AUBURN — Two teams needing a win against a quality opponent clashed in a boys lacrosse game Saturday. Biddeford jumped on top early, then held on during a back-and-forth second half to edge Saint Dominic Academy 7-6.

The Tigers (3-3) entered the weekend looking to even their record halfway through their season, and win consecutive games after losing three straight. The Saints (3-2) were trying to secure a victory ”“ and valuable MPA Heal Points ”“ against a Class A opponent.

It was all Biddeford early on, as the Tigers opened up a 3-0 lead after the first period. Cody Sevigny fed Gavon Power for the opening goal less than three minutes in, then Power returned the favor five minutes later. Sevigny finished the first-period scoring with a man-up goal with just 11 seconds remaining in the period.

St. Dom’s nearly broke onto the scoreboard midway through the first period, but Kenton Ernst rang a shot off a post to keep the Saints scoreless. Austin Roy hit the crossbar 4:30 into the second period as the Saints still remained without a goal.

“Hitting posts is just a bonus for me,” said Biddeford goalie Chris Couillard. “That’s just lucky right there. My posts obviously helped me out.”

St. Dom’s finally did get one past Couillard ”“ and between the posts ”“ 37 seconds later when Roy converted a long shot for a man-up goal.

Sam Story cut the Biddeford lead to 3-2 as he scored with 1:01 left before halftime, but John Gilliam scored for the Tigers 28 seconds later to restore a two-goal advantage.

The Saints came out firing in the second half, as Richard Servidio scored off a pass from Matt Chasse two minutes in and Brendan Donovan found the back of the net a minute later to tie the game 4-4.

“They had the momentum right off the bat in the second half. They came right back and tied it, and I told my guys at halftime they were going to come back and tie it,” said Biddeford head coach Sean Foley. “I think that was the jolt they needed to get their heads back in the game. I made them look at the scoreboard and see that it was (4-4). I think it hit them then.”

Foley called a timeout a couple minutes later but it didn’t stop the Saints’ momentum, as Chasse scored with less than five minutes left in the third to give St. Dom’s its first lead at 5-4.

Biddeford got a big break less than one minute later when the Saints sent two players to penalty box. St. Dom’s head coach Jamie King called a timeout to set up his defense but the Tigers were still able to convert, as Sevigny scored from Power 12 seconds into the two-man advantage.

Donovan hit another post 15 seconds into the fourth period with Couillard out of the crease, continuing the Saints’ bad luck.

“That’s the best sound a goalie can hear,” said Foley.

The Tigers quickly took advantage of their good fortune, as Gilliam scored a man-down goal 50 seconds in, giving Biddeford the lead for good. He then added another goal less than two minutes later to complete a hat trick.

Roy hit one final post for St. Dom’s five minutes in, but Chasse didn’t miss 75 seconds later, as the Saints cut the lead to 7-6.

St. Dom’s got one last golden opportunity with 1:16 left, when Sevigny went to the penalty box, giving the Saints a man-advantage for the remainder of regulation.

Couillard didn’t need any help from the goal frame to make one of the biggest saves of the game. He stuffed Servidio point-blank with one minute left, and the Tigers took over possession from there.

“I was just trying to do my job. I knew that save was something I had to do to win this game,” said Couillard.

“They took us right to the wire,” said Foley.

— Sports Staff Writer Wil Kramlich can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 323 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @WilTalkSports.