FALMOUTH – What a difference two weeks can make in high school hockey.

On Dec. 19, Matt Poulin scored with five seconds left to lift Lewiston to a 3-2 win against Falmouth at the Androscoggin Bank Colisee.

In Thursday night’s rematch, the Yachtsman simply never let the Devils into the game while cruising to a 3-1 victory in a Class A contest at Family Ice Center.

“The biggest difference is we played stronger defensively,” Falmouth Coach Deron Barton said. “We were tighter in our own end all three periods. We got some scoring opportunities, and that’s what we needed.”

“We’re definitely starting to click now,” said junior forward Andre Clement, who scored two goals. “We’re just coming together in our own zone, playing good (defense) and it’s transferring into our offense.”

The Yachtsmen (5-2) held a 28-14 edge in shots during the first two periods, moving into a 3-0 lead less than 25 minutes into the game.

“We had five guys playing defense tonight,” Barton said. “The stronger you play in the defensive end the more scoring opportunities you create for yourself, which is what we did.”

When Lewiston (3-2-1) tried to get back into the game in the third period, freshman goalie Ryan Bonnvie, who stopped 24 shots while making his varsity debut New Year’s Day in a 3-1 win against Greely, shut the door. He made 10 of his 23 saves over the final 15 minutes.

“We’ve got a high-class problem,” Barton said. “We’ve got five goalies in the system, so I’ve got to give them some time so we can see how they perform. I can’t do it the last third of the season.”

It was a disappointing loss for the Devils, who hadn’t played a game that mattered since Dec. 22 when they skated to a 2-2 tie against archrival St. Dominic.

“We didn’t go after the loose pucks with enough aggression, and that’s disappointing to me,” Lewiston Coach Jamie Belleau said. “We’re a young team in terms of varsity experience, and we can’t give teams like Falmouth an opportunity early in the game. We’ve got to work hard every shift every period consistently. We didn’t do that.”

The Yachtsmen opened the scoring six minutes into the game. Hugh Grygiel put in a shot from the middle of the left circle for his team-high ninth goal.

The clincher came with 3.6 seconds left in the first period when Clement finished off a three-on-two rush.

Clement made it 3-0 when he turned Isac Nordstrom’s feed into his sixth goal early into the second period.

With less than two minutes left in the second period, Kyle Lemelin deflected defenseman Joey Frechette’s blast from the left point to complete the scoring.

“It was a big test for us, especially losing to them last time with five seconds left in the game,” Clement said. “We set the tempo. We took it to them right away, and that set the tone for the game.”

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

pbetit@pressherald.com

Twitter: PaulBetitPPH