LEWISTON — Yarmouth’s offense needed a spark, and its captain answered the bell.

In the process, Steve Fulton sparked a comeback victory that brought the Clippers closer to another Class B boys’ soccer state title.

Top-seeded Yarmouth found itself behind No. 7 Cape Elizabeth, 1-0, nearly midway through the second half Wednesday night in the Class B South final at Lewiston High’s Don Roux Field.

That’s when Fulton, a senior, took off on a breathtaking run that produced the tying goal. Stevie Walsh added another goal six minutes later, and the Clippers had done just enough to prevail, 2-1.

Yarmouth (16-0-2), which has won five of the last six Class B state championships, advanced to take on Winslow (18-0) in the state final Saturday at Massabesic High in Waterboro.

“You need your best players to be at their best in big games, and Steve Fulton was at his best again today,” said Clippers Coach Mike Hagerty.

Advertisement

Yarmouth had the first good scoring chance in the 10th minute, as Will Caruso set up Sutter Augur for a breakaway, but Cape keeper Dimitre Coupe came way out of the goal to break up the play.

Then, with 25:29 to go in the first half, Cape Elizabeth (11-6-1) went ahead. Philip Coupe sent a long ball into the box, where Tiernan Lathrop collected it. Surrounded by two defenders, Lathrop managed to fight his way through before beating Yarmouth goalie Cody Snyder with a high blast.

“We possessed the ball really well in the beginning and we got Tiernan in a good spot,” said Cape Coach Ben Raymond. “He’s a big, strong athlete and he’s worked hard at becoming a really good soccer player.”

The Clippers couldn’t generate a good chance until the second half. Fulton got possession in his end, dribbled up the field and executed a give-and-go with Isaac Grondin before scoring the tying goal with 23:33 remaining.

“I got a little bit of room, took some space and drew a guy, and Isaac did a great job getting it back to me for a tap-in,” Fulton said.

Yarmouth rode that momentum to the go-ahead tally with 17:10 left. Truman Peters served in a corner kick that deflected to Walsh, who buried the shot for a 2-1 lead.

Advertisement

“The ball just found my foot and I just kicked it in,” said Walsh, who also scored the overtime winner to beat Freeport in the semifinals on Saturday. “Right place, right time.”

Cape Elizabeth refused to go quietly, and Eddie Caldera nearly tied it with four minutes to go, but his shot hit the far post.

The Capers had a free kick in the final minute, but Yarmouth cleared it to close it out and advance.

“I think for long spans of the game tonight, we were the best team on the field,” Raymond said. “Hopefully the kids are proud of the growth they made during the season.”

Comments are no longer available on this story