His coach says Luke Patterson has “ice water in his veins.”
With a near sellout crowd at Deering High’s Memorial Field in full throat and the clock ticking down on regulation time, Patterson proved he’s a cool customer.
The Brunswick High senior midfielder calmly let a Jack Banks corner kick take one bounce past the far post. Then he struck a left-footed volley into the back of the net with 37.3 seconds remaining to propel the Dragons to a dramatic 2-1 win over Scarborough in the Class A boys’ soccer state championship game.
“I let it bounce and hit it off that. I just went full power. That’s what I like to do,” Patterson said.
Brunswick (14-3-1) captured its first state title since 1999. The Dragons lost last year’s final to Marshwood, 2-1. In that game, Brunswick grabbed a 1-0 first-half lead and then gave up two goals, including the winner with two minutes to play. This time, the Dragons rallied from a 1-0 halftime deficit.
Scarborough (16-2) scored first when Jack Moreau knocked in the rebound of his own shot with 13:20 left in the first half. The play was created when Will Fallona’s header off a long Cooper Johnson pass was stopped but not controlled by Brunswick goalie Brady LaForge (eight saves).
Shots on goal were few in the opening half. Scarborough had four – three in its goal-scoring flurry. Brunswick had none.
Brunswick was able to mount more pressure in the second half, generating four shots and five corner kicks.
Banks tied the game with 12:48 to play, banging home a misplaced defensive header that sent the ball in front of the net.
Brunswick Coach Mark Roma said at halftime that he could tell his team had the right mindset.
“When you get to this point in Class A, both teams are good, both teams have been battle-tested,” Roma said. “It’s the kids who are willing to step up and not be afraid to make the play. I just looked in their eyes and I knew they weren’t going to be afraid.”
Several of Brunswick’s players had won state championships last year ice hockey or lacrosse. A few had been on both teams. Patterson was the goalie for the hockey team.
“Our team has a great mentality. We never get down on ourselves. We’ve been here before, so we weren’t scared,” he said.
Scarborough had three top-flight chances in the second half to increase its lead. Kilson Joao broke free on a rush, but his shot lacked enough power and placement and was gobbled up by LaForge. Fallona had a good look 10 minutes later that he pulled just wide of the far post. Matthew Fallona was denied by LaForge on a close-range shot.
Even after Patterson’s goal, Scarborough had a final opportunity, but a Moreau header was caught by LaForge.
“They started pushing numbers forward, which we knew they’d do,” said Scarborough Coach Mark Diaz. “We talked about countering, which we did. The credit should go to Brunswick. Overall, this season is a tremendous season for my kids.”
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