PORTLAND — To the statisticians among us, the story of Scarborough’s 5-0 victory over the Portland/Deering cooperative girls’ hockey team Monday at Portland Ice Arena began and ended with a three-minute span in the second period.

That’s when the Red Storm (12-3-1) capitalized on mistakes for three quick goals and a comfortable lead on their way to a fifth straight win – four by shutouts.

After Kristina Block scored off an assist from Alyssa Hulst for a 1-0 lead 1:22 into the second, Sarah Martens (10:14), Hulst (11:31) and Block (13:14) opened a 4-0 gap that Portland couldn’t breach.

Block added her third of the night, unassisted, at 4:44 of the third.

End of story? Not exactly, for anyone involved in the game – and anyone with an eye on the state tournament in a few short weeks.

For the Bulldogs, Monday’s game was a chance to carry momentum from an emotional 8-3 win over Cheverus on Saturday night. In that game, Portland/Deering snapped a four-game losing streak, and senior captain Raechel Allen tallied the 100th and 101st goals of her career.

The Bulldogs controlled play in the opening period against Scarborough, holding an 8-6 edge in shots.

“After the first period, I told the girls ‘You’re doing everything that you can, and you’re doing it right,’ ” said Portland Coach Courtney Rideout. “We were moving the puck really well, being aggressive, hustling all over the ice.”

It was the kind of two-way hockey that has put the Bulldogs (7-7) on track for their first playoff berth. They are ranked fifth in Western Maine. Scarborough is No. 2.

“We knew we were going to outwork them,” said defenseman Kylie Dalbec, “no matter the outcome.”

For Scarborough, the Bulldogs’ tenacity was the perfect salve for complacency that could have crept into its game. After all, the Red Storm rolled to an 8-0 victory in their last meeting on Jan. 13.

“The girls realized that Portland was coming at us and they weren’t messing around,” said Scarborough Coach Caitlin Cashman. “I think it kind of shook us up a little bit.”

With good reason. Portland’s scoring threats – Allen, Dalbec and Drew Barry – were making their presence known, moving the puck up ice and repeatedly testing Scarborough goalie Devan Kane (21 saves).

And the two-way play of other players, notably sophomore Katie Rutherford and Deering senior Lindsey Sneider, kept pressure on Kane and limited clear shots at first-year Portland goalie Leanne Reichert, who had several gems among her 15 saves.

“Our motto is ‘Be fierce,’ ” said Sneider, the lone Deering player on the roster. “We wanted to work as hard as we could until the very end, because you never know.”

In the second period, the Bulldogs’ ferocity began to work against them, however.

“With about four minutes left in the second period is when I had a sense we were getting tired,” Rideout said. “When you’re rotating two lines, you get tired.”

That’s when Scarborough lit up the scoreboard. But the Bulldogs kept at it, holding a 6-4 edge in shots in the third and a 21-20 edge for the game.

With an eye on the playoffs, it was hard to tell which coach was more pleased with Portland’s effort.

“They were still coming at us,” Cashman said. “Our girls realized, ‘They’re not backing down, so we can’t back down.’ “