There’s an oft-referenced sports adage that equates a tie to kissing one’s sister. The common interpretation of the old saying is that ties are an underwhelming result to end up with.

Such was not the case when the Bonny Eagle boys soccer team visited Portland on Tuesday evening for the regular-season finale. For the Scots, a draw would be more like kissing someone else’s really attractive sister, as Bonny Eagle needed only a tie to move into the final Western Maine Class A playoff spot.

But while the Scots jumped on top in the game’s first minute, they were unable to hold on to, falling to the red-hot Bulldogs 2-1 at Fitzpatrick Stadium, their tournament proposition denied.

Bonny Eagle ended the season at 8-5-1, while Portland won its seventh straight game to improve to 9-3-2.

Tyler Ruby put Bonny Eagle in front a mere 49 seconds into the contest, heading in a corner kick from Chris Smith.

“Our first goal of the game said, ‘Hey, we’re ready to play,'” said Bonny Eagle coach Alan Curtis. “And they weren’t ready for that. They weren’t ready for Bonny Eagle to come out here and stamp their authority on the game.”

Portland had already clinched a playoff spot, so the No. 4 Bulldogs had less at stake than the Scots. Portland coach Rocco Frenzilli was aware that the situation could result in a lackluster effort from his team, but wanted his players to find their own motivation. He said the early deficit roused his squad.

“I think we were a little slow, a little flat,” he said. “We weren’t ready to play, then that woke us up. What were we going to do? Say, ‘OK, let’s fold it up. We’ve made the tournament.’ I didn’t want that from them, but I wanted them to realize it. It doesn’t matter what I do on the sideline. It’s all them having to do what they need to do, and they did.”

AJ Hasanovic netted the equalizer with 31:37 left in the first half, assisted by a through ball from Ralph Houanche. Bonny Eagle goalkeeper Lincoln Sanborn charged out, but Hasanovic was able to slide the shot past him.

Fabrice Iraduha tried to give the Bulldogs the halftime lead as he broke in all alone with five minutes left in the opening halftime, but this time Sanborn was able to charge in and knock the ball away as the two collided. It was 1-1 at the break.

Iraduha broke the tie with 25:03 remaining as he controlled a ball on the left side of the box following a cross by Oryem Charles. Iraduha chipped a shot over the head of Sanborn that found its way into the net.

“There was a lot of room for that ball to come across,” Frenzilli said. “When it got played to him and Lincoln came out, the ball could have done a lot of things, but it just had enough to go up and over Sanborn and go in the goal.”

Ruby nearly re-knotted the score eight minutes later, getting a head on a deflected ball off a corner kick, but Portland goalie Taylor Mannix tipped it wide. Bonny Eagle’s Ryan Jordan dribbled in with 10 minutes left and got off a good shot, but it was knocked away by a defender. The Scots’ final opportunity came on a long throw-in with three minutes to go. Mannix punched it away, but the Bulldogs couldn’t clear. Evan Spencer gained control in a crowd, but was unable to get off a clean shot.

Mannix and Thomas Knight, who played the first half in net, combined for five stops for Portland. Sanborn had eight saves for the Scots.

Curtis was pleased with his team’s effort. He said the one place Portland held the advantage was at midfield, where the Bulldogs are anchored by junior standout Fazal Nabi.

“Their good players are going to have their touches and they’re going to have that smooth athleticism that makes it difficult for someone who plays soccer as a three-sport athlete to overcome, but I think the players that we have were disciplined enough to stay in their face and make things happen for us positively,” Curtis said. “Defensively, did we close them down quick enough? That was one of our difficulties, closing their outside mids, closing their midfielders down quickly and forcing them to go backwards. We didn’t really do that consistently throughout the whole game.”

Ruby and fellow forward Chris Smith were able to keep the pressure on Portland with their speed and aggressiveness going after the ball.

“Our forwards are pretty much old school forwards – you could use the word ‘striker’ – where they’re just going to go to the goal and try to make something happen for their team,” Curtis said.

The Scots ended up 10th in the final Heal Point Standings, just two points behind South Portland for the final tournament spot. Three teams finished with 8-5-1 records. Bonny Eagle was the only one of the three to miss the postseason.

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