FRYEBURG—This time, it didn’t take quite as long.

And again, it was definitely worth the wait.

Freeport’s field hockey team, which upset York to capture a surprise regional championship last fall in the seventh round of penalty corners, got pushed to the brink again Thursday afternoon at John H. Atwood Stadium on the campus of Fryeburg Academy in the Class B South Final against a Yarmouth squad which gave the Falcons everything they could handle and more.

Second-seeded Freeport, which lost at home to the Clippers in their regular season opener, took a 1-0 lead just over three minutes in, when sophomore Emily Groves, a big game performer if there ever was one, scored on a rebound of her own shot.

Top-ranked Yarmouth then came to life and after getting some timely saves from senior goalie Quincy Schnee, tied the score less than three minutes into the second half, when sophomore Celia Zinman converted on a penalty corner.

Both teams had ample chances the remainder of the third and fourth quarters, but couldn’t score, and the contest went to overtime.

The first eight-minute, “sudden victory” OT didn’t produce resolution and it was on to a second.

There, Clippers senior standout Sophie Smith had a chance to win it on a breakaway, but couldn’t convert and at the other end, the Falcons earned a corner.

And finished it off, as junior Sophie Bradford scored with 3:21 on the clock, giving Freeport an exhilarating 2-1 victory.

The Falcons repeated as regional champion, improved to 13-3-1, ended Yarmouth’s superb season at 14-2-1 and advanced to take on Cony (15-1-1) in the Class B state final Saturday at a time to be announced at Lewiston High School.

“It wasn’t easy,” said Freeport coach Marcia Wood. “I’m just so proud of the girls. We had a lot of pressure this year and we had to fight.”

Collision course

Way back on Sept. 1, unheralded Yarmouth went to reigning regional champion Freeport and shocked the Falcons, 4-3, to set the tone for what would be a memorable campaign (see sidebar for links to previous stories).

The Clippers lost just once, at Class A contender Edward Little, and settled for a tie at York, but won its other 12 games to earn the top spot in Class B South.

Yarmouth then blanked No. 8 Wells (6-0) in last week’s quarterfinals before getting an overtime goal from Smith to beat No. 4 York (1-0) in Tuesday’s semifinal round.

Freeport, meanwhile, shook off its Opening Day loss with another terrific campaign. The Falcons won six straight after being beaten by the Clippers, then suffered through a three-game winless stretch before closing with four consecutive victories to wind up second in the region.

Freeport advanced by downing seventh-ranked Greely (7-1) in the quarterfinals before blanking No. 3 Lake Region (2-0) in Tuesday’s semifinals to give Wood her 100th career victory.

In the regular season meeting, Smith led Yarmouth with three goals and freshman Erica O’Connor also rattled the cage, while the Falcons got two goals from Bradford with Groves tallying the other.

The Clippers had won all six previous playoff meetings, with a 2-1 win in the 2021 quarterfinals the most recent (see sidebar).

Thursday, on a sunny but chilly afternoon (45 degrees at the start), in front of a vocal crowd, Yarmouth had its chances to beat Freeport again, but ultimately, the Falcons saved their best for when they absolutely had to have it to return to the big stage.

Freeport controlled possession early and was rewarded with 11:31 remaining in the 15-minute first quarter, when Groves took a long pass from sophomore Reed Proscia and after having her initial shot saved by Schnee, she backhanded home the rebound for a quick 1-0 lead.

“The past few games, we’ve been scoring quickly,” said Wood. “We want to not panic, so coming out fast is something I’ve pushed them to do and it’s awesome to see.”

Late in the frame, the Falcons had chances to double their lead, but Schnee denied a shot from sophomore Lizalyn Boudreau off a corner, then stymied a rebound bid from sophomore Liza Flower as well.

Prior to the start of the second period, Yarmouth first-year coach Bre Morrill, who pushed all the right buttons all season, got her squad refocused and the rest of the contest was pretty even.

Just 35 seconds into the quarter, Smith got her first look, but her shot was deflected wide.

The Clippers later got a penalty corner, but couldn’t produce a shot.

At the other end, Schnee robbed Flower on the doorstep and saved a Groves rebound bid as well, sending the game to halftime with Freeport clinging to a 1-0 lead, despite a 6-1 advantage in shots on cage.

Yarmouth quickly drew even in the third quarter, as with 12:11 remaining, senior Colleen Lynch inserted a corner to sophomore Madison Wiles, who sent a shot on cage which was redirected by Zinman past Falcons sophomore goalie Maddie Kryzak to make it 1-1.

“Celia is a workhorse and she got that goal for us,” Smith said. “It just hit us that this could have been our last game if we didn’t get going.”

“We’re a slow starting, second half team,” Morrill said. “We hoped to get that started a little earlier today.”

Each team then had a penalty corner opportunity, but couldn’t score, and when Clippers senior back Aubrey Collier broke up a Flower rush, the game went to the fourth quarter deadlocked.

There, Yarmouth looked to take the lead, but on a corner, Smith had a promising shot blocked with 9:37 remaining, then a moment later, a Smith rush was broken up by junior Sydney Gelhar.

With 6 minutes to go, the Clippers got another corner, but Zinman had a shot blocked before Smith sent the ball just wide.

With 5:22 on the clock, Wood called timeout, hoping to inspire a game-winning tally and it nearly happened, but a promising Flower cross trickled through the goal mouth untouched and with 1:05 left, Flower’s shot was saved by Schnee.

As it did to start the game, Freeport carried play in the first overtime, but Groves had an initial rush broken up, Schnee robbed Flower one-on-one, then a Flower rush was broken up by Collier.

Yarmouth had its chances to win the game in the second OT, but Boudreau broke up a Smith chance in the circle 29 seconds in, then with 4:37 remaining, Zinman set up Smith for a breakaway opportunity, but Kryzak came out to break up the play and Smith couldn’t finish.

“I was hoping I was going to score on that, but I was just tired,” Smith said. “She came out and I just didn’t get it.”

“There haven’t been many games where we’ve been challenged defensively like we were today,” Wood said.. “We made sure to give Maddie a lot of shots in practice and to stress to the defense not to panic. Maddie came up huge. I thought the game might be over there. She’s a great goalie. She knew to come out and she knew her teammates had her back to clear the ball out.”

Freeport then went back on the offensive and earned a penalty corner, but the Falcons didn’t exactly have their ideal lineup on the field.

But Freeport finished it off nonetheless, as Proscia inserted to Flower, who got the ball to Boudreau, who sent it to the near post where Bradford was waiting for her date with destiny.

“We executed the corner so well,” Bradford said. “I was just there to tap it in. The stressful moments bring out the best in us. The timeout we had, we got a nice pep talk and we got right back into it and gave our all.”

“It’s kind of a blur, but from what I remember, Reed inserted it to Liza, who passed it to me, then I shot it. I think it was a rebound and Sophie got it in,” said Boudreau. “All game, I just tried to be wherever I could and go to the ball.”

“That wasn’t the play I wanted at all,” Wood added. “I forget that I had taken Emily out. I didn’t have my inserter in either. At that point, I just wanted us to get a shot off. Sophie’s just been playing phenomenal. She’s silent but deadly. She can do a lot of things.”

At 4:36 p.m., with 3:21 on the clock in the second overtime, the Falcons could finally celebrate their 2-1 victory.

“I couldn’t even process it,” Bradford said. “I just stood there, then everyone swarmed me. It was great. I’m just overjoyed. Both teams did so great. They gave us some great competition. We’re two really well-matched teams and I’m excited to see them again next year.”

“I was shocked at first,” said Boudreau. “I couldn’t believe it, then I threw my stick on the ground and jumped up and down. It was good to see Yarmouth again and see how much we’ve both improved. It was a good fight. We were a little nervous and exhausted going into overtime, but we really wanted it so we gave it everything we had.”

“I said to the girls after the first game of the season when they had our number, ‘I know it’s hard but it’s not how you start the season but how you finish and I guarantee you’ll see them again and it will be a different game,'” Wood added.

Freeport ended with a 10-3 advantage in shots on frame and got two big saves from Kryzak.

An unforgettable run

Yarmouth got eight saves from Schnee and had a 5-3 edge in corners, but ultimately fell one goal shy of playing in a state final for the first time since winning Class C, way back in 1995.

“We just had a great year,” said Smith. “Our record was amazing. I have so many great teammates who put in so much work. I’m so proud of them. I knew we’d have a good season, but I didn’t think we could go this far. We had the dedication to win this year. We beat Freeport and that was the kick-start. We both played a good game today. It was tough for us, but I’m wishing them luck in states.

“It’s agonizing, but I’m incredibly proud,” Morrill said. “On the way up here, we talked about how excited we were to be here. It had been since 2016. Our biggest accomplishment was beating York on our turf, so just making it here was great. We knew it would be a tough game and we had to give everything we had. It was a real 50-50 game until the end. We just couldn’t get the ball in. The girls gave everything they had. We’re bringing home some hardware and got some medals.”

Graduation will take its toll on the program, but a lot of younger girls played integral roles this fall and they’ll be eager to finish what this year’s inspirational squad started.

“I hope the best for them next year,” said Smith, who hopes to play field hockey in college.

“We have a great group of seniors that we’ll miss dearly, but we’ll be back,” said Morrill. “Hopefully the returning girls will be hungry.”

States

Freeport and Cony (which beat previously undefeated Belfast, 3-0, in the Class B North Final Thursday) didn’t meet this year and have no playoff history.

The Falcons are making their fourth trip to states and are seeking the program’s first championship.

Don’t bet against them.

“I’m excited to see what happens at states,” said Bradford. “We just have to give it our all. We just have to work as a team and work on passing and communicating and we should do great.”

“Last year, it was a surprise for us to go,” Boudreau said. “This time, we’ll be prepared, we’ll work together and give our all.”

“It’s a quick turnaround,” Wood added. “We just have to play our game and play with confidence. We’ll do that and we’ll see what happens.”

Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net. For game updates and links to game stories, follow him on Threads: @foresports2023

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