YORK – Falmouth High has a knack for pulling out tight schoolboy soccer games.

The Yachtsmen did it in the semifinals, scoring twice in the last three minutes to beat Fryeburg Academy. And they did it again Wednesday night in the regional final.

Grant Burfiend scored in the last minute to give second-seeded Falmouth a 1-0 victory against top-ranked York for the Western Class B championship.

“There was a scrum for the ball on the right side,” said Burfiend. “The ball came to me around the 6. I was just in the right place at the right time.”

Falmouth (12-3-2), which captured state titles in 2008 and ’09, will head to Hampden Academy to play undefeated Camden Hills for the state championship Saturday.

It was a tough loss for the Wildcats (13-2-2), as it would have been for Falmouth.

“That was a well-played soccer game,” said Falmouth Coach Dave Halligan, who will seek to win his eighth state title as the Falmouth coach.

“That is an excellent soccer team,” said Halligan, looking at the Wildcats, who had just received their regional runner-up trophy.

The game appeared headed for overtime until the Yachtsmen found a way to score.

“You had a feeling it would come down to one shot as the second half went along,” said York Coach Mike Masi. “Falmouth made it. We had our chances, for sure. Those were two evenly matched teams going at it. That’s the way you want it.”

Both coaches said it was difficult for the players to make cuts because of the grass playing surface, which was muddy from the weekend storm.

“The players had trouble getting their footing the whole game,” said Masi.

Falmouth, which is accustomed to its artificial turf field, had to make the bigger adjustment.

“It was tough getting your footing,” said Burfiend.

Early in the game, Falmouth had the better chances, but York rallied and put heavy pressure on in the final five minutes of the half.

The best chance came with just over a minute remaining in the first half when a York player had a clear shot to the right corner of the net, but the attempt was stopped by a sliding Falmouth player.

Midway in the second half, freshman Luke Velas of Falmouth had an open net but rushed it, shooting over the crossbar.

“He’s only a freshman,” said Halligan. “He’ll drill those in from here on out.”

The teams split during the regular season, each winning on their home field.

York’s 4-0 victory in the second meeting served as motivation for the Yachtsmen.

“We wanted to prove we were a better team than what we showed the last time,” said Burfiend. “We came out really determined.”

Goalies Will D’Agostino of Falmouth and Nathan Diffin of York played solid games. Neither had to make truly outstanding saves.

With the footing, either could have easily slipped making saves but didn’t.

Staff Writer Tom Chard can be contacted at 791-6419 or at:

tchard@pressherald.com

Twitter: TomChardPPH