SCARBOROUGH — Traditionally the Scarborough boys’ soccer team excels at set plays.

Kennebunk, the Red Storm’s opponent Tuesday, is well aware of it and even practices against it.

Nevertheless, Scarborough’s Anthony Clavette connected off a first-half corner kick in a 1-0 SMAA victory over the Rams in a wet, windy and raw contest at Kippy Mitchell Memorial Complex.

Scarborough’s Benjamin Hatch and Kennebunk’s Logan Strauss fight for possession of the ball during a cold and wet night at Scarborough. The Red Storm won 1-0, scoring on a first-half corner kick.

“We know year after year Scarborough is one of the best set piece teams in conference,” Kennebunk Coach Greg Cavanaugh said. “We prepared for it and trained for it but they are just so lethal and so slick. They know how make themselves small and then pop up and get good touches on the ball. A good player made a good play on one of our better defenders.”

Clavette, one of the Red Storm’s taller players, ran onto David Trammell’s corner from the right wing and one-timed a right instep into the back of the net. It was the second of back-to-back corners, which followed a free kick from midfield by James Rogers that was headed out by Scarborough’s defense.

“I saw a hole in the defense on the corner kick and it was a perfect ball from Dave Trammel,” said Clavette, a junior midfielder. “I saw the opportunity and I got good contact on it and was able to bury it.”

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Kennebunk goalkeeper Joshua Erickson-Harris makes a save inches from the goal line.

Scarborough (7-1) moved from eighth to fourth in the Class A South Heal point standings. The Rams (4-5) remained in second.

The Rams had the wind and controlled play in the second half. Their short passing game allowed them to stay in the offensive zone for long periods of time but Scarborough’s defense – led by Liam Bridgham, Connor LaBonte, Noah Drapeau and Tommy Stratis – kept the difficult shots from goalie Nathan Taggart (six saves).

Kennebunk did have one final chance to even the match at the end when the officials put 10 seconds on the clock after Scarborough didn’t get the ball back in a timely fashion for a Rams free kick. Michael Walsh served the ball into the box and Tristan Wirth got a shot off that hit the post with a few seconds remaining.

“We when look at that situation: 10 seconds left, 45 yards out on set piece and we wind up hitting the post, you can go to sleep at night knowing we had a chance to get the equalizer,” Cavanaugh said.

The Red Storm had a slight advantage in the first half but couldn’t sustain any pressure in the final 40 minutes.

Scarborough’s Cameron Budway tries to take possession away from Kennebunk’s Ariel Calandri.

“We need to create more chances, even today,” Scarborough Coach Mark Diaz said. “I thought in the second half we could have created more and we didn’t really do that.

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“Overall we are showing some heart and some guts. In the last 10 minutes we had to defend and we did. It was tough today in these conditions.”

Neither team was able to get many quality chances in the second half.

Midway through the half Clavette took a short pass from Wyatt Keller but Joshua Erickson-Harris (five saves) came out as he got the shot off.

“(The rain) really came down in the second half,” Diaz said. “We couldn’t do what we wanted. We couldn’t move the ball the way we wanted. I am sure they couldn’t do exactly what they wanted either. It was pretty ugly.”


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