FALMOUTH — After her team escaped Saturday’s Western A preliminary round against No. 10 Cheverus with a 1-0 win, Falmouth High standout midfielder Tyler Spence she could tell the visitors came in with more spirit.
“They had to win to stay in so this was a very big game for them,” Spence said.
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Of course Falmouth also had to win to stay alive, but the No. 7 Yachtsmen lacked a similar urgency.
“We did not play well at all, the whole game,” Falmouth Coach Andrew Pelletier said. “The second half they showed they wanted it a bit more and they showed a little more passion, but the soccer was still difficult.”
Cheverus (5-8-2) nearly took the lead when midfielder Abby Goodrich powered through two defenders and got off a low shot that goalie Adelaide Cook was able to barely deflect in the 54th minute.
“You know in games like this there are certain moments that may not come again,” Cheverus Coach Craig Roberts said. “Abby, she hit it all right and it could have been a goal … but that was one where we said, ‘Oh, that would have been a nice one to have back.’ ”
From that point, Falmouth (7-6-2) upped its tempo and it paid off with 17:37 to play when Grace Connolly scored.
The goal came seconds after Cheverus starting keeper Hannah Tyson had re-entered the game. Tyson (7 saves) had missed about two minutes after taking a knee to her head and shoulders.
The entry pass from midfield was behind the Stags’ defense and put Tyson in a difficult decision-making position. Neither she nor her nearby defender controlled the ball. Connolly pressured and got behind both for the shot at an open net.
“To get yourself re-acclimated, that’s sort of a tough way to have your first play on the ball,” Roberts said.
It was an atypical play on a day when the Stags’ defense of outside backs Eva Neidermeyer and Brooke McElman and central defenders Michaela Jordan and Willa Tarasevich was the best unit on the field.
Roberts said his unheralded squad set a tone for the future.
“These seniors, through their last three days of practice and with this game today, competing against Falmouth, they’ve left something the underclassmen can grab onto,” Roberts said. “They made the program better than it was last year.”
Falmouth has the need to be better right away at No. 2 Scarborough (12-1-1) in Wednesday’s 5 p.m. regional quarterfinal. Pelletier believes his team’s Class B schedule has prepared Falmouth for the Class A tournament.
“We play good teams 10 times a year, every regular season,” Pelletier said. “No one will know if they are as good as Scarborough, but they’re very good teams so we’re battle-tested. I think it’s just a little hiccup, a little reality check. We’ll be ready Wednesday.”
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