BRUNSWICK — Brunswick found itself in a familiar situation going into Tuesday’s boys’ soccer game against Morse.

Like last year, the Dragons were facing the Shipbuilders after going winless in their first five matches of the season.

And just as in that 2017 matchup, Brunswick turned in an impressive performance Tuesday to get into the win column, scoring three first-half goals on the way to a 4-1 Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference victory.

“The boys needed it,” said Brunswick Coach Mark Roma, whose team will look for a winning streak in Thursday’s game at Hampden Academy. “They believed it, but it was nice to get the result. We have a lot of first-time varsity players out there, so today was a good win for us.”

The Dragons (1-3-2) controlled play in the opening half, outshooting Morse 9-2 and getting goals from Ben Guindon, Everett Horch and Lane Foushee, the final two tallies coming just 25 seconds apart.

“We came out flat, and I think we struggle on grass and in the first half a lot,” said Morse Coach Chuck Reece, whose team fell to 1-4-2 after picking up its first win Friday at Oceanside. “We often play better in the second half.”

Brunswick had gained confidence in its last game – a 1-1 tie Thursday with talented Bangor.

“We had a really tough opening schedule both this year and last year,” said Horch, who finished with two goals and an assist, “so it was huge to get that tie at Bangor, a game we felt we deserved to win after dominating in shots and chances.”

Brunswick pressured the Morse goal throughout the first half. Guindon’s goal off a loose ball 2:53 into the game gave the Dragons the lead.

Despite being outplayed, the Shipbuilders stayed within a goal for most of the half thanks to goaltender Miles Bobbe, who robbed several Dragons on his way to six first-half saves.

As time ticked away, though, the Dragons kicked it into another gear. Horch powered a shot past Bobbe from 15-yards out, followed shortly by Foushee’s tally for a 3-0 halftime lead.

“It would have been huge to be down by just one at the half,” said Reece, who still felt his team had a chance with 40 minutes left. “We had games in the preseason where we were down three goals and we turned it around. It wasn’t something they hadn’t faced before.”

Morse found its legs in the second half, forcing Brunswick keeper Jack McDiarmid to make four of his six saves. McDiarmid made a solid stop on Mitchell Whorff on a corner kick, and dove to stop a header by Christian Keenan.

Morse scored its goal with 17:39 remaining when Whorff served a corner kick to the near post and Keenan tipped a shot past a screened McDiarmid.

But Brunswick wasn’t going to be denied. Horch took a throw-in from Emmet Taub and rocketed a shot past the dive of Bobbe with 3:25 left to finish off the Shipbuilders.

“Today we clicked,” said Roma. “We want to get better as a team and get results.”

“We can start a winning streak now,” added Horch. “We’re not going to lose for a long time.”

Bobbe finished with 15 saves, with Brunswick owning a 19-7 shot advantage and a 7-4 edge in corner kicks.

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