SACO — In lacrosse, possession isn’t just nine tenths of the law.

It is the entire statute.

Thornton Academy found that out to its chagrin, Thursday, by sustaining a tough, 11-10 loss to Portland, in SMAA girls lacrosse action at Hill Stadium.

Down by one goal, and with 5:40 remaining, the Trojans couldn’t gain ball possession when they needed it.

“When they had possession,” said Thornton coach Craig Agreste, “we seemed a little confused. That’s something as coaches we’ve got to correct.”

At first, it seemed the Trojans might be on their way to a romp, after both Michelle Giroux and Amanda Cook scored within the first 1:16.

However the Bulldogs responded with four consecutive goals ”“ the last of them the first of four by Drew Barry ”“ to take a 4-2 lead with 12:02 gone.

“When we play good teams,” said Agreste, “there is a small margin of error. We were giving up easy goals. Goals that were our fault.”

Thornton quickly tied the score, 4-4, thanks in large part to junior middie Katelyn Pierson, who at 15:30, when she exploded from behind the back of the net, then flicked in the first of her three goals.

Less than four minutes later, Pierson set up Emily Fejedelem for the deadlocker.

However, the Bulldogs struck the last blow, scoring twice before intermission, including Kylie Dalbec’s goal with just 3.3 seconds to play.

The Trojans were forced to play catch up ”“ unsuccessfully at that ”“ the rest of the way.

Portland opened up its biggest lead, 8-4, when Barry polished off her third goal with deft spin move.

“She is a heck of a player,” said Agreste. “We did everything we could except tackle her.”

The Trojans weren’t ready to collapse, however.

They hauled themselves back into contention down the stretch with goals from Rebecca Kieffer, Pierson, and Giroux, before Kendra Ermold made it 11-9 with a burst up the slot at 18:41.

Then, at 19:20, Carly McKenna brought Thornton to with one goal, when she flipped in a left-handed shot from 15 feet away.

That, however, was the last time the Trojans saw the ball.

Portland won the ensuing draw, and proceeded to hold the ball in the Thornton end for the final five minutes, including two minutes while playing short handed.

“Winning the draw is the key,” said Agreste, “to playing this game, and being successful. We struggled with draws throughout the game. When push came to shove, we couldn’t get the draw we needed.”

Portland coach Kait Johnson said keeping calm in the midst of Thornton pressure was how her team kept the Trojans at bay.

“It was composure,” Johnson said. “We hung in there. It was a mental battle, and I think we won mentally and physically.”

— Contact Dan Hickling at 282-1535.