Waynflete senior Ya Stockford (7) is congratulated by classmate Izzy Burdick after scoring one of her five goals in Saturday’s 10-5 win over Marshwood.
Mike Strout photos.
More photos below.
BOX SCORE
Waynflete 10 Marshwood 5
M- 2 3- 5
W- 2 8- 10
First half
17:18 W Stockford (Burdick)
14:50 M Smith (free position)
13:42 W Burdick (Stockford)
8:07 M Melton (Smith)
Second half
22:20 W Stockford (Burdick)
21:13 W Stockford (free position)
20:22 M Melton (Smith)
18:12 M Lawrence (free position)
17:00 W Stockford (Burdick)
15:14 W Stockford (free position)
13:34 M Melton (Smith)
6:08 W Olney (free position)
4:23 W Baginski (Burdick)
1:32 W Olney (unassisted)
:52 W Burdick (Stockford)
Goals:
M- Melton 3, Lawrence, Smith 1
W- Stockford 5, Burdick, Olney 2, Baginski 1
Assists:
M- Smith 3
W- Burdick 4, Stockford 2
Draws (Marshwood, 9-8)
M- Melton 8 of 14, Smith 1 of 3
W- Baginski 8 of 17
Ground balls
M- 27
W- 36
Turnovers:
M- 16
W- 13
Shots:
M- 16
W- 25
Shots on cage:
M- 14
W- 18
Saves:
M (Amsden) 8
W (Akers) 9
PORTLAND—After dropping its last game, then having to sit idle for over a week, Waynflete’s girls’ lacrosse team was eager to return to action against Marshwood Saturday afternoon at Fore River Fields.
And while the Flyers got off to a sluggish start, they put it all together in the second half, kicking off a challenging stretch of games with an important interclass victory.
Waynflete was stymied by Hawks senior goalie Skyler Amsden in the first half, as she stopped seven shots.
The Flyers did get goals from seniors Ya Stockford and Izzy Burdick, but Marshwood also scored twice, as senior Marin Smith and sophomore Olivia Melton did the honors.
When the second half began, Waynflete turned up its offense, as Stockford scored two quick goals.
The Hawks rallied to tie again, thanks to a goal from Melton and another from junior Celine Lawrence, but with 17 minutes to play, Burdick set up Stockford and the Flyers were ahead to stay.
Stockford scored once more, her fifth goal of the game, but when Melton answered with 13:34 remaining, Marshwood was still very much in the contest, trailing, 6-5.
With the game on the line, Waynflete’s defense and sophomore goalie Avis Akers went from strong to impenetrable and the offense surged to put the game away.
With 6:08 left, senior LZ Olney scored on a free position for some breathing room.
With 4:23 to play, Burdick set up senior Laura Baginski for a goal.
Olney scored again, unassisted, with 1;32 to go, and 40 seconds later, Burdick found the net to put the finishing touches on a closer-than-the-final-score-indicated 10-5 victory.
The Flyers got five goals and two assists from Stockford, two goals and four assists from Burdick, two goals from Olney and nine saves from Akers as they improved to 4-1, dropping the Hawks to 2-4 in the process.
“We just had to trust each other and we turned it on,” Stockford said. “We seem like a second half team. When we trust each other, we click really well.”
A rarity
Prior to Saturday morning, Marshwood and Waynflete had met only once before in a countable game, a 13-2 Flyers’ victory, May 8, 2009 in South Berwick.
While Waynflete’s pedigree is well established, the Hawks have been pretty competitive as well in recent years, winning the Class A state title in 2015 and reaching the Class A South Final a year ago.
This spring, Marshwood opened with a 12-8 home loss to York, then beat host South Portland (10-4). After a 10-6 home loss to Falmouth, the Hawks eked out a 7-6 win at Scarborough and Tuesday were beaten by visiting Kennebunk, the two-time defending Class B champion, 13-4.
The Flyers, meanwhile, won their first three games, 8-7 (in overtime) at York, 9-3 over visiting Cheverus and 6-5 at Scarborough. In its most recent outing, May 2, Waynflete lost at Greely, 7-5.
Saturday, on a chilly (54 degrees) and breezy but dry afternoon, the Flyers, despite having several players battling illness, returned to the win column thanks to key contributions from myriad sources.
Early in the contest, Amsden kept the game scoreless, denying Stockford and Burdick on free positions.
Waynflete, which had the majority of possession early thanks to forcing multiple turnovers, then broke the ice with 17:18 to play in the first half, as Burdick set up Stockford for a shot which Amsden couldn’t stop.
Marshwood coach Bernie Marvin called timeout to settle his team and it worked, as with 14:50 on the first half clock, Smith beat Akers with a free position shot to tie the score.
The Flyers answered just over a minute later, as in transition, Stockford passed to Burdick, who finished for a 2-1 lead.
After Akers saved a free position bid from Hawks sophomore Ruby Albers, Amsden kept Marshwood’s deficit at one by denying a free position shot from Baginski.
With 8:07 left in the first half, Smith set up Melton for a goal to tie the game for the second time.
Neither team would score again before the break, as Amsden stopped four shots from Stockford and Akers came up big as well, robbing Albers and Smith.
Waynflete had a 12-5 shots advantage in the first half, but seven Amsden saves kept the score 2-2.
The Flyers finally got their offense going in the second half.
After Akers saved a shot by Smith and Amsden denied Baginski, Burdick fed Stockford for a go-ahead goal and a 3-2 lead with 22:20 to go.
Sixty-seven seconds later, Stockford earned a free position and beat Amsden to make it 4-2.
The Hawks would rally again, as Smith set up Melton for a goal with 20:22 to play and with 18:12 remaining, Lawrence’s free position drew the visitors even, 4-4.
Waynflete wasn’t fazed and with 17 minutes on the clock, after a Marshwood turnover, Burdick set up Stockford for a goal to put the Flyers on top for good, 5-4.
With 15:14 remaining, Stockford scored on a free position for another two-goal advantage, but with 13:34 to go, Smith set up Melton for a goal which again brought the Hawks within one.
And then, after longtime coach Cathie Connors called timeout, Waynflete slammed the door.
First, the Hawks had a chance to pull even, but with 9:05 left, Akers saved a shot from junior Nicole Villinski.
With 6:08 left, Olney scored on a free position to make it 7-5.
The Flyers weren’t content to sit on their lead and with 4:23 to play, Burdick fed Baginski for a goal and the biggest lead of the game to that point.
“The girls were exhausted,” Connors said. “We have so many kids sick and we needed a break. I also wanted to remind them that we were forcing the ball a little bit. We play a much better game when we regroup. (Marshwood’s) defense is so good and their crash is so strong.”
After Akers saved a shot by Smith, Olney scored unassisted with 1:32 to go and the lead was 9-5.
Akers would stop three more free position shots from Smith and with 52 seconds on the clock, in transition, Stockford passed to Burdick for the goal which accounted for the 10-5 final score.
“(Marshwood’s) a great team, but when our defense works together and with Avis, it’s a great team effort,” said junior defender Sophie Sangster, who raced up and down the field all afternoon. “We’ve always been a second half team. We stayed together the whole game and never took for granted we were up and pretended it was a tie game the whole time.
“(Greely) was a disappointing loss, but the 10 days of practice allowed us to work hard on things we didn’t do well the last game. We improved on the little details. Having that time was a big factor in winning today.”
“It took us awhile to get going not having played in 10 days,” Connors said. “In the first half, it was hard to get moving with people in different positions. (Freshman) Kilee Sherry was at the top of the 8 as a freshman. That’s a big deal. She played beautifully. Sophie is a powerhouse. She loves her spot on low D, but she’s fast and she’s good at ground balls. She doesn’t ever stop.”
Stockford led all scorers with five goals. She also had a pair of assists. Burdick had two goals and set up four other scores. Olney had two goals and Baginski added one.
Akers continued her strong play by making nine saves.
“We wouldn’t be a great team without Avis,” Stockford said. “She really keeps us together.”
The Flyers finished with a 36-27 advantage in ground balls (Baginski and Sangster led the way with seven apiece and sophomore Clara Sandberg collected five), enjoyed a 25-16 edge in shots (18-14 on cage) and only turned the ball over 13 times.
“We threw the ball away against Greely, but today we handled it much better,” Connors said.
For Marshwood, Melton had three goals and Lawrence and Smith added one apiece. Smith also had three assists.
Amsden made eight saves.
Lawrence had a team-high five ground balls.
The Hawks had a 9-8 edge in draws and committed 16 turnovers.
Tough stretch
Marshwood (ranked fifth in the Class A South Heal Points standings at press time) looks to bounce back Tuesday at Windham. The Hawks are at defending Class B North champion Yarmouth Saturday.
Waynflete (now fifth in Class B) is back in action Tuesday when Cape Elizabeth pays a visit in a pivotal contest. After hosting Wells in a makeup game Thursday, the Flyers have a key test at Falmouth Saturday.
“We’ll take this game and everything that worked well and put it into next game,” Stockford said.
“We’ll work hard and build off today,” Sangster said. “There are always things we can improve on. If we do, we can win some of those games.”
“We have some tough challenges coming up,” Connors added. “We have some things to tweak on Monday. If we can connect like we did today, go for ground balls and support each other like we did today, we should be fine.”
Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @foresports.
Waynflete senior Izzy Burdick races in and shoots on Marshwood senior Skyler Amsden. Burdick had two goals and four assists.
Waynflete junior Sophie Sangster leaves helpless Marshwood defenders in her wake as she races up the field.
Waynflete freshman Kilee Sherry defends Marshwood junior Melanie Dube. The Flyers held the Hawks scoreless the final 13-minutes, 34-seconds.
Waynflete sophomore goalie Avis Akers denies Marshwood sophomore Ruby Albers on a free position shot.
Waynflete sophomore Anna Wildes turns the corner on Marshwood senior Simone Chagnon.
Waynflete senior Ya Stockford fires a shot.
Waynflete senior Laura Baginski shoots past Marshwood junior Melanie Dube.
Waynflete senior LZ Olney gets stuck in traffic.
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