Runners from over a half dozen schools took off from the starting line with a temperature reading in the 80s during the annual Penobscot Valley Conference cross country meet at Foxcroft Academy on the afternoon of Sept. 14.

Touchdowns following a pair of second half turnovers and a blocked PAT helped Foxcroft Academy earn a 28-20 victory vs. fellow Class D North 2-0 program North Mattanawcook Academy of Lincoln under the lights on Sept. 14 at Oakes Field. The Pony defense also forced two other turnovers in the second half and while these changes of possession did not lead to any points, the plays helped prevent the Lynx from finding the endzone on each drive.

Several mixed martial arts teammates from Young’s MMA in the Queen City stepped into the cage at the Cross Insurance Center’s main ballroom Saturday night, Sept. 8 with the same goal but for different reasons. Most came through quite successfully. Aaron Lacey, Ryan Sanders and Josh Harvey -- who is a Dexter Regional High School graduate -- all scored first-round victories among five professional bouts contested as part of New England Fights’ “NEF 35: Wicked Season” show staged before a sellout crowd of 1,200.

Several members of the Foxcroft Academy cross country team took part in varsity races during the Caribou Invitational on Sept. 8.

The visiting Howlers would earn a 5-1 victory to hand the 2-1 Lakers the team’s first defeat of the season while Penobscot Valley improved to 3-0 early in the season. The Howler boys also won on Saturday, by a 3-1 score.

High school football has followed the path of the professional and collegiate versions of the game, with wide-open offenses that spread out the defenses now often more the norm than the exception these days. But the Dexter Tigers showed Saturday afternoon, Sept. 8 that the basics of the game -- blocking and tackling -- remain just as important to success during their 29-0 LTC Class D victory over Washington Academy of East Machias at Tiger Field.

Foxcroft Academy jumped out to a 35-0 lead in first quarter behind touchdowns from five different players and the Ponies never looked back with a 56-12 victory in the 2018 opener vs. Mount View High School of Thorndike on the evening of Aug. 31.

High school football across the state clearly is a numbers game these days, with many programs struggling to maintain sufficient participation numbers not only for a given season but to sustain themselves over time.

I just wanted to pass along some quick information on fall river flows and lake elevations. I know a lot of people are gearing up for September fishing and would like to make plans.

The upcoming New England Fights mixed martial arts show scheduled for Friday, Sept. 8 at the Cross insurance Center in Bangor will have a distinct local flavor.

A week before starting the regular season with eight games against fellow Class D North programs, Foxcroft Academy got a chance to face defending Class C champion Maine Central Institute of Pittsfield in a preseason matchup on Aug. 24. The visiting Huskies would score two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, when both teams had reserve units on the field, to win the exhibition contest 28-21.

Joan Shapleigh and her horse Donatello rode into history when the pair took part in a dressage show at Infinity Farm on Aug. 19. Shapleigh, 81 of Dover-Foxcroft, and Donatello, 21, have a combined age of over 100 and this statistic enabled them to join the Dressage Foundation’s Century Club once Shapleigh rode the horse for a dressage test and had the performance scored by a judge.

The soccer club, Mid-Maine Revolution FC, started in 2015 and had one team with 12 players. Last year Mid-Maine Revolution FC had two teams with 25 players in the club. Into its fourth year Mid-Maine Revolution FC will have three teams with 38 players in the club for the upcoming fall season, a U-12, U-13 and a coed U-14 team.

UMFK will welcome five new players to its roster this fall, including former Piscataquis of Guilford guard Bryce Gilbert.

As the training rounds increased from 60 seconds to five minutes on a recent Monday morning, so did the intensity level as members of a mixed martial arts class at Young’s MMA tested each other’s grappling skills.

The third annual Millside Fitness Bun Run 5K was held on the morning of Aug. 11 as part of the Maine Red Hot Dog Festival. Seth Young, 34 of Ellsworth, finished in first place as he covered the 3.1 miles in a time of 19 minutes, 20 seconds.

Three coaches familiar with the Husson University football program have joined the Eagles’ staff with preseason practices underway. Former Husson football players A.J. McLaughlin and Alex Cardenas, and fellow former volunteer assistant Greg Marter are returning to the program.

A Maine Principals’ Association committee decided Aug. 8 to move forward with an effort to develop an eight-player division for high school football in the state that, if approved, would be implemented in 2019.