Boys hockey: Kings defenseman Blake Springer nominated for Evan Spear Award

Poland/Leavitt/Oak Hill/Gray-New Gloucester defenseman Blake Springer has been named one of five nominees for the Evan Spear Award.

The award is in memory of 2000 Yarmouth graduate and hockey player Evan Spear, who died in 2004 of Hodgkins Lymphoma. The Class B South Hockey Coaches Association presents the award to the most outstanding senior boys hockey player in Class B South, not only in terms of significant on-ice success in their high school career, but equally in terms of character, passion, and spirit.

Springer had five goals and four assists in 18 games this season for the Kings. He maintains a 3.0 grade-point average at Leavitt Area High School and has been named to the KVAC All-Academic team.

Poland/Leavitt/Oak Hill/Gray-New Gloucester senior defenseman Blake Springer, left, (pictured with goalie Vincent Lupardo and forward Kaden Trenoweth) has been named one of five finalists for Class B South’s Evan Spear Award. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal

The other nominees are defenseman Kevin Connolly of Cheverus/Yarmouth, defenseman Ryan Moore of Greely, forward Joe Neal of York and Gorham forward Brady Sawyer.

Connolly captained Cheverus/Yarmouth this season and had six goals and six assists in 16 games this season. He will attend Stonehill College, where he will play baseball.

Moore had nine goals and 12 assists and has a 95.56 GPA. In 72 career varsity games, Moore has scored 32 goals and added 46 assists in a stretch where Greely has compiled a 62-15-1 record. He is a member of the National Honor Society and the French National Honor Society.

Neal had six goals and 16 assists in 16 games for the Wildcats. A four-sport athlete (hockey, wrestling, baseball and cross country) also won the Class B state championship in wrestling for his weight class. He is looking to attend the Air Force Academy or Wake Forest University in the fall.

Sawyer led the Rams with nine goals and six assists in 18 games. In addition to his athletic achievements, Sawyer has maintained High Honors throughout his time at Gorham High School. Sawyer plans on pursuing a career in nursing and will be attending the University of Maine, St. Joseph’s College or the University of New England next fall.