SACO — Thornton Academy took advantage of two costly Biddeford mistakes to take a 2-0 halftime lead, then ran away by scoring five second-half goals to beat the Tigers 7-0 in the boys soccer version of the Battle of the Bridge on Tuesday.
The Trojans scored the opening goal just 4:17 into the game when Anthony Beaulieu sent a ball into the box that Biddeford defender Lucas Peterman misplayed for an own-goal.
The Trojans’ second goal came late in the first half when Biddeford goalie Josh McCauley attacked a ball at the top of the 18 and couldn’t clear, giving Alex Pickering an easy poke into the back of the net.
The Trojans came out firing in the second half, extending the lead to 3-0 just more than five minutes in. Eric Gooch took the ball deep into the right corner and rang a shot off the near post that Tyler Lebel fired into the back of the net.
The Trojans scored again less than two minutes later when Gooch fed Aaron Sinclair for a goal. Sinclair scored another goal late in the game for Thornton Academy.
Sinclair was happy to get a win in the long-standing rivalry between the two schools, and help Thornton athletics overall in the race for the Wilson-Agreste Trophy.
“It feels really good (to) get points toward the annual championship between the two schools,” said Sinclair.
Paul Arabatzis and Darius Nytacyo also scored late goals for Thornton, as they outlasted and outplayed the rival Tigers.
Thornton head coach Andy Carlson said that his team’s ability to rotate in players may have factored into the lopsided final score.
“We seemed to pull away from them in the second half. Our depth showed through ”¦. I think they might have gotten a little tired, and we got a little energetic there,” said Carlson. “We were knocking the ball around nicely.”
The seven goals were a season high for the Trojans, and a turn of events for a team that had scored just two goals in its last three games. Sinclair said it was a good way to stop the losing skid.
“We’ve been on a little bit of a losing streak, losing three games in a row. So to come back with a nice, big win feels good,” said Sinclair.
Carlson said he thinks a win like this could help his team get back on track as the playoffs near. But it all depends on whether they bring the energy they displayed against Biddeford into their next game at Deering.
“It’s great to have momentum and confidence, but if you don’t do much with it in the next contest, it sort of goes to waste,” said Carlson.
The Tigers will have to try to pick up the pieces and finish the season strong, which will be a daunting task. Three of their final five games come against Marshwood, Scarborough and Kennebunk ”“ teams with only four losses combined.
— Contact Wil Kramlich at 282-1535, Ext. 323 or follow him on Twitter @WilTalkSports.
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