FALMOUTH – Falmouth boys’ lacrosse coach Mike LeBel said he expected Greely to start with a lot of emotion. And that’s what the Rangers did, scoring the first two goals.
Falmouth, the two-time defending Class B state champion, took most of the first period to get on the board, but once they did, it was hard to keep the Yachtsmen off it.
The second-ranked Yachtsmen (9-4) scored six straight goals overlapping the first and second periods and never let the No. 3 Rangers (8-5) gain traction in downing their longtime rival 16-7 in the Western Class B semifinals Saturday.
The win set up another classic matchup at No. 1 Cape Elizabeth on Wednesday for the regional title.
I.V. Stucker led Falmouth with six goals while Charlie Fay had four. Chris Samaras added three goals and Brad Gilbert two.
Brendan Trelegan paced Greely with three goals.
“We knew we had to fend off Greely’s initial surge,” said LeBel. “We knew the early part of the game was going to be tight. We had to stay in our plan, do what we do best and eventually things would start to turn our way. We knew Greely would make a couple of runs at us. We knew we had to stay patient.”
After Calvin Stroud and Sam Doolittle opened the scoring for Greely, Samaras and Fay scored in the final 1:32 of the opening period to tie it.
After that, Stucker scored twice around goals by Brad Gilbert and Fay.
The Yachtsmen had an 8-3 lead before the Rangers scored twice in the final 36 sconds of the half.
The Rangers had some good chances early and midway in the third quarter but couldn’t convert against Falmouth goalie Will Nash and his defense.
Falmouth didn’t score until late in the third, but reeled off five straight goals overlapping periods to make it 13-6. Stucker had three of the goals.
The game featured end-to-end action, sometimes a little frenzied as both teams had difficulty scooping up ground balls under heavy pressure.
“There was no flow in the third period,” said LeBel. “We forced things we didn’t need to force.”
The combination of Stucker, Fay, Gilbert and Samaras was once again a difference maker.
“They do play well together,” said LeBel.
“We always know where the other is,” said Stucker. “Charlie’s so big (6-foot-5), he’s easy to throw the ball to.”
Maintaining patience was key for Falmouth.
“We just stuck with it,” said Stucker.
Tom Chard can be contacted at 791-6419 or at:
tchard@pressherald.com
Twitter: TomChardPPH
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