Scarborough senior Carrie Timpson is congratulated by junior Bella Turner (4) after scoring one of her two first half goals in the Red Storm’s 3-0 win at Falmouth in Wednesday’s season opener. Derek Davis / Portland Press Herald photos. More photos below. Buy this Photo
FALMOUTH—Carrie Timpson was eager to get things started and it didn’t take long for the Scarborough senior captain to make her presence felt in the regular season opener Wednesday evening at Falmouth.
Timpson scored less than two minutes into the contest, then added a second goal before halftime to help spark the Red Storm to a 3-0 victory.
Junior Jenna Giguere scored a second half goal and Scarborough allowed just three Yachtsmen shots as it won its season opener for the third year in a row.
“The girls have worked hard and this is a great confidence booster,” said longtime Red Storm coach Kerry Mariello, following her 214th career victory. “We knew how talented Falmouth is, so to come out with a solid win on the road is great for us.”
Two contenders
Scarborough went 12-3-1 last year, but had no answers for Westbrook in the Class A South semifinals, losing, 5-0. The Red Storm expect to be one of the last teams standing again this fall.
Falmouth took eventual state champion Biddeford to the wire in the Class A South semifinals, losing, 1-0, to finish 10-4-2. Graduation hit the program hard, as All-State standouts Emma Cohen and Liberty Ladd, among others, departed.
Last year, Scarborough blanked visiting Falmouth, 2-0, making it four straight wins over the Yachtsmen (see below for previous results).
Wednesday, on a 71-degree evening with the threat of thunderstorms present but unaccounted for, Falmouth sought its first win over the Red Storm since Oct. 4, 2002 (1-0 in Scarborough when both teams were in Class B), but Scarborough downed the Yachtsmen again.
Making a statement right out of the gate.
The Red Storm set up in Falmouth’s defensive end and after senior captain Julia Booth-Howe sent a long hit her way, Timpson settled the ball and fired it past Yachtsmen senior goalie Sarah Greenlaw for the only goal Scarborough would need, just 1 minute, 42 seconds into the contest.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” Timpson said. “Usually, I’m on goal tipping and I usually don’t get those hard drives on net, but I saw it and I took it. I just drove it. It’s important to get momentum going in your favor. We knew if (Falmouth) scored first, they’d have (momentum).”
“It was a very pretty goal and it created a lot of energy for us,” Mariello said. “We worked off of that. Going in, you never know how you’ll play in a game situation and if you can execute in key situations and we did.”
Timpson nearly added to the lead later in the half, but Greenlaw denied her in front.
Falmouth’s best chance of the first half came with 10:53 to go, off a penalty corner, when senior Izzy Roy sent a shot wide.
Then, after senior forward Sarah Trego just missed wide, Timpson doubled the Red Storm lead with 4:39 to go before the break.
This time, Timpson did it herself, getting the ball to the left of the Falmouth goal and bulling her way through the defense before firing a shot that Greenlaw couldn’t stop.
“I got the ball top of the circle, dodged around a girl, then got it on the baseline, kind of put my body in front of (the defender), then shot it in,” Timpson said.
“I don’t even know how that happened,” Mariello said. “(Carrie) saw a little hole. She’s a playmaker. If she wants it bad enough, she’ll find a way.”
Scarborough senior Carrie Timpson fires a first half shot while Falmouth senior Parker Spence defends. Buy this Photo
Scarborough looked to put it away early in the second half, as Booth-Howe found sophomore Lili Stone alone behind the Yachtsmen defense, but after Greenlaw came out to challenge her, Stone missed just wide.
Falmouth tried to answer with 22:30 to play, off a penalty corner, but a shot from senior Sarah Wentworth was denied by Scarborough senior goalie Abby Roy.
The Red Storm then ended all doubt with 6:43 on the clock, as Giguere tipped home a shot in the circle, off a penalty corner.
The Yachtsmen couldn’t answer and Scarborough closed out its 3-0 victory.
“It was a great game,” Timpson said. “We’re so excited.”
“We balanced the field very well,” Mariello said. “Switching one side to another. Everyone was on their game it seemed. We blended together. The sooner you do that, the better off you’ll be.”
The Red Storm had a 9-3 edge in shots on goal.
“We knew Falmouth’s a really good team and we had to shut them down,” Timpson said. “Defense is definitely one of our strong points. We work a lot in practice about good defensive positioning.”
Roy made three saves.
Falmouth got six saves from Wentworth, but couldn’t put the ball in the cage.
“Scarborough played a great game,” said longtime Yachtsmen coach Robin Haley. “They executed well. They passed well. All the things we didn’t do as well as we’d hoped. That’s what it came down to. We over-hit the ball when we made contact on it and our passing and receiving wasn’t where it needed to be to play against a good team.
“I am pleased the girls didn’t give up. We got down early. Our timing was off, but we stayed in it. We’ll build on that.”
Each team had four penalty corners.
Another chance
Falmouth hopes to bounce back Friday, when it goes to Kennebunk. The Yachtsmen return home Tuesday to battle Westbrook.
“It’s early,” Haley said. “There are a lot of things we need to do to get better and we’ll just chip away at it and hope for a different result Friday.”
Scarborough opens its home schedule Saturday morning against the newly formed Portland/Deering co-op team. The Red Storm have a huge test next Thursday when defending champion Biddeford pays a visit.
“This is a big confidence booster,” Timpson said. “We know against strong teams we can bring energy and teamwork. We’re definitely a young team and a lot of girls need experience, so from this point, we have to keep working.”
“We’re still learning the game and each other,” Mariello said. “It’s just a matter of the cohesion of the team. That’s our main focus.”
Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @foresports.
Scarborough sophomore Kayleigh York pokes the ball away from Falmouth junior Julia Danielson. Buy this Photo
Scarborough junior Bellla Turner and Falmouth senior Sarah Wentworth lunge for a loose ball. Buy this Photo
Scarborough senior Carrie Timpson keeps her eye on the ball as Falmouth junior Laura McCallum looks on. Buy this Photo
Recent Falmouth-Scarborough results
2018
@ Scarborough 2 Falmouth 0
2017
Scarborough 3 @ Falmouth 1
Class A South quarterfinals
@ Scarborough 1 Falmouth 0
2015
Class A South quarterfinals
@ Scarborough 1 Falmouth 0
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