CAPE ELIZABETH — Cape Elizabeth’s boys’ lacrosse team doesn’t need long to break the will of an opponent.

Sometimes a split second is all it takes.

Friday afternoon at Hannaford Field, the Capers got a stiff test from Yarmouth, as they trailed by a goal at halftime and were clinging to a one-goal lead as time wound down in the third quarter. But after forcing a turnover, Cape got a goal from Keegan Lathrop just before the horn, then added four goals in the fourth quarter to secure an 11-6 victory.

“We just started to get momentum,” said Lathrop, who scored four goals. “Yarmouth was still fighting, but that was a big energy boost.”

The two-time defending Class A state champions lost at home to Yarmouth last season, and they were on the ropes in the first half when Yarmouth senior Killian Marsh scored four times to produce a 5-4 halftime lead.

Cape Elizabeth (2-0) then turned up the defense in the second half, allowing just one goal.

After Nate Patterson tied the score early in the third quarter, Bobby Offit scored to give the Capers the lead for good.

As time wound down in the third, the Clippers (1-1) had the ball with a chance to tie it, but Cape Elizabeth forced the ball loose. Offit set up Lathrop for a shot that beat Yarmouth freshman Will Redfield (11 saves) just before time expired to make it 7-5.

“I knew there was a little bit of time left,” Lathrop said. “I wondered why Bobby didn’t shoot it, but he passed it to me and I knew I had to take it. The goalie wasn’t in a great position and I had an easy job putting it in the back of the net.”

“Defensively, (Yarmouth) did a decent job with (Keegan), but he’s a great shooter and he has a quick shot,” added Cape Coach Ben Raymond. “He’s going to get open at some point.”

The Capers then ended all doubt in the fourth quarter, as Sam Cochran scored his second goal and Lathrop added his third and fourth, all in a 32-second span.

“We were clear at halftime about what we wanted to do on the defensive end of the field,” said Raymond. “We hadn’t prepared an awful lot. We just showed up and played. The defensive guys adjusted really well on-ball and off-ball.”

Michael Foley made eight saves for Cape Elizabeth.

Yarmouth, the Class B runner-up in 2022, was paced by Marsh’s four goals. Colton McCann added a pair.

“We didn’t take care of the ball in the second half,” said Clippers Coach Jon Miller. “We couldn’t win faceoffs. They won the possession game, and that was it.

“We saw some good things and we saw some bad things. Fortunately, we’ll see them again in a few weeks. It was encouraging. We know we can play with them.”