BIDDEFORD — The Carrabec boys soccer team rode a possession-style attack all season. It worked again on Tuesday night.
The No. 1 Cobras defeated No. 2 Greenville 2-0 for the eight-person South title at Waterhouse Field. Carrabec (17-0-0) moves on to the state championship game Saturday at Fuller Field in Augusta. It’s the first regional title for the program since 2004, when the Cobras beat Madawaska for the Class C title.
Greenville finished 13-4-0.
Desmond Robinson and Christopher Caruso tallied goals for the Cobras. Up 1-0 at halftime, Caruso scored a goal with 22:37 remaining in the half, taking a header off a Lucas Vicneire pass into the net for the final 2-0 score.
Greenville goalie Liam Mason, left, blocks a shot by Carrabec’s Desmond Robinson in the South regional 8 person soccer championship Tuesday at Waterhouse Field in Biddeford. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal
“It feels amazing (to win),” said Caruso, a senior. “I’ve never been there before, and it feels amazing and I’m excited that we get to go there together.”
Carrabec used quick possession passes throughout the contest, keeping the ball away from the Lakers and limiting offensive opportunities throughout.
“We really needed to play fast,” Caruso said. “The pitch on turf is insane, unlike normal grass. We’ve been practicing (during the week) at Colby College, been going there for the past couple days to work on it. The team synergy, overall, is what brought us there.”
“We knew we needed to possess (the ball),” Carrabec head coach Paul Vicneire said. “Try to keep switching fields, getting the ball back across the pitch. (Greenville) is a good team. Not playing on turf all year was an adjustment, but we practiced a couple times on it. It was probably to our advantage a little bit, playing a possession game.”
Robinson put the Cobras on the board in the first half, slipping a shot past Greenville goalkeeper Liam Mason with 16:55 remaining for the 1-0 lead.
The Lakers changed goalies at halftime, going with freshman Landon Theriault. Carrabec continued its passing attack, picking its spots before Lucas Vicneire found Caruso for the final goal.
Carrabec now has 12 shutouts in its 17 games this season and have not allowed a goal throughout the playoffs.
Vicneire credited the Cobras’ conditioning as a key to their success.
“These kids work hard,” Vicneire said. “I’ve been (coaching) 27 years, I’ve only got two teams that compare with this one. They believed in the system. They believed, right out of the gate, and we ramped it up.”
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