YORK—For the first time in five years, Yarmouth’s boys’ lacrosse team won’t be playing in the Class B state final.

That’s because the Clippers ran into a buzzsaw York Wildcats squad Tuesday in the semifinals, a Wildcats team who instead will be making their first-ever appearance on the big stage.

After erupting for 20 goals in the teams’ first meeting, Yarmouth enjoyed little possession time and was on its heels for almost the entirety of the contest, as host York started strong and never relented.

Thanks to five saves from freshman goalie Will Redfield, the Clippers hung tough in the first quarter and a late goal from junior Colter Olson forged a 1-1 tie.

The Wildcats then went on top to stay in the second period on goals from juniors Nick Foy and Haydn Forbes and while senior Killian Marsh answered late, York held a 3-2 advantage at the break.

Yarmouth was very much alive at the start of the third quarter, but the Wildcats delivered a knockout blow by scoring six times to take a commanding 9-2 lead.

Marsh scored with four minutes to go, but the Clippers couldn’t rally and York went on to a 9-3 victory.

The Wildcats improved to 12-4 as they reached the state game for the first time, ended Yarmouth’s season at 11-5 and will battle No. 3 Messalonskee (12-4) Friday at a time to be announced at Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland.

“We needed possessions to score goals and we didn’t get enough of them,” lamented Clippers coach Jon Miller. “There aren’t many sports where you can hold the ball and control the game. If you don’t have it, you can’t score and that’s what it comes down to.”

Stunning turnaround

The Clippers had their ups and downs this spring (see sidebar for links to previous game stories), losing twice to two-time reigning Class A champion Cape Elizabeth, once to Falmouth and once to two-time defending Class C champion Waynflete, while beating everyone else to wind up fourth in Class B.

Last Thursday, in the state quarterfinals, Yarmouth got pushed to the brink by No. 5 Marshwood, but held on to advance in a thriller, 13-12.

York, meanwhile, won its first four games and its final three and wound up first in Class B.

The Wildcats dispatched No. 8 Mt. Ararat, 13-4, in their state quarterfinal Saturday.

Yarmouth beat visiting York, 20-12, back on May 2. In that one, Marsh scored five times, including the 100th goal of his prolific career, while sophomore Matt Cain added six goals and Olson finished with four goals and three assists.

The Clippers entered the contest 2-0 all-time versus the Wildcats in the tournament, beating them 17-10 in the 2018 Class B state quarterfinals and again, 11-9, in last year’s semifinals.

Tuesday, on an overcast, raw afternoon (just 58 degrees), York came out on a mission and that mission was to completely stymie Yarmouth’s ability to score.

Mission accomplished.

The Wildcats had a couple good early looks, but Redfield denied Hoy twice.

After Marsh had a shot saved by York junior goalie Evan Giacobba, Hoy broke the scoring ice nearly seven minutes in, finishing unassisted.

After Redfield saved shots from Forbes and senior Kevin Burke and Hoy hit the post, the Clippers tied the score with 44 seconds left, as Olson fought through the defense and found the net.

But that would be as good as it would get all day for Yarmouth.

With 10:10 to play in the first half, Hoy scored unassisted, finishing top shelf, and York had the lead for good.

Freshman Colton McCann had a chance to tie the score, but he was denied by Giacobba.

At the other end, Redfield saved a shot from sophomore Evan Anastas and junior Luke Douris hit the post, but with 7:11 to go, sophomore Quinn Walenta got the ball to Forbes, who made a nice move to dodge a defender, then finished to make it 3-1.

After Redfield saved a pair of bids from Forbes, the Clippers went man-up and with 2:15 to play before halftime, senior Aksel Yeo set up Marsh to cut the deficit to one.

After Redfield robbed Hoy late, the Wildcats’ lead was just a single goal, 3-2, heading to the break.

York had a big edge in shots, but Redfield’s 11 saves kept Yarmouth in the game.

The Wildcats then broke it open in the third period.

York started the second half man-up and just as the penalty expired, Walenta set up Anastas for a goal.

After Giacobba saved a shot from Olson and McCann hit the post, York enjoyed a long offensive possession that saw Redfield rob Burke and Hoy, but the Wildcats kept shooting and with 5:29 on the clock, were rewarded, as Hoy, from behind the goal, fed Douris, who was wide open in front, and Douris put the ball home to make it 5-2.

“Second half, we tried to push a little more, but our shots weren’t falling and we couldn’t get momentum,” Miller said. “At that point, we were still in it. Our defense had a long stand there. Even though they scored there, it was a positive.”

Sophomore Owen Walsh tried to answer, but Giacobba saved his shot, then York ran off three goals in two minutes.

With 4:03 remaining, after a turnover, junior defenseman Chris Connors raced into the offensive zone before passing off to Walenta, who finished.

A mere 46 seconds later, Hoy scored unassisted, then with 2:05 showing, Burke took a pass from Anastas and scored for an 8-2 advantage.

After Giacobba saved a shot from Marsh, Douris scored what proved to be the Wildcats’ final goal with 29.4 seconds on the clock, finishing a feed from Walenta, for a decisive seven-goal lead heading for the fourth quarter.

There, Yarmouth hoped to get its prolific offense in gear and produce an epic rally, but York simply wasn’t having it.

Giacobba stood tall with 4:30 to play, denying Cain, then robbing Olson on a rebound.

Finally, with 4 minutes to go, the Clippers snapped their 22 minute, 15 second scoring drought and the Wildcats’ 6-0 run when Walsh fed Marsh, but Yarmouth didn’t get another great look at the goal and York was able to run out the clock and celebrate a landmark 9-3 victory.

“It feels good,” said Wildcats coach Billy McNamara. “The boys have been working very hard all season and I think they earned it. They left it all out on the field today. When we played Yarmouth earlier in the season, we were pretty banged up. We had a young defense that hadn’t really played together yet. We came a long way. We were confident we could hold them in check. We have awesome defensive coaches and guys who have come together. The shots just started falling. Their goalie made a ton of great saves in the first half. In the second, the shots found their way into the back of the net. It’s amazing.”

The Wildcats’ offense was paced by Hoy, who scored three times. Douris added two goals, while Anastas, Burke, Forbes and Walenta all had one.

Walenta also had three assists, while Anastas, Connor and Hoy each added one.

Giacobba made nine saves.

Douris and junior Jim Neal shared team-high ground balls honors with three each.

The Wildcats had a huge edge in shots, 52-23 (including 29-12 on cage) and only turned the ball over nine times.

York didn’t face Messalonskee this season. Both squads will be seeking their first championship Friday and the Wildcats believe they have what it takes to cap their season in the ultimate style.

The guys are pumped,” McNamara said. “We just have to stay focused. We’ll look at them a little bit, but we’ll stay focused on us and keep playing good lacrosse.

Farewell to Class B

Yarmouth got two goals from Marsh and one from Olson and it was held to its lowest point production of the year.

Walsh and Yeo had one assist each.

Redfield dazzled with 20 saves.

“Will had 20 saves, which is unbelievable,” said Miller. “I’ve said all year that Will played great, especially as a freshman.”

Senior Jaxson Dauphinee had a game-high five ground balls, as the Clippers had a 27-19 advantage in that category.

Yarmouth won nine of 15 draws, but turned the ball over 20 times (on a day which they put only a dozen shots on frame).

“It’s disappointing not getting an opportunity to get revenge for last year,” Miller said. “It’s tough for the boys. Credit to York. The difference this year is their depth. They have six or seven guys who could score. That’s tough for us to defend. We held them to nine, which is usually enough to win, but we weren’t able to get goals. They had a tight defense that was tough to play against and their goalie made saves. They possessed the ball well. They didn’t have many unforced turnovers and controlled the game. Playing on soft grass, you dodge a little different and play a little different, but it’s no reason for why we didn’t score enough goals. They started killing time and the ball wasn’t on our stick, so there was no way for us to come back. We worked hard on defense, got the ball back and failed to clear. Those little passes mattered.”

Yarmouth has to bid adieu to nine seniors who helped the program stay at its accustomed level among the state’s elite.

“These seniors missed their freshman year to COVID and we’re going to miss them next year,” Miller said.

The Clippers will remain in good hands in 2024, but will face a new challenge, as they move up to Class A.

“In general, we had a lot of young guys contributing today which means our future was bright,” Miller said. “We’ll keep our heads up and come back next year. The returning guys will be extra hungry. We’re committed to moving up to Class A next year. We only have around 35 guys and we’ll be playing teams that have 70, but we’ll give it a shot and see how it goes.”

Sports Editor Michael Hoffer can be reached at mhoffer@theforecaster.net.