SCARBOROUGH – Second-seeded Scarborough looked dominant Wednesday night while rolling to a 3-0 win against No. 10 Portland in a Western Class A boys’ soccer quarterfinal.

Austin Downing scored two first-half goals as the Red Storm advanced into a regional semifinal against No. 3 Greely, a 4-1 winner against No. 11 Noble.

“It’s not a secret what we try to do,” Scarborough Coach Mark Diaz said.

“We just try to press the ball and keep the pressure on. If they turn it over, we get some opportunities, and Portland did that tonight.”

“If you make a mistake, they punish you,” Portland Coach Rocco Frenzilli said, “and that’s exactly what Scarborough did tonight.”

The Bulldogs, a 2-1 overtime winner over defending state champion Windham in a preliminary-round match Monday night, weren’t able to match up with the Red Storm.

“They’re very good in the air, and their size and physicality maybe had a lot to do with what they did,” Frenzilli said.

“They basically play strong on the ball, and they use their body the way they’re supposed to use it.”

Scarborough (13-0-2) held a decisive 41-9 edge in shots and a 7-1 edge in corner kicks.

Portland goalie Chip Weber made 18 saves to keep his team close.

Downing, a senior forward, opened the scoring less than three minutes into the game on the Red Storm’s third foray into the Portland end.

Trevor Sparda, a senior midfielder, fed the ball from deep in the left corner to Downing, who had moved close to the near post with his back to the goal.

After trapping the ball with his right foot, Downing pivoted on his left and volleyed the ball inside the far post.

“The ball came in, and I just trapped it and spun around and just tried to hit it near post,” Downing said. “It just kind of happens.”

Downing struck again during the 28th minute, putting in a similar shot for his team-high 13th goal of the season from 15 yards in front of the goal.

“I’m just trying to get into a position where I can get a shot off,” he said.

“My back was to the goal, and that’s where the ball came from, and I just tried to get a shot on net.”

Sam Cekada, a junior forward who set up Downing’s second goal, completed the scoring with his 10th goal of the season less than 20 minutes into the second half.

It was Scarborough’s second win of the season over the Bulldogs (7-8-1). On Sept. 11, the Red Storm cruised to a 6-1 win.

“Mark has a very good team,” the Portland coach said.

“They are well-disciplined, technically sound and tactically savvy, and we gave it all we had. We never quit. We played hard all the way to the end.”

Goalie Pat Stanton had to make just two saves to post his eighth shutout of the season, tops in Western Class A.

Staff Writer Paul Betit can be contacted at 791-6424 or at:

pbetit@pressherald.com

Twitter: PaulBetitPPH

 

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