KENNEBUNK — Tied 1-1 in double overtime, the Kennebunk boys soccer team would get an opportunity to top visiting Massabesic when a penalty was called in the box with just over three minutes left.

The Rams turned to junior Ian Zogg, and he delivered with a shot to the right that hit the back of the net and put the game away at 2-1.

“(It was) a lot of good coaching from (Kennebunk) coach (Greg Cavanaugh) on that one, and I‘ve taken a lot of them,” said Zogg. “I just had to take a breather and realize that it wasn’t that big of a deal and put it in the back of the net.”

Kennebunk entered Tuesday’s match holding on to the 12th and final playoff spot in the Class A South while Massabesic was right below at 13th.

Cavanaugh was happy to see his team hold off the Mustangs during the home stretch of the regular season.

“There’s no understating it — it is very important,” said Cavanaugh. “We’ve been trying to preserve our season for what seems like a month now. (The Southwestern Maine Activities Association) is so tight so you see 11, 12, 13 battling night in and night out. It’s a cruel way for the game to end but I’m happy to be on the right side of it.”

Kennebunk came out in the first half and won the possession battle throughout. The Rams peppered the Massabesic goal with shots, and would take the 1-0 lead early on a goal from Tristan Wirth.

Massabesic battled back in the second and gained momentum of its own, and would knot the score at 1-1 on a breakaway goal from Noah Perry.

“James Davenport and Noah Perry, those two juniors up top, they got them out wide and we had a hard time solving that. Those guys are well coached, they adjusted and played well in the second half,” said Cavanaugh.

The Rams would get the early shots in the first overtime, and narrowly missed on separate occasions. Kennebunk buckled down in the second, and waited for its opportunity to strike.

“They were confident that they were going to get shots in the box. It was James Rogers who was trying to make a play and was taken down in the box, sometimes you’re unlucky and sometimes you get that luck,” said Cavanaugh.

Zogg was proud of the team’s mental toughness down the stretch, and hopes that Tuesday’s win will give the Rams confidence as the postseason approaches.

“I don’t think any of us feel that we played our best soccer, but we got the win in the end and that’s all that matters. I think you could see the fight, we’re a team that doesn’t give up,” said Zogg. “This win will give us momentum, we had a tough middle of the season but its two in a row now so this win is really big for us and gets our confidence up.”

Cavanaugh has also been pleased with his team’s development, and felt it was crucial to prove it could win close contests.

“We’re a youthful bunch still. It’s a process and we’ve had a lot of bumps and have lost a lot of tight games,” said Cavanaugh. “It was good to see them pull this one out tonight, they earned it.” 

— Associate Sports Editor Alex Sponseller can be reached at asponseller@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 323. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.

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