BIDDEFORD — Big offense propelled the Biddeford girls lacrosse team passed visiting Sanford 22-14 Thursday afternoon at Waterhouse Field.

Biddeford coach Caitlin Albert saw Thursday’s win as a confidence booster for her team moving forward.

“It’s so important, it’s so important for the girls to be getting their confidence up especially considering we’re just a seventh-year varsity program,” said Albert.

Taylor Turgeon scored a gamehigh seven goals for the Tigers, while teammate Missy Huot scored five and Camryn McKeown three. Hailey Allen, Paige Laverriere and Peyton McKeown scored two apiece, and Rebekah Guay added one as well.

Maddie Leigh also got seven goals for Sanford, while Monica Trausch scored four, Liz Helmreich two and Eva Belanger one.

Both offenses came out firing in the first half, with a fast pace of play and plenty of shots on goal.

Turgeon scored five her of goals in the first half while Camryn McKeown scored four to lead the Tigers to a 14-9 lead at halftime.

The Tigers’ offense could not be contained as they began the second half by going on a 6-0 run in the first 10 minutes, mounting a 20-9 lead.

Not only did the Biddeford offense produce in the opening minutes of the second, but the defense also clamped down.

“It’s about stopping the transition, when you let a team run all the way back you are setting your team up for numbers that aren’t pretty defensively, so it’s about stopping (the transition),” said Albert.

Although the Tigers played a fast offensive attack, they also slowed down the tempo when gaining possession, a strategy that was key in stopping the Spartans.

“It’s about staying composed, we like to bring it out and stay calm. A lot of that momentum comes in transition when bringing the ball up field so if we can’t score, we try to keep posession and slow it down,” said Albert.

Sanford regained control of the game in the final 15 minutes, outscoring Biddeford 6-2.

Despite the shift in momentum, the Tigers’ lead was too great for Sanford to overcome.

Another key to Biddeford’s succes was packing the zone and stopping the Spartan shots.

“We had to adjust to the shots. They weren’t seeing a lot of shots, a lot of the girls from Sanford play field hockey so they were taking shots from where boys would take shots. I think it’s just adjusting and realizing that they can take shots from anywhere at any time … they gave us a pretty good battle offensively,” said Albert.

Albert believes that early season wins are crucial heading into the later part of the season.

“We need to be prepared for any style of play so when we see those tougher teams in the conference later in the season we will be ready for anything.”

— Sports Staff Writer Alex Sponseller can be reached at sports@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 323.