FALMOUTH — In the pouring rain, an early one-goal deficit can be a steep hill to climb.

That was the case Thursday night for the seventh-seeded Deering boys’ soccer team in a Class A South quarterfinal against second-ranked Falmouth.

Nate Arrants scored one of his two goals in the first seven minutes, setting the tone for Falmouth’s 2-0 victory.

The Yachtsmen (13-2) will be home against third-seeded Gorham (12-2-1) in the semifinals Saturday night.

Arrants put the Yachtsmen ahead with a goal from Tom Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald drove down the left side of the field and crossed to Arrants, who was charging the goal. Arrants converted the pass with 33:21 left in the half.

“Tom made it easy for me. All I had to do was put my foot out,” Arrants said.

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“Once you have the momentum on a night like this, it’s easier to keep it and it’s harder for them to come back.”

The Yachtsmen controlled most of the game, outshooting Deering 20-3. Falmouth keeper Alvaro Fuentes-Cantillana made one save, and Max Marrione had eight saves for Deering (10-5-1).

“We pretty much knew, especially because of the weather, that whoever scores early is going to keep that momentum,” Deering Coach Joel Costigan said. “What they did, they did so well, and that didn’t allow us to feel confident enough to push forward.”

Desperate for a goal, Deering finally pushed forward in the second half, which opened things up for Falmouth. The Yachtsmen created six dangerous opportunities in the second half, when they had seven shots on goal.

Falmouth was aware that top-ranked South Portland had fallen to eighth-seeded Thornton Academy on penalty kicks Wednesday.

“Crazy things happen in the tournament. You can’t play not to lose,” Falmouth Coach Dave Halligan said. “We were able to do a couple things early, but we had a couple chances that could have made things easier for us.”

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With 26 minutes left. Ben Wuestoff of Falmouth took a hard shot along the ground that bounced off Morrione and landed at Arrants’ feet. But his shot curved just wide right.

“In downpours, balls can skip in and goalies don’t have as much control over it,” Arrants said. “You always want that insurance, especially on a night like this.”

With 24:45 left, Arrants finally got his second goal. Fitzgerald fed him a long pass, and Arrants broke loose down the center of the field before tucking the ball into the bottom right corner.

Falmouth only allowed Deering a handful of opportunities and didn’t give the Rams their first look until about 20 minutes into the game.

“We always play defense first,” Halligan said. “If we can keep it close to a one-goal game to give us a chance to win it at the end, that’s all you can hope for.”

Now, just Gorham stands between Falmouth and the regional final. The Yachtsmen edged Gorham 1-0 on Oct. 10.

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“They’re a senior team, so they’ll be very difficult to play against,” Halligan said. “Those guys lost in the state game last year, so I’m sure they’ll be champing at the bit.”

While Arrants is grateful to play at home, he hopes the weather cooperates.

“I want a dry game,” Arrants said.

Taylor Vortherms can be contacted at 791-6417 or:

tvortherms@pressherald.com

Twitter: TaylorVortherms


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