SACO — Rare is the rivalry game where both teams walk off the field feeling good about themselves. But such was the case on Wednesday night, as a struggling Biddeford team stood toe-to-toe with its streaking rival, Thornton Academy. But it was the Trojans who walked off happiest, as they secured a 2-1 victory in the field hockey version of the “Battle of the Bridge” on senior night at Hill Stadium.

The Tigers (5-7) came into the game as losers of three of their previous four games ”“ a stretch in which they scored just three goals combined. But they got the goal-scoring monkey off their back rather quickly on the artificial turf of Hill Stadium, as Mallory Mourmouras redirected a pass from Charlotte White into the back of the goal just 1:16 into the contest.

“It was obviously, that’s our goal at the beginning of every game. We want to score first, we want to keep that momentum, and then we want to hold it,” said Biddeford head coach Caitlin Albert. “That was obviously comforting. I think it really set a good spirit for the girls.”

Biddeford sat back after that, trying to protect its early lead against a Thornton (9-3) team that had scored 10 goals in its past three games since a 1-0, overtime loss to undefeated Scarborough.

The tactic worked for a while, but the Trojans finally netted the equalizer 11:31 in, as Grace Pickering fired a shot from the top of the shooting circle that quickly got through a scrum and rattled off the back of the goal.

“It’s not the way you want to start a game, but I knew my team would come back. They don’t give up; that’s been their hallmark all season. They’re fighters, and they keep fighting,” said Thornton head coach Lori Smith. “I was impressed with that.”

Those two goals were the only highlights of a first half that saw back-and-forth play between the circles. Albert said the chess match in play wasn’t a really a surprise.

“We’re two completely different teams. They’re a turf team, and they rely on small passes to get the ball up the field. We rely on more so long hits to open space and running onto it, and trying to utilize our midfield strength,” said Albert. “It was definitely a well-balanced game, and I think due to two teams being very different it was well-played.”

Smith said the battle was good for her team, which hasn’t been tested much recently and faces the SMAA’s bottom two teams in its final two regular-season games.

“We needed a game like that, actually, heading into playoffs, because the last few there’s been quite a margin of scoring over our opponents and not really as much of back-and-forth-games. So that helped us play a little more balanced game, and got our defense ready, which was good,” said Smith.

Smith said she liked what she saw from her defense, which was tasked with keeping the Tigers out of the circle and pushed to the corners. The Trojans played that to perfection in the first minute of the second half, as Biddeford carried the ball deep into Thornton territory, but wasn’t able to get the ball off the left corner.

The Biddeford defense ”“ which wasn’t tested much in a 2-1 loss to South Portland on Monday, but couldn’t hold its own the few times it was pressured ”“ did a solid job of holding off the Trojans’ pressure, which intensified in the second half.

Biddeford goalie Marissa Heffernan made a kick save on a bouncing shot four minutes in, but was felled by the same type of shot eight minutes later, as Allie Romprey’s bouncer went in for the game-winner.

Biddeford soon after found itself playing down a player, as big-hitter Abbie Paquette had to sit for five minutes with a yellow card. But the Tigers held the Trojans scoreless for the duration of the man-advantage, then started to apply some late pressure on Thornton.

Biddeford got its last and best chance of the second half with two minutes to play, but Thornton goalie Izzy Capozzi made one of her few stops with a kick save to preserve the lead, and the victory.

The mood of the Biddeford players after the 2-1 loss was a stark contrast to the low-hanging heads that were sported two days earlier after losing to South Portland by the same score. Albert attributed that to the lesson learned more so than the result earned.

“The record isn’t positive, but it doesn’t reflect how well we’ve done with the numbers that we have; we have 15 girls. We’re going to reflect on it. Now that they know they can play up with T.A., who lost 1-0 to Scarborough, they know what they’re capable of,” said Albert. “That’s the standard now.”

Smith was thankful for the test her team received, as the Trojans play again on Friday (at Bonny Eagle), then play once next week before a possible first-round bye in the playoffs. Having to sweat out a win for possibly the last time this regular season should help her team stay focused, Smith said.

“We’ve had some games that really haven’t pressed us too much, so it’s good to have a game like this down the stretch,” said Smith. “It was definitely a good prep for playoffs, for sure.”

Biddeford is also back in action on Friday, as the Tigers host Westbrook in their home finale.

— Staff Writer Wil Kramlich can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 323 or sports@journaltribune.com. Follow him on Twitter @WilTalkSports.