It took more than nine months after it claimed the Class L state title, but the 2005-’06 Manchester Central boys basketball team finally received some competition. Who knew it would come from a sports section?

In a year filled with athletic achievements from local residents – some small, some big, all memorable – the Little Green’s undefeated run to its second straight crown and Class L-record 17th championship proved the top story of 2006.

But unlike their success, the decision wasn’t a foregone conclusion. These last 12 months have included rounds of cheers, championships, and, in some cases, consolation in Hooksett, Allenstown, Auburn, Candia, Epsom, Pembroke and beyond.

There were memorable titles, like the Manchester Memorial baseball team’s first Class L crown in eight years. There were also magical runs that fell just short, such as the Memorial softball team’s first-ever championship game appearance in its 30-year history and subsequent 1-0 loss to powerhouse Salem.

Then there’s the area’s dominance in the high school track and field scene, Emily and Catherine Teague’s state doubles tennis title for Central, and the Little Green football team’s lasting footprint on the state, which included Jim Schubert coaching in his final game, a 24-7 New Hampshire win in the Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl, and firstyear coach Ryan Ray guiding the Little Green to their eighth consecutive playoff berth.

And how can anyone forget the New England team invites the Central girls and boys cross country teams earned? Or the Cawley Middle School softball team’s Tri-County League Class M championship? Or Nicole Simoneau’s win in the all-around at the state gymnastics championships, a performance that included the first perfect 10.0 in state championship history?

Yes, there was a lot to celebrate in 2006. Unfortunately, there probably are a number of stories and accomplishments that didn’t find their way into the pages of this sports section, though that hardly diminishes their importance.

But from the perfect 25- 0 season to the history behind it, Central’s place atop the boys basketball scene translated to the peak of The Hooksett Banner’s Year in Review. So without further ado, let’s rewind the tape on the year that was.

Winter

It really wasn’t a question of if Central would take its second straight state championship, but how. That question, however, received one of the most impressive answers in New Hampshire high school boys basketball history. With a 54-39 win over Merrimack in the Class L title game on March 18, the Little Green became just the fourth program in state history to complete a perfect season and first since the Matt Bonner- led Concord squad of 1997-’98.

Led by Hooksett native and Gatorade state player of the year Tyler Roche, who’s currently playing at Boston College, Central dominated on both ends of the floor to capture its Class L best 17th crown and third under coach Dave “Doc” Wheeler.

“We’re comfortable in pressure situations,” said Roche, who scored 19 points and grabbed eight rebounds in the finals.

“When the other team makes a run, we stay poised. Poise is what we’re all about.”

Earning the season’s top individual highlight, however, was Central’s Nicole Simoneau, who led the Little Green to a top-five finish at the state gymnastics championships on Feb. 11.

Coming off a back injury that had limited her to the beam the previous season, the junior posted a total score of 38.625 to win the state all-around, setting two records along the way. Her 9.75 on the uneven bars and 10.0 on the beam – the only perfect score in state championship history – were both state bests.

Memorial placed 12th in the competition, West 20th and Pembroke Academy, represented by Jen Acheson, placed 31st.

The Pembroke cheerleading squad also enjoyed a stellar winter, finishing second in Class I behind Pelham in the Kiwanis Club spirit competition on Jan. 14 and sixth at the state championship. The Central co-ed squad took home the championship in its group under the guidance of coach Mia Vetri.

Meanwhile, a number of local- led teams posted solid regular seasons before falling in the postseason. The No. 11 Pembroke girls basketball team, led by Kelly Thomas and Kayleigh Robinson, fell in a hard-fought first-round Class I match-up with John Stark, 54-51, on Feb. 15. Thomas scored 26 points. The Spartans finished their regular season at 8-10.

The Central girls basketball team, also seeded 11th in Class L, fell in the first round to eventual state finalist Bishop Guertin, 63-52, on March 1 despite Whitney Fremeau’s 27 points.

Three days later, the Memorial boys hockey team ran into a powerhouse of its own, dropping a 5-1 quarterfinal decision to No. 2 and eventual champion Hanover. The Crusaders overcame a 1-5 start to make the postseason.

Central and Memorial both posted solid showings at the NHIAA swim championships on Feb. 4, as Central placed 20th among the girls teams and 27th among the boys, and Memorial finished 19th among the boys teams and 24th among the girls. At the wrestling Meet of Champions on Feb. 25, Memorial ended its season among the state’s best in 10th, while Central finished in 24th.

Spring

It was incredible, epic, a challenge in every sense of the word – and it was probably as anticlimactic as it gets. Yet the ending – a hit batsman in the ninth that forced in the winning run – didn’t take away from the magic surrounding the Memorial baseball team’s 5-4 extra-inning win over Bishop Guertin in the Class L final on June 13.

The Crusaders, without a state title since 1998, withstood a Cardinal comeback entering the ninth before Tom Burke stood in and took Austin Sullivan’s 100th pitch off his back.

Auburn’s Matt Skeffington – 1-for-3 with an RBI and run scored – and Wes Cotnoir both started and played key roles in clinching Memorial’s seventh state championship.

The Memorial softball team nearly made it a pair of titles after advancing to the Class L championship game for the first time in program history, but MHS succumbed to Salem on June 13, the only run coming in the sixth when a Blue Devil lined a ball of pitcher Sara Murray’s stomach to advance the runner home. The loss didn’t sour the Crusaders’ 15-7 season, however, which included a no-hitter from Murray in her first career start – a 5-0 win over West on April 15.

Two Central tennis players celebrated a title of their own on June 12 when sisters Catherine and Emily Teague defeated Hanover’s Brittany Prescott and Natalie Donnelly, 6-4, 6-7 (4-7), 6- 1 for the state doubles title. The pair completed the season at 16-1, becoming just the second sister team to accomplish the feat in state history. Junior Catherine also finished as the state runner- up in the singles tournament.

Central boys tennis, meanwhile, upset No. 2 Exeter in the quarterfinals of its state tournament before falling to No. 6 Keene, 6-3, in the semis on May 30. Behind several contributors, the Cawley Middle School softball team took the Tri-County League Class M title with a 3-0 win over Londonderry on June 1. Cawley, which defeated Pelham, 13-3, in the semifinals, enjoyed a 15-strikeout, three-hit complete game performance from Tanya Robidoux in the championship.

“We could pitch, we could hit, we could run, we could play defense and do it all at a superior level,” said coach John Frazier.

A slew of local athletes excelled for their track and field teams this spring as well. Memorial placed fifth among boys teams at the Class L championships on May 27, thanks to a first-place finish from Jonathan Harkins in the high jump, while the girls finished in 10th behind Mindy Hardy’s top javelin throw.

The Central boys finished seventh as a team while the 4 X 800-meter relay team set a new Class L record of 7-minutes, 57.02 seconds in its first-place run. The Central girls took fourth as Stacy DiSabato finished second in the javelin, and the 4 X 800 team also placed second.

At the Class I championships, Pembroke’s Wili Brehm was the runner-up in both the 200-meter and 400-meter dash, while sister Allison took third in the 100, Kelly Thomas took home three top-five finishes, and Erin Keeler placed second in the triple jump. John Tetlow also was a runner-up in the 800.

At the Meet of Champions on June 4, Central’s Matt Paulson and Alex Hall took first and second, respectively, in the 800.

A trio of Memorial teammates took runner-up honors including Harkins in the high jump, David Irving in the discus and William Wrobel in the javelin. Pembroke’s Allison Brehm, a freshman, finished second in the 100.

The Central boys lacrosse team put its best foot forward in a 6-8 regular season. The eighthseeded Little Green claimed unofficial status as city champs before falling to No. 9 Londonderry, 7-5, in the first round of the playoffs.

The Pembroke Academy boys tennis team also had a strong season, finishing at 9-4, but ran into powerhouse Hanover in a firstround 9-0 playoff loss.

Summer

The Auburn softball all-star team highlighted the summer months as it took home the New Hampshire District One major league softball title with an 11-1 win over Lamprey River on July 20. The squad erupted for eight fifth-inning runs in the victory, which earned them a trip to the regional tourney in Albany, N.Y. “I asked for three (runs) and they gave me eight,” said Auburn manager Rick Pelletier. “That’s how these girls are. Once they start swinging, it just carries over to the next batter.”

Central football coach Jim Schubert ended his summer – and career – in a fitting way as well, coaching team New Hampshire to a 24-7 win over Vermont in the 53rd annual Shrine Maple Sugar Bowl on Aug. 5. Schubert, who led the Little Green to six Division I titles in his 16 years as head coach, announced his retirement from high school coaching the previous Thanksgiving, but was voted in to coach one final time for the annual showdown between the top recently graduated senior football players from both states. The victory was the sixth straight for the Granite State.

Central grad and Hooksett native Cory Wright and teammate Josh Ratacik both represented their school as well.

Several locals fared well in this year’s Granite State Senior Games, which enjoyed the largest turnout in its 19-year history. Pembroke’s Bill Edmonds won gold in the 80- to 84-year-old age bracket in the tennis singles tournament on Aug. 5. Hooksett’s Ernie Greenberg took first in the doubles tournament with partner Saul Levenson on Aug. 6. Suncook native Stan Irzyk placed second in the pistol shoot within the 75- to 79-year-old age bracket. In the cycling events, Hooksett’s Norman Gill, 53, won gold in the 40K road race and bronze in the 20K, 5K and 10K time trials, while John Valavane, 55, placed first in the 5K and 20K and second in the 10K. Hooksett resident Jay Taylor also won gold with his Young Associates team in the 3-on-3 basketball tournament on Aug. 12.

In Little League action, area teams fared well despite not taking home any titles. The Hooksett Little League majors all-star team fell 9-3 to Nashua in its tourney exit on July 1, and Suncook dropped a 7-3 decision to Salem American on July 8 after winning three tournament games.

Timothy Carey enjoyed an award-winning summer. The 16- year-old was honored with the first-ever New Hampshire Youth Conversationalist Award by the state Fish and Game department for his work in teaching other children about the importance of conserving natural resources.

Auburn’s Wes Cotnoir also had a season to remember after he competed in the Down Under International Games along Australia’s Gold Coast in July. The Memorial three-sport athlete – he plays for the school’s soccer, baseball and track and field teams – competed in the 100-meter dash and the 4 X 100- meter dash while soaking up the two-week experience, which also took him to Hawaii.

The Sweeney Post 2 American Legion baseball team didn’t have as much to cheer about as it failed to make the state playoffs for the first time since 1993.

Fall

The Central girls and boys cross country teams literally ran away with the fall headlines in 2006. They completed a highly successful season that saw both squads claim top-five team finishes at the Meet of Champions on Nov. 4 and top-10 team spots at the New England Championships a week later. Both Little Green teams couldn’t defend their Class L titles – the girls finished second and the boys placed fifth on Oct. 28 – but their performances in the weeks that followed more than made up for it. The boys team was the only squad to place three individuals in the top 10 at the state championship meet, while the girls jumped from 18th in 2005 to ninth this season at the regional competition.

“Out of my three years being at Central,” said girls coach Kelly Feibel, “this is by far the best group of girls I’ve worked with.”

Under first-year coach Ryan Ray, the Central football team also enjoyed a strong season that included its eighth straight playoff berth, a 7-2 regular-season record in Division I play and a 31- 14 over rival West in the Turkey Bowl on Nov. 23. Senior running back Mike LeClerc ran wild that day, racking up 279 yards to cap an all-state season. The year was spoiled, however, when the Little Green lost star wide receiver Joe Pasqual in a 48- 12 blowout loss to Bishop Guertin in the regular-season finale before they fell in a 21-7 semifinal loss to Salem on Nov. 11.

The Memorial football team had its share of struggles but its two victories were uplifting ones. Memorial stunned Central, 35- 28, on Oct. 12, and ended its year with a 27-24 win over Trinity.

The Derryfield School girls soccer and field hockey teams – which featured locals on both squads – each fell in their respective state finals.

The Pembroke Academy football team knocked off Kingswood for its lone win of the year but a lack of size and numbers hurt its chances in Division III.

The Pembroke Academy boys and girls soccer teams both enjoyed a resurgence of sorts during the regular season, but it didn’t translate into playoff success. Both squads fell in the first round of the Class I tournament, with the fourth-seeded girls dropping a 3-2 decision to Oyster River on Oct. 24.

The Memorial girls soccer team won 11 of 13 games at one point but fell to Nashua South, 2- 0, in the first round of the Class L tournament on Oct. 25. The Memorial boys team knocked off Central in a 2-0, shootout win on Oct. 26 but fell in the next round, 1-0, to Bishop Guertin.

The Hooksett U12 girls and boys soccer teams both celebrated Division III Granite State Youth Soccer League championships on Nov. 4. The girls team finished 4-3-1 and will automatically move up to D-II next season.

On the greens, Memorial’s Pat Gocklin took home the Class L individual golf title on Oct. 7, while West, featuring Hooksett’s Matt Breault, fell a stroke short of the team title. The Blue Knights ended up finishing third after losing to Timberlane in a tiebreaker.

The Memorial and Central cheerleading squads each represented their school well at the fall Class L spirit championship, placing 11th and 12th, respectively.

At this year’s Punt, Pass and Kick competition on Sept. 16, Candia’s Chad Bowden punted 56 feet, 9 inches, passed 65-1 and kicked 62-8.

And with that, bring on 2007.