Articles by Kalle Oakes
MMA, evolved from sideshow to sport, captivates Maine
U.S. senator and past presidential candidate John McCain delivered a breathtaking body blow to mixed martial arts’ reputation in its infancy. “Human cockfighting,” he labeled the developing sport. MMA wore those words from a respected political figure like a scarlet letter for years, even as it successfully built sanctioning bodies, ...
COMMENTARY
There’s no magic formula for Maine men’s basketball team to duplicate Florida Gulf Coast feat
By Kalle Oakes, Sun Journal on March 24, 2013, at 9:58 p.m.
Twitter blew up Friday night with lamentations of the University of Maine’s links to the Florida Gulf Coast upset of Georgetown. The first, and typical, response from this desolate haunt in which we always seem to be playing six-degrees-of-separation with the real world, was the observation that Maine beat FGCU, ...
Lewiston repeats as New England cheerleading champions
One was fun, but twice is doubly nice. Lewiston High School cheerleading successfully defended its championship Saturday morning at the New England Interscholastic Spirit Championship in Lawrence, Mass. Maine schools went one-two in the competition. Lewiston’s score of 188 points easily outdistanced Marshwood’s 181.1. “It was even better than states,” ...
Waynflete boys surge past Monmouth after slow start in WM ‘C’ quarterfinal
AUGUSTA, Maine — Nearly six minutes into Monday’s Western Class C quarterfinal, the Waynflete and Monmouth boys’ basketball teams had generated a hockey score. That was the classic good news/bad news scenario for the Mustangs, who opened the game with a series of defensive stands they would have concocted in ...
Ninth-seeded Cony girls knock off No. 1 Edward Little in ‘A’ quarterfinal
AUGUSTA — Throw out the seeds. Throw out the record books. And cross No. 1 Edward Little out of your Eastern Class A girls’ basketball bracket, thanks to a tournament-tested Cony club that looked like anything but a No. 9. The defending regional champion Rams took the lead with their ...
Lewiston wins fourth straight EM ‘A’ cheering title; Bangor second, Brewer third
AUGUSTA — Saturday was just another building block in the championship pyramid for Lewiston cheerleading. Five days after pocketing their fifth straight KVAC title, the Blue Devils bagged a fourth consecutive Eastern Class A crown on the same Augusta Civic Center floor. Lewiston now chases its third state championship in ...
Cheverus RB Donald Goodrich wins Fitzpatrick Trophy
It didn’t pan out this past high school football season, but playing for Cheverus is a good way to put yourself in the state championship conversation, at least. And if you’re the Stags’ star offensive player, it’s also becoming the tried-and-true way to walk off with the Fitzpatrick Trophy. Donald ...
St. Dominic girls hockey outlasts Mt. Ararat
LEWISTON, Maine — Ten athletes strong, the Saint Dominic Academy girls’ hockey team has given itself a chance to make the Eastern Class A playoffs. And really, from a season that started with the death of its coach and eight losses in the first 10 games, what more could you ...
Tracy scores three goals in Bangor’s 6-3 victory over St. Dom’s
LEWISTON — Question a soft spot or two on Bangor’s early schedule, if you wish. Wonder how the Rams would weather an unexpected, in-season coaching change, if you must. The Rams of January are no different than the Rams of November and December: Eastern Class A boys’ hockey co-favorites, at ...
Sister of Jay athlete who took his own life promotes awareness of head injuries
Jenna Lord remembers the little brother who made friends easily, was rarely seen without a smile on his face and approached sports, school and life with equal enthusiasm. The young man she encountered in the months prior to his death was an eerie shadow of that. “He had a lot ...
VIDEO
Thornton Academy overcomes Lawrence for Class A football title
PORTLAND, Maine — If this was the final Class A football championship of the three-division era, it was a rousing curtain call with momentum changes and huge plays aplenty. As for the end result, it was sobering and familiar. Thornton Academy scored two touchdowns in a 68-second span of the ...
Mt. Blue holds off stubborn MDI football team
FARMINGTON — After two years of trouncing Eastern Class B to the tune of Tecmo Bowl-quality yardage and points, Chad Luker and Mt. Blue weren’t expecting to see their high school football life flash before their eyes in a one-versus-eight quarterfinal game. “I’m in shock,” Luker said. “I’m still shaking.” ...
Punter Thompson kicks it up a notch for Lisbon football team
LISBON — It is high school football’s universal sign of temporary surrender. The marker between the two measuring stakes is flipped to ’4.’ Offensive playmakers trot dejectedly off the field and detach chin straps. Except for one, who drops back and punts the ball away. Unless we’re talking about Lisbon ...
Drivers react to sale of Oxford Plains Speedway with optimism, anxiety
OXFORD, Maine — Dan Morris looked across the Oxford Plains Speedway oval Saturday from his vantage point in the pit area and witnessed something sobering, if not startling. He saw a sprawling main grandstand with room for more than 10,000 men, women and children, almost completely vacant. Yes, while an ...
Oxford Plains Speedway sold
OXFORD, Maine — For only the third time in nearly 50 years, ownership of the region’s largest sports entertainment facility is changing hands. Bill Ryan announced Sunday afternoon that he has entered into an agreement to sell Oxford Plains Speedway to Tom Mayberry of Naples. The deal is expected to ...
Chapman carries Bangor football team past Blue Devils
LEWISTON — Six straight Pine Tree Conference losses. That’s the bad news for Lewiston football. Seven kick return touchdowns and two more years of eligibility for Quintarian Brown and Sheon James. That’s substantially better news. Lewiston bowed to Bangor on Friday night at Don Roux Field, 37-20, but not before ...
Big plays carry Mt. Blue football team over Leavitt
TURNER — When Mt. Blue needed big plays early Friday night, the Cougars got them. Twice backed up to its own goal line and requiring a turnover to stop Leavitt from gaining command, the Cougars grabbed those. Needing to bleed the final six minutes off the clock by converting not ...
COMMENTARY
Case of Messalonskee football coach shows that swift reaction not always the right one
A football coach has lost his job, his reputation bruised for as long as the word Google is part of the American vocabulary. An undefeated team on the way to its school’s best season in years is forced to conclude that campaign under different leadership; good coaches without experience managing ...
COMMENTARY
Post-game words usually have purpose
Covering high school football for a living every autumn sometimes leaves me feeling so… used. Hear me out. It’s the greatest job in the world. Free access to the sideline and all the action and camaraderie. The best seat in the house for some of the most intense sights and ...
Bedard’s skills a Hornets’ nest for opponents
TURNER, Maine — “Slash” became part of the football vernacular not long after Brian Bedard was born. The original bearer of that nickname was Kordell Stewart, whom the 1990s Pittsburgh Steelers used as a wide receiver until he was deemed ready to be an NFL starting quarterback. It was then ...
Rep. Diane Russell’s fool’s errand
The scramble to fill the 2nd District seat if Mike Michaud runs for governor
How the omnibus energy bill will benefit Maine
Governor Veto
Goodwin steps down as Brewer High School boys basketball coach
Tommy Lawrence pitches UMaine baseball to victory in first America East tournament game
Live Updates: UMaine baseball vs. Binghamton in America East championship
Garcia sorry after ‘stupid’ Woods fried chicken jibe
Live updates: UMaine baseball vs. Stony Brook at America East Championship