BATH

Morse High School’s Julia Cliffe put her hands over her eyes, shocked that she had just sent a shot from close range at an empty net over the crossbar, her first career varsity goal right at her feet with 2:40 remaining in the first half.

One of the many things that makes sports great is that the junior had another chance, and in overtime, she didn’t miss, finding the back of the cage for a 2-1 Shipbuilder victory over Leavitt in a girls Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference soccer matchup at McMann Field on Friday.

The win gives Morse a 6-2- 1 record and a sweep of the two games against the Hornets (3-6-1), with the Shipbuilders earning a 3-1 victory back on Sept. 12 in Turner.

Cliffe’s goal was made possible by Sierra Wallace, who hustled to a loose ball and sent a pass toward the Leavitt goal.

“Sierra made a nice run, and Emily Martin headed it over to me. I was able to finish that one,” said Cliffe, whose winner came 26 seconds into the first overtime. “We knew that we had to bring our energy up. We are a strong team and we were able to do that at the end.”

“It is one of those things that she deserved,” said Morse coach Steve Boyce of Cliffe’s goal. “All year long she has been a sparkplug and keeps the play going on offense. She should dream of that goal.”

The game certainly started well for the Shipbuilders, who scored just 1:24 in as Martin finished off a pass from Cliffe for a 1-0 Morse lead.

Neither team seemed to find a rhythm over the next 30 minutes, with most of the action in the midfield.

“I think Leavitt got into the game, and I also think as nice as it is to score a goal real quick, it doesn’t allow you to get into your game and find a rhythm,” Boyce said.

“We have given up some early goals, but we have been able to show that resiliency. I was happy the way we came back and fought after that goal,” said Leavitt coach Chris Cifelli.

The Hornets struck back on a corner kick late in the first half. Jayden Carpenter curled a service toward Morse goaltender Marissa Parks (nine saves). However, the ball slipped through the netminder’s hands onto the right knee of Leavitt’s Carly Jordan, who watched the ball slip into the cage with 7:44 left on the clock.

“We didn’t stop playing, we just wanted to get it back and we did,” said Leavitt standout Leah Maheux.

Second half

Unlike the first frame, the second featured more intensity from both squads. Morse found a flow offensively, led by Ella Martin, Emily Martin, Mae Winglass and Wallace. The Shipbuilders fired 12 shots toward Hornets keeper Shelby Varney (eight saves).

Varney’s best stop came on a bouncing shot from Emily Martin, with Micailah Albertson on the doorstep.

“We had the opportunities, especially in the second half,” Boyce said. “In the first half, we didn’t develop an intensity. And, when you play Leavitt it is always close. We have to finish. It is happened to us before, like against Oceanside (a 1-0 loss) where we just didn’t put the final shot away.”

“We were hoping that we would get a few more rushes on the goal, but we had a rough time getting the ball in the second half,” said Cifelli, whose Hornets host Oxford Hills on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. “We were constantly clearing the ball, and that is not the way that we like to play.”

Despite being pinned in its zone throughout a majority of the second half, Leavitt pushed for the winner in the final minute of regulation. Kristen Roux missed the goal, and attempts by Maheux and Emily Swan came up empty as the game slipped into overtime.

Emily Martin was a concern for the Hornets, who routinely had two or three players marking the speedy striker.

“We knew that we had to guard number 19 (Emily Martin). But she was able to make that play at the end,” Maheux said.

Morse, which hosts Mt. Ararat on Tuesday at 7 p.m., finished with a 20-12 shot advantage and a slight 6-4 edge in corner kicks.

Morse 2,
Leavitt 1 (OT)

At McMann Field in Bath
Leavitt— 100—1
Morse— 101—2
Goals — (L) Carly Jordan; (Mo)
Emily Martin, Julia Cliffe.
Assists — (L) Jayden Carpenter;
(Mo) Julia Cliffe, Emily Martin.
Shots — Morse 20, Leavitt 12.
Saves — (L) Shelby Varney 8, (Mo)
Marissa Parks 9.
Corner kicks — Morse 6, Leavitt 4.
Records — Morse 6-2-1, Leavitt 3-6-
1.
Up next for the Shipbuilders —
Tuesday at home vs. Mt. Ararat, 7
p.m.