DOVER, N.H.— Late goals helped the No. 5 Kennebunk boys hockey team beat the No. 4 York squad 3-2 in the Class B South quarterfinals Tuesday night at the Dover Arena.

Kennebunk’s goals were scored by Gavin Baulmer, Kyle Beaupre and Boden Beveridge. Goalie Spencer Desrochers recorded 13 saves for the Rams.

Andrew Bertolini and Jacob Martin scored goals for the Wildcats, while goalie Keenan Gamache stopped 24 shots.

The first period was a tight battle between the two squads, with neither team able to gain steady momentum in the opposing zone.

As the two teams played physically, the puck remained in the neutral zone for much of the opening period. Kennebunk hoped to draw first blood when they were awarded a powerplay opportunity midway through the period.

Instead, Bertolini scooped up the puck in the York zone and brought it the length of the ice, wristing it in the net to give the Wildcats a 1-0 lead on the shorthand.

Kennebunk went on another powerplay in the final two minutes of the first but failed to convert once again, allowing York to hold onto the 1-0 lead heading into the second.

The Rams had a much stronger second period, controlling the puck throughout the entire 15 minutes.

The difference between the first and second period was nerves according to Kennebunk coach Sean Smith.

“I think it was nerves, I don’t like to make excuses but I think nerves were definitely setting in early, especially for the younger guys who haven’t had the opportunity to play playoff hockey,” said Smith. “It doesn’t matter what level it is, there is nothing quite like playoff hockey. It took them a period to adjust, but we went in there, made a few changes and they came back hard.”

Although Kennebunk came out firing, Gamache had an impressive period as well and recorded eight saves in the first four minutes and 13 in the period.

After a flurry of shots, including one that deflected off the crossbar, Kennebunk got on the board thanks to a two-on-one goal from Baulmer in the top-right of the net.

The Rams continued to control the puck for the remainder of the period, however Martin capitalized on a too many men on the ice penalty and scored the go-ahead powerplay goal with 27 seconds remaining, giving the Wildcats a 2-1 edge heading into the final period of play.

Like the second period, the Rams jumped on top of the Wildcats early, immediately establishing control of the offensive tempo. At the 13:00 mark in the third, Beaupre launched a shot in the top of the net as he skated from the right side to tie the score at 2-2.

Less than five minutes later, Beveridge gained control of the puck and sent a hard slapshot from the blue line in the net, giving Kennebunk the 3-2 advantage midway through the third.

Kennebunk dominated the possession battle for the remainder of the game and held onto the close lead to secure the victory.

Smith was also impressed with the fight the York squad showed throughout the contest.

“I thought York battled, they don’t have a lot of guys for them, so to battle as well as they do and as hard as they do is really something,” said Smith.

Smith also gave a lot of credit to Gamache for his performance in net.

“He played really hard, he is a very good player, he’s very composed. It’s a tough way to lose a game,” said Smith.

Overall, Smith was pleased with his team’s night, especially in the third period.

“Our kids certainly competed in the third period, we pretty much told them play these fifteen minutes for the rest of your lives because that’s all we would have left if they didn’t go out there and win the third period. They went out there and played great,” said Smith.

— Sports Staff Writer Alex Sponseller can be reached at [email protected] or at 282-1535 ext. 323.