Falmouth might be the top seed at 14-0, but watch out for Kennebunk and Ivy Armentrout, left, who enter the Class A tourney with a 13-1 record and the No. 2 seed. Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer

Ask the coaches of some of the top seeds in the high school lacrosse tournaments if they consider their team the favorite, you’ll get variations on “Yes, but…” for an answer.

“No. Absolutely not,” said Falmouth boys’ lacrosse coach Dave Barton when asked if the Class A playoff is a two-team race between his top-seeded Navigators (13-1) and three-time defending state champion, No. 2 Cape Elizabeth (11-3). Barton cited No. 3 Thornton Academy (11-3), No. 4 Deering (10-4) and No. 5 Scarborough (9-5) as other strong contenders for the title.

Ian Christie and top-seeded Falmouth takes a 13-1 record and the top seed into the Class A tournament, but looming at the No. 2 seed in three-time defending state champion Cape Elizabeth (11-3). Ben McCanna/Staff Photographer

“It’s Cape until someone knocks them off,” Barton said. “If we make it to the final, we’ll have beaten at least two good, hungry teams.”

Once again, the six state championship games will all be played at Portland’s Fitzpatrick Stadium. The Class A girls and boys championships will be June 14, with Classes B and C on June 15.

The Navigators defense has been dominant, holding  opponents to five or fewer goals in 11 of 14 games. A lot of that stems from the team’s ability to control possession, Barton said, but Barton also credited defenders Indi Blackman and Miles Thaxter, along with goalie Cam Sinclair.

“We have a nice combination with guys with significant game experience… They’re so focused. It’s hard, because they might go six or eight minutes not having to play any defense,” Barton said.

On the Class A girls’ side, undefeated Falmouth (14-0) is the top seed, but Coach Ashley Pullen sees No. 2 Kennebunk (13-1), No. 3 Yarmouth (12-2) and No. 4 Windham (11-3) as other contenders. Kennebunk is going for a fourth-straight state crown, but Falmouth boasts the first defense in years to shut the Rams down in a 4-3 Falmouth win that snapped Kennebunk’s 58-game win streak.

The Navigators held nine regular-season opponents to five or fewer goals.

“There’s that old cliché, offense wins games and defense wins championships,” Pullen said. “This year’s defense is the result of years of work.”

In Class B, Greely (10-4) is the two-time defending state champion. The Rangers are the No. 4 seed, despite no losses to Class B opponents. Mt. Ararat (14-0) went undefeated to earn the top seed, while No. 2 Freeport (13-1) enjoyed a successful regular season in Class B after winning the Class C state title last year.

Mia Levesque of Freeport advances the ball into Greely’s defensive half as Kylie Crocker, left, Lydia Miller, center, and Asja Kelman defend. Freeport is the No. 2 seed in Class B while Greely, the two-time defending state champion, is seeded fourth. Derek Davis/Staff Photographer

“Our schedule didn’t really change much. I knew we’d be seeing the same teams (as last season),” Freeport Coach Marcia Wood said.

Wood said she considers Greely the favorite. The Rangers four losses came against Falmouth, Kennebunk, and Yarmouth, the top three teams in Class A.

“Greely, they’ve had a tough schedule, and the Heal Points don’t reflect that,” Wood said.

Billy McNamara, head coach for the York boys, doesn’t feel like there’s a clear favorite in Class B. Yes, his team is the defending state champ and earned the top seed with a 13-1 record, but McNamara feels the competition will be tough.

“I don’t think we’re the clear favorite. There’s four or five teams I think are in contention,” McNamara said, citing No. 2 Messalonskee (12-2), No. 3 Yarmouth (11-3), and No. 4 Kennebunk (12-2) as teams that could challenge the Wildcats for the title.

With no game until Saturday, York will hold a joint practice with Falmouth to stay sharp.

“We’ve got five days before we play on Saturday. It’s kind of nice to have a bye (out of the preliminary round). It’s good to have a week to just practice,” McNamara said.

In Class C, the Maranacook/Winthrop co-op earned the top seed in both boys’ and girls’ lacrosse. On the boys’ side, this is the first time since 2019 neither Waynflete nor North Yarmouth Academy is the top seed. Maranacook/Winthrop’s lone loss was a midseason defeat to Class A Deering. The team scored at least 10 goals in each regular-season game, including 20 goals three times.

“I’m so sick and tired of hearing how we haven’t played anybody,” Maranacook/Winthrop Coach Dan Brannigan said. “I can’t wait to get out there and prove them right or prove them wrong.”

Along with his team, Brannigan sees No. 2 Oak Hill/Monmouth/Lisbon/St. Dominic’s (9-5), No. 3 Wells (11-3) and No. 4 Morse/Boothbay (8-6) as teams that can contend for the crown. Brannigan also noted that while defending state champ Waynflete is the No. 9 seed at 4-8, the inexperienced Flyers have played well of late, winning three of their last five games.

“The other side of the bracket (with Oak Hill, Wells, and NYA) is a meat grinder. There’s some heavy hitters on that side,” Brannigan said.

With defending state champion Freeport now in Class B, there will be a new girls’ lacrosse champ in Class C. The Maranacook/Winthrop girls earned the top seed with a 13-1 record, the lone loss to Class B contender Brunswick on May 4. Other contenders include No. 2 Waynflete (10-4), No. 3 Lincoln Academy (9-5), and No. 4 Wells (10-4).