Three days after a comeback attempt fell short at North Yarmouth Academy, Waynflete’s boys’ lacrosse team got another opportunity Saturday afternoon at Fore River Fields against Deering.
This time, the Flyers finished the job – in memorable and perhaps season-altering fashion.
Waynflete, a preseason favorite in the newly created Class C division, let an early three-goal lead slip away and appeared destined for defeat when it trailed by three goals and was down two players with four minutes to play. But the Flyers improbably rallied for four straight goals, capped by Hank Duvall’s tally with 19.5 seconds to play that gave his team a 12-11 victory.
“We got knocked down pretty hard in the previous game, but the guys responded well,” said Waynflete’s first-year coach, Parker Repko. “It’s a great win for the guys. They definitely earned it.”
Miles Lipton scored three quick goals to put the Flyers (4-3) on top, but tallies from Payson Harvey and Nick James pulled Deering (2-5) within 3-2 after one quarter.
After Lipton scored early in the second quarter, the Rams got goals from Harvey and Andrew James and a pair from Jonah Peterson to take a 6-4 advantage at halftime.
Waynflete was hindered by 12 first-half turnovers but settled down in the second half.
After Nick James opened the third-quarter scoring, Duvall scored for the first time and Oliver Burdick added a goal to cut the deficit to 7-6.
Zack Harvey got a goal back for Deering, but Lipton’s fifth goal kept the Flyers within a goal heading to the fourth quarter.
The Rams seemingly regained control on goals from Payson Harvey and Omar Contreras. Then, after Lipton scored with 4:48 to play to cut Waynflete’s deficit to 10-8, the Flyers were first penalized three minutes for an illegal stick. After Peterson added a goal to make it 11-8, a cross-checking penalty put Waynflete on the ropes.
But the Flyers responded, getting a 4-on-6 goal from Duvall, then another man-down tally from Duvall to make things interesting.
With 1:14 to play, Lipton scored for the seventh and final time, tying the score at 11-11.
“We just kept at it,” said Lipton. “Hank gave us a big pep talk and we kept grinding.”
Waynflete won the ensuing faceoff and ran the clock down to 19.5 seconds before Burdick fed Duvall for the go-ahead goal, his fourth.
“I had that look all day,” said Duvall. “I missed a lot of finishes, but luckily the last one fell.”
Deering got one final chance just before the horn, but Flyers goalie Will Armstrong stopped a Payson Harvey shot for the last of his eight saves to preserve the 12-11 victory.
“It felt awesome,” Armstrong said. “The best part was seeing all the guys coming at me to congratulate me.”
Deering (2-5) was paced by three goals apiece from Payson Harvey and Peterson. Nick James added two goals, and Max Morrione made 10 saves.
“It should have been an easy ‘W,’ but sometimes with high school kids it gets undisciplined,” said Rams Coach Jon Dubois. “We let them back in the game. We’re trying to get 48 minutes out of the kids. It’s a struggle to do it.”
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