TOPSHAM—There was a fair amount of doubt surrounding Yarmouth’s girls’ soccer team, the reigning Class B state champion, when the 2023 season commenced.
Which makes the way the season ended so fitting.
With absolutely no doubt that the Clippers are the class of Class B.
Once again.
Saturday afternoon on the campus of Mt. Ararat High School, Yarmouth had Northern Maine champion Ellsworth on its heels the entire first half and would get the only goal it needed in the 16th minute, when senior Brooke Boone tickled the twine.
The Clippers had ample opportunities to add to their lead, but couldn’t do so.
With Yarmouth’s defense limiting the Eagles’ chances, the Clippers’ final goal scorer was fitting as well, as leading scorer Aine Powers, a senior best known for her lacrosse prowess prior to turning into a soccer superstar this season, buried a long shot into the upper left corner with 27 minutes to go and Yarmouth went on to a 2-0 victory.
The Clippers finished their season with a dazzling 16-1-1 record, ended Ellsworth’s fine campaign at 14-3-1 and captured their second straight Gold Ball and the program’s sixth all-time.
“This has been amazing,” said Powers. “YGS (Yarmouth girls’ soccer) is the tightest family I’ve been involved in. It’s been a great four years and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. To end it with a state championship, I couldn’t ask for a better way to go out.”
Ties that bind
Yarmouth coach Andy Higgins is an Ellsworth graduate and in his short time in Yarmouth, has turned the Clippers into a powerhouse, but he had to admit he was a little bit torn Saturday.
“This was a nerve-wracking one with who we played and my connection to that community,” said Higgins, who always wears his heart on his sleeve. “I’ll always be an Eagle, but I’ll also forever be a Clipper and I’m pretty proud to be connected with these kids and what they accomplished this year.”
A year ago, Yarmouth rode the heroics of Ava Feeley, now at Boston College, to the state title. This fall, the Clippers were expected by most to come back to the pack, but within town borders and the team itself, there was confidence that the good times would continue.
“This senior class, 17 of us, we’ve always played together, so we were super-close and connected and that helped us on the field,” said Boone. “We used the pressure of having people not believe in us to work harder for it.”
Yarmouth dropped an overtime decision at Greely in the season opener, but wouldn’t lose again, as only a tie against crosstown rival North Yarmouth Academy served as a blemish (see sidebar for links to previous stories). With victories in their 12 other games, including a pair over top rival Cape Elizabeth, the Clippers secured the top spot for the Class B South playoffs.
After advancing over No. 8 Morse in the quarterfinals (2-0), Yarmouth beat No. 4 Freeport (3-1) in the semifinals, then rallied from a rare early deficit to knock off No. 2 Cape Elizabeth in a compelling regional final Wednesday, 2-1.
Ellsworth followed a similar script, also dropping its opening game (to Hermon), then winning every other except for a tie versus Old Town and a late loss to Brewer.
As the No. 3 seed in Class B North, the Eagles advanced by defeating No. 6 Old Town (1-0) in the quarterfinals, upsetting second-ranked Medomak Valley (2-1) in the semifinals and knocking off fourth-seeded Hermon, the reigning regional champion, 3-2, in Wednesday’s regional final.
Ellsworth had lost its previous three state game appearances, to Waterville in Class A in 1982 and to Scarborough in Class B in both 1998 and 1999.
Yarmouth, meanwhile, was 5-1 in its previous appearances (see sidebar).
Saturday, on a chilly afternoon (38 degrees and dropping), the Clippers controlled play most of the way and brought home another shiny trophy as a result.
Yarmouth pressured Eagles junior goalkeeper Jayden Sullivan from the get-go, but Sullivan was up to the challenge initially, denying shots from senior Sonja Bell, Powers, junior Taylor Oranellas and Bell again.
Finally, with 24:54 to play, senior captain Kadi Davoren sent the ball in, classmate Maya Hagerty played it forward and it deflected off a defender to Boone on the right side and Boone, who doesn’t need much space due to her speed, found operating room, raced in and fired a shot into the net to put the Clippers on top to stay.
“We were just penetrating for what felt like 10 minutes,” Boone said. “There was chaos. A chance came really wide and there was no one on me. I shot it and hoped for the best. It was really exciting. Scoring that first goal really brought up the energy and set the tone and we knew we could do it.”
“It was important to score first,” said Powers. “That made us calm down. It’s a big game with a lot of nerves, but having possession most of the game allowed us to settle in.”
“Brooke stayed behind the ball and walked right in,” Higgins added. “That was a great goal.”
As the half progressed, the Clippers had looks to extend the lead, 11 shots in all, but Bell missed just high, Oranellas was denied on a high rocket, Powers missed just wide, then Oranellas, Powers, Davoren and Oranellas again had shots saved, keeping the score 1-0 at the break.
“We did have a lot of chances,” said Higgins. “If we put a couple away it might have been a lighter second half, but we like to make things difficult on ourselves and we did, but that’s OK, the girls responded well and they did that all season.”
Early in the second half, Boone shot wide on a rush, Oranellas had a shot blocked in the box and Bell missed just high.
But with 27:45 to go, Davoren fed Powers, who cut back toward the middle of the field, eluded the defense, then ripped a shot from 25 yards out that curled into the upper left corner for a 2-0 advantage.
“It meant a lot to me to score,” said Powers, who started celebrating with the ball in the air, long before it found the net. “It all starts with our defense with (senior captain) Neena (Panozzo) and (junior) Isabel (Peters) out on the wings and (senior) Eleanor (Ting) and (senior) Cate (King) in the middle, then working up to Kadin in the midfield, we have energy all the way up the field and that helps us forwards. I had a couple other shots before that didn’t fall in the right place, so I tried to hit it hard and get it in the corner.”
“We knew if we stayed relaxed and kept penetrating we could score again,” Boone said. “At that point, we kind of knew we had it, but we kept working just as hard.”
“Aine’s really stepped up her game this year,” Higgins added. “She’s a special kid and a special player and we’ll really miss her next year.”
The Clippers weren’t content to sit on their two-goal lead, but Powers missed just high, Bell was robbed in front by a diving Sullivan, Powers was denied by a diving Sullivan and Davoren also had a shot saved.
Ellsworth generated some pressure and earned a couple corner kicks, but its best chance came with 3:05 remaining, when sophomore Kennedy Lambert had a look, only to be denied by Yarmouth senior goalkeeper Regan Sullivan.
The Clippers managed to milk the clock from there and at 5:30 p.m., celebrated their 2-0 victory and repeat championship.
“It’s amazing,” Powers said. “I’m super-proud of everyone on the team. We all worked hard and deserved it. We started off with a loss which made us reflect a little bit, but I’m not surprised with how strong we played after that. We worked so hard in practice every day.”
“It feels really good,” said Boone. “It was kind of scary not knowing how (Ellsworth) played, but we knew we could do it. We didn’t change anything. We brought to them what we had.”
“It feels amazing,” Panozzo said. “A lot of people doubted us, but we all knew we could win it again. We all supported each other throughout the whole season. That love brought us here. We had to come in confident and come out strong. We wanted to get the lead early.”
“They’re a pretty special group and I’m proud of them,” Higgins added. “The season went well. The schedule we had got us ready for the postseason. It’s great for Southern Maine soccer and the Western Maine Conference.”
Yarmouth had a big edge in shots on frame, 19-2, and took eight corners to Ellsworth’s two.
Regan Sullivan made two saves in her swan song and while she wasn’t often tested, her impact was seismic, considering she had to leave last year’s state final with a serious concussion and this time, was able to play all 80 minutes.
“It’s always great to have Regan there,” said Panozzo. “We trust her to save us. I have a lot of pride in our defense. Our whole line supports each other and works hard. With Cate and Isabel and Eleanor, we knew we had what it took and we proved it.”
“It meant a lot to celebrate with Regan,” said Higgins. “This meant a lot to her.”
Jayden Sullivan stood out for the Eagles, stopping 17 shots, but Ellsworth was completely stymied in regards to generating offense.
“Our plan was to keep it in their end and not let them find (sophomore Elizabeth) Boles or (junior Addison) Atherton up top,” Higgins said. “Those are two really good players. It worked out pretty well.”
Uncharted territory
For all of Yarmouth’s consistent greatness, one feat the Clippers haven’t yet accomplished is winning three consecutive state titles.
That goal won’t come easily, as graduation will take a heavy toll on the program.
A total of 17 special contributors will depart.
“I don’t know if it’s sunk in yet, but I’m worried about saying goodbye to 17 great seniors,” said Higgins.
Of course, Yarmouth returns many great players and others are waiting in the wings to do what this year’s group did.
Step up faster, bigger and better than most anticipated.
“The underclassmen are so strong and have so much potential,” Powers said. “Even with a big graduating senior class, I think they can come together and make something good of the season next year.”
“The underclassmen are super-strong and they work hard, so I know they’ll do great again next year and in the years to come,” Panozzo said.
“I have a lot of great players coming back,” added Higgins. “Next year will be a lot of fun.”
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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