POLAND — Before the season, Poland field hockey coach Kayla Royer told her team there would be a time when she would allow team members to call plays on corners, particularly in the second half.

With the season on the line Wednesday, she did just that, and it helped the third-seeded Knights overcome sixth-ranked Greely 3-2 in a Class B South quarterfinal.

Poland (11-4) scored two goals in the final 10 minutes to rally past the Rangers (7-7-1) and earn a semifinal at second-seeded Yarmouth (11-3-1) at 4 p.m. Friday.

Brianna Doucette scored both goals for the Knights in the second half on penalty corners.

“I figured they were seeing what Greely’s defense was doing and how they are reacting to it,” Royer said. “I thought they had a better idea. I mean, we practice having them call the corners in practice. It showed.”

Sydney Meredith-Pickett gave Greely a 2-1 lead with 18:25 left when her shot sneaked through bodies and legs into the cage – her second goal of the game. Hannah Perfetti picked up her second assist.

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“They know where each other is and they play really well together,” said Greely Coach Becki Belmore. “They have a lot of experience together.”

Four minutes later, Morgan Broussard found Doucette, who made it 2-2. Her winner came with under five minutes to play.

After the goal, Greely couldn’t mount much pressure. Its best chance came with 2:35 remaining, coming out of a timeout.

“That was probably the last chance I had to do it,” Belmore said. “Just to rally them a little more and pump them up a bit, and pick up the intensity.”

Poland took a 1-0 lead when Autumn Willis scored after 12:46. Meredith-Pickett’s first goal came with 7:55 left in the half.

Ashton Sturtevant made two saves for Poland. Kylie Rogers stopped three shots for Greely.

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BOOTHBAY REGION 2, MT. VIEW 1: Sydney Meaders scored twice, including the winner with 23:50 left as the third-seeded Seahawks (13-2) beat the sixth-ranked Mustangs (6-9) in a Class C North quarterfinal at Boothbay Harbor.

Boothbay will play at second-seeded Dexter (13-2) in the semifinals Friday.

Meader put Boothbay ahead 1-0 after 17:06 from Hali Goodwin, but Devon Burgess tied it with 26:07 remaining in the game.

Alexis Bowman had six saves for Mt. View.

MAINE CENTRAL INSTITUTE 7, HERMON 0: Addi Williams scored three goals, including the 85th of her career, to lead the third-seeded Huskies (11-3-1) over sixth-ranked Hermon (8-7) in a Class B North quarterfinal at Pittsfield.


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