KENNEBUNK — Last June, the Kennebunk girls lacrosse team walked off the Fitzpatrick Stadium turf as the Yarmouth Clippers celebrated winning the 2015 Class B state title.

On Saturday, the Rams will have a chance for some revenge as Kennebunk won the Class B South title with an 8-3 win over Falmouth in Wednesday’s regional final – and Yarmouth also repeated as Class B North champs to set up a championship rematch.

Kennebunk coach Annie Barker believes her team is playing their best lacrosse at the right time.

“I think we are peaking now,” said Barker. “We are playing a smart game. We are being patient, the defenders are coming up huge for us on turnovers, we’ve worked on transition every day and we just keep on adding stuff.”

The Rams dominated Wednesday’s game from the start as Jenny Bush put Kennebunk on top just over two minutes into the contest .

Falmouth would tie the game at the 17:59 mark of the first half when Christina Oakes scored, but Kennebunk responded with scores from Kyra Schwartzman and Erin Gorton to make it 3-1 with 11:39 left in the opening frame.

Bush would once again find the back of the net with 7:45 left in the half – and that goal would give the standout 200 points for her career.

Olivia Stucker cut the Kennebunk lead to 4-2 with a goal at the 4:31 mark, but Carly Sandler responded with just 1:24 left to give the Rams a 5-2 lead at halftime.

The deficit could have been much worse for Falmouth as the Rams outshot the Yachtsmen 12-3 in the opening 25 minutes.

The Rams knew they needed to keep the pressure on Falmouth in the second half.

“We knew we had to keep pushing … we knew we couldn’t step off the gas pedal,” said Kyra Schwartzman.

The Rams (14-0) would score the first two goals of the second half as Bush added another score off a Liv Sandford assist at the 22:18 mark and Gabby Fogg made it 7- 2 just over two minutes later.

Falmouth scored its first goal since the 4:31 mark of the first half when Sydney Bell scored to cut the lead to 7-3 with 10:45 left.

Kennebunk’s final goal would also be a milestone as Kyra Schwartzman scored to make it 8-3 – and the goal would also be the standout’s 200th career point.

“I mean it’s great, it’s a great personal accomplishment for Jenny and I, but at the end of the day, the team won and that’s what matters,” said Schwartzman. “The eight points on the scoreboard, regardless of who got them or where they came from, that’s what matters tonight.”

The fact that Bush and Schwartzman reached the incredible milestone on a team that features several scoring options wasn’t lost on Barker or Bush.

“Considering that we’ve had five, six, seven people scoring per game, that is amazing,” said Barker.

“We just work so well together and it’s not just one person scoring, it’s seven, eight, nine of us, which I think is really amazing and I think that’s why we are able to score so many points,” said Bush.

In Wednesday’s win, the Rams focused on being patient on offense and being smart with the ball – which in turn limited Falmouth’s scoring chances.

“If we just throw the ball at the cage and she makes a save, then they’ve got possession and they are dangerous when they have possession, so we wanted to limit them with the time they had possession,” said Barker.

Schwartzman believes that strategy may have kept the Rams’ scoring down, but it played out exactly as Barker had planned.

“We focused a lot on if we have the ball and we have possession they can’t score and I think that’s part of the reason why maybe the score wasn’t as high as some other games because we were being so patient with the ball and so conservative with it,” said Schwartzman.

While Bush and Schwartzman reached offensive milestones, the Rams’ defense put on a show as they held Bell, who scored 71 goals this season, to just one goal – and the Yachtsmen to just eight total shots.

“I just think we worked really hard together,” said Kennebunk goalie Bella Kudas, who made five saves.

Kudas believes the Rams need to continue to follow the same philosophy they have all season.

“I just think we have to keep working together, stay calm under pressure and keep working hard,” said Kudas.

The Rams will now get another shot at Yarmouth, which beat Kennebunk 11- 10 in overtime in last year’s state finals. Kennebunk got a taste of revenge in the regular season with a 9-5 win over the Clippers on May 24 – but Saturday’s title game will be the one everyone remembers.

“I think these guys are ready, I really do. I think they are mentally ready, they are physically ready, they’re not going to let anything bother them,” said Barker. “They have the complete composure now and I think that’s what we didn’t have last year at the beginning of the game.”

Bush agreed with her coach.

“I think we are going to be more mentally focused this time and I think we will be more prepared than we were last time,” said Bush, who felt the Rams were ready for the regional final and will be ready for Saturday. “We were super prepared for this game and that definitely showed, so we’re going to just practice the next few days even harder and be ready for Saturday.”

Schwartzman believes Saturday’s state title game will come down to two simple things.

“Honestly, I think it’s going to come down to heart and who wants it more,” said Schwartzman. “We both have talent, I think it’s going to be two of the most talented teams in the state … and it comes down to who wants it more and who’s going to play with more heart and passion.”

The Class B state championship game is set for a 10 a.m. start at Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland.

— Sports Editor Pat McDonald can be reached at [email protected] or at 282-1535 ext. 322. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @ JournalTsports.