming through the school that should keep it in contention in seasons to come.

Buckfield lost seven seniors from last year but isn’t calling this spring a rebuilding year. The Bucks still return nine players from a club that went 8-6 and lost in the quarterfinals to Searsport.

Amber Arsenault and Courtney Lowell are the only seniors on the club while juniors Alexis Bennett, Brianna Damon, Courtney Keough and Jennifer Dobson also return. The Bucks also have sophomores Abby Shields, Kali Litchfield and Abby Fogg back. The Bucks have some experience and some depth and are looking to challenge some of the top teams in the EWC.

“We’re very optimistic about your year ahead,” Buckfield coach Sandy Albert said. “The teams within our conference are very competitive and we are expecting many close games. We’re confident that the seniors, juniors and sophomores are going to be able to step it up a notch to fill the shoes of those that graduated and be a solid team.”

Rangeley was the sixth seed last year and lost to Greenville in the quarterfinals. The Lakers are just two years removed from reaching the regional final and losing to Richmond. Rangeley graduated just one senior and still has some experienced players that should make the team a competitive club in the conference.

The Lakers return 10 players from last year, including eight starters. Those returning veterans include seniors Taylor Esty, Seve Deery-DeRaps, Valerie Roy-Lessard and juniors Michaela Shorey, Maddison Egan and Blayke Morin. Sophomores Celia Philbrick, Natalie Brooks, Haley Morrill and freshman Natasha Haley are also back.

From outside the EWC, Searsport could be another strong club. The other Vikings were the fourth seed and lost to Richmond in the semifinals. Searsport plays a tough Eastern D schedule, but could make some noise in the tourney against a mostly EWC field.

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