YARMOUTH — Yarmouth had a year to think about its agonizing overtime loss to Brunswick in the 2018 Class B boys’ lacrosse state semifinals.
On Tuesday, the second-ranked Clippers got to see the third-seeded Dragons again in the same round. Thanks to a nearly perfect first half, Yarmouth earned a big dose of revenge.
With Griffin Primeau winning every first half faceoff, the host Clippers built a 9-2 halftime lead and, unlike last spring when they let it slip away in the second half, Yarmouth controlled play for 48 minutes and went on to a decisive 18-6 victory.
The Clippers got five goals apiece from Anders Corey and Andy Garrett, improved to 10-4, ended the long coaching career of Brunswick’s Don Glover and advanced to meet top-ranked Greely in the Class B state final Friday at Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland.
“The boys played great tonight,” said Yarmouth Coach David Pearl. “I’m really proud of them. They’ve worked really, really hard.”
The Clippers peppered Dragons goalie Connor Pendergast with 19 shots in the first quarter alone and after falling behind early on Nolan Lyne’s goal, got four straight goals for a 4-1 lead.
Kurt Heywood tied the score, then Corey scored twice and Garrett added a goal.
The second period was more of the same, as Primeau’s faceoff dominance kept the ball away from the potent Brunswick offense and goals from Gavin Hamm and Garrett made it 6-1.
Aiden Glover scored to end the run, but Garrett scored twice and Michael Guertler added a goal with three seconds to go before halftime, giving Yarmouth a 9-2 advantage.
“Last year was in the back of my head and I wanted to come out firing,” said Primeau. “We were just focused. We wanted it so badly.”
The Clippers continued to pull away in the third quarter, as Corey scored three times and Primeau scored his first career goal for an 11-goal lead. After Jacob Belanger answered twice for the Dragons, Hamm made it 14-4.
In the fourth, Heywood scored twice, Garrett and Hamm scored one each for Yarmouth, while Glover and Finn Mitchell countered for Brunswick.
In addition to Corey and Garrett’s production, Hamm and Heywood each had three goals. Goalie Spencer King made seven saves.
“We knew what we had to do,” Corey said. “We’ve worked on our off-ball movement. We had so many guys step up tonight.”
Yarmouth and Greely split two meetings in the regular season, each winning decisively on their home field.
The Clippers feel confident they can end their 10-year championship drought.
“We’re excited,” Pearl said. “We need to play like we did today and play with confidence. When we do, the sky’s the limit.”
Brunswick (11-3) got two goals apiece from Belanger and Glover, one each from Lyne and Mitchell and 21 saves from Pendergast, but never could get back in the game.
“Yarmouth was just hot,” Don Glover said. “They’re very good. Skilled and savvy.”
Glover, who finished with 303 victories and four state titles in his coaching career, leaves with no regrets.
“My cup runneth over,” Glover said. “It will probably hit me more this weekend. I’m going to walk away and remember the good stuff. I have so many good memories.”
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