PORTLAND—Waynflete’s boys’ soccer team had its opportunities to come away victorious in its season opener on a sun-splashed Friday afternoon at Fore River Fields.

But ultimately, the Flyers fell victim to three beautiful goals scored by visiting Hall-Dale.

And that was just enough to spell defeat.

Moments after Waynflete missed a penalty kick, the Bulldogs struck first precisely at the midway point of the first half, when senior Keegan Cary converted a free kick from 20 yards out.

The Flyers needed all of 52 seconds to draw even, as senior captain Lucas Plumb said “anything-you-can-do-I-can-do-better,” and buried a long free kick of his own.

When senior Abie Waisman took advantage of a goalie miscue and scored with 9:38 left in the first half, Waynflete found itself on top.

But not for long.

With 31:47 to go in regulation, senior Jaxon Olsen scored on a free kick to tie the score, then with 15:50 left, on a breakaway, sophomore Karter Eldridge scored and Hall-Dale was able to hold on from there and go on to a 3-2 victory.

“The game all-around was a battle,” said Flyers’ second-year coach Will Burdick. “It was a fun game to be a part of. I’m a fan of these interconference games. We want to continue to play the best teams in Class C. We appreciate them coming down here. We got to see what they’re about and we hope to see them down the road.”

Here we go

Waynflete wasn’t able to add another Gold Ball to the school’s trophy case last fall, but still had a solid season in Burdick’s debut as coach, going 8-6-2 and reaching the Class C South semifinals before losing to eventual champion Mt. Abram, 3-0.

Hall-Dale is a perennial contender in the region and is coming off an 11-4 campaign, which ended with a 1-0 upset loss to Winthrop in the quarterfinals. The Bulldogs started fast in 2024, however, defeating Winthrop (6-2) and Maranacook (6-0).

The Flyers, meanwhile, due to the school’s Outdoor Experience, hadn’t yet played a countable game prior to Friday.

The teams met a year ago in the regular season, with host Hall-Dale prevailing, 3-1.

This time around, on a steamy 78-degree afternoon, both sides had their moments, but it would be the Mountain Valley Conference squad getting the better of its Western Maine Conference foe when all was said and done.

Waynflete junior Gus King defends Hall-Dale senior Jaxon Olsen early in the teams’ showdown Friday. Olsen scored a goal and the Bulldogs rallied for a 3-2 victory. Hoffer photos.

Hall-Dale had the first chance, earning a free kick in the third minute, but a blast from Olsen was blocked by the Flyers’ defensive wall.

After Waynflete freshman Owen Duda had a shot saved by Bulldogs’ senior goalkeeper Eliot Adams, Plumb nearly scored on a free kick, but Adams dove and made a terrific save to keep the game scoreless.

Then, with 26:18 on the first half clock, after a Hall-Dale hand-ball in the box, the Flyers were given a penalty kick and Duda did the honors, but he shot the ball wide of the mark, missing to his left.

The Bulldogs then struck first at the 20 minute mark, as Cary took a 25-yard free kick, blasted it with his left foot just over the wall and past Waynflete junior goalkeeper Diego Schair-Cardona and in for a 1-0 lead.

To their credit, the Flyers didn’t waver, attacked and earned a free kick of their own and with 19;08 on the clock, Plumb buried his bid from 30 yards out, putting it off the post and in to tie the score.

Hall-Dale then had a chance to go back on top, as Eldridge took a pass from sophomore Davis Madore and with Schair-Cardona off his line, he had plenty of net to shoot at, but missed wide.

After Waynflete junior Charles Reynolds was just off target on a rush and Duda had a shot saved by Adams, the Flyers got some good fortune with 9:38 left before halftime, as Waisman got a nice pass, but touched it too far ahead, Adams appeared poised to handle it, but bobbled the ball, and Waisman took advantage, sending it into the net to make it 2-1 in favor of the home team.

After Schair-Cardona punched away a floater from senior Rick McGibney and saved a shot from Olsen, the game went to intermission with Waynflete in front.

“I was proud of the way we bounced back after being down 1-0,” Burdick said. “To go up 2-1 after missing a penalty and some other chances was great.”

The second half wouldn’t be quite as wild, but two more goals were scored amid several cards and play stoppages due to cramping.

Waynflete senior captain Jeff Adey serves the ball toward the goal.

The Flyers had an early opportunity to extend their lead, but Plumb hit the side netting with a free kick.

Hall-Dale then tied the score with 31:47 remaining, again on a free kick, as this time, Olsen fired a low shot from 30 yards out, through the wall and past a diving Schair-Cardona, just inside the right post.

The Bulldogs hoped to go in front, but after taking a pass from Cary and eluding two defenders, Olsen had a shot saved, then senior Ben Platt’s one-timer off a corner kick sailed just high.

At the other end, Waynflete senior captain Duncan Isherwood sent a free kick high and a Reynolds rush was broken up by Hall-Dale senior Miles Fleming.

With just over 16 minutes to play, the Flyers took a corner kick, but it resulted in disaster, as the Bulldogs got possession, took off the other way and Olsen played a long ball ahead to Eldridge, who poked it past Schair-Cardona, who had come out too late. The ball rolled slowly toward the goal line and eventually went over for a 3-2 lead.

Waynflete hoped to rally again, but this time would come up short.

After Adams broke up a pass from senior Tristan Choi to Waisman, Isherwood delivered a free kick that landed in the box but was ultimately cleared by Bulldogs’ sophomore Reid Parlin.

With 6:02 to play, senior George Shattuck attempted the Flyers’ final shot, but it was saved easily by Adams.

Cary cleared the ball one final time as the clock neared zero and Hall-Dale was able to celebrate its 3-2 victory.

Waynflete finished with a 9-6 edge in shots on frame and got three saves from Schair-Cardona, but wound up on the short side of the score.

“Unfortunately, we gave up some set pieces and they hit great shots, so credit to them,” Burdick said. “Our conditioning wasn’t where it should be. It was the first time a lot of guys competed. Give credit to how Hall-Dale battled the whole game.”

The Bulldogs got seven saves from Adams.

Each team took four corner kicks.

The gauntlet

Hall-Dale hopes to stay perfect when it travels to Mountain Valley Tuesday.

Waynflete faces a challenging week, with games upcoming against a pair of Class B South contenders, as Greely pays a visit Monday and the Flyers go to York next Thursday.

“We’re super-excited about the season,” said Burdick. “We need to stay healthy. If we’re able to do so, we like the team we have. We’ll only build on this. We have a tough schedule, but we want to play the best. We’re looking forward to competitive games and we’ll do our best to get better on a game-by-game basis.”

Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net.