GORHAM — It was overtime. The field was wet. Anything could happen.

So Mackenzie Johnston sent in a bouncing shot. The ball took an awkward bounce and rolled into the net to give Cheverus a 2-1 win over Gorham on Tuesday night in a Class A South girls’ soccer quarterfinal game.

Johnston’s goal, just 1:27 into overtime, put the fifth-seeded Stags (14-2) in the semifinals against No. 1 Scarborough (14-0-1).

No. 4 Gorham is done at 10-3-2.

After a scoreless first half, Hallie Shiers gave Gorham the lead with 33:40 remaining. But the Stags slowly grabbed the momentum, and Lily Paszyc tied it with 12 minutes remaining.

That set up Johnston’s winner. From outside the box, she turned and shot.

“I got the ball and saw one defender and I figured ‘why not?’ It’s overtime and I’ll just kick it, and I had some good luck,” said Johnston, one of six Cheverus seniors.

It was the teams’ first meeting this year

The Rams had the advantage most of the first half, as they tried to get the ball to dangerous forward Emma Forgues. But Forgues had company, with the Stags marking her close. Michaela Jordan anchored the Stags’ back line, with Tholia Hallett being a pesky defender.

Gorham outshot Cheverus 4-1 in the first half, with Stags goalkeeper Neve Cawley making one sliding save.

Gorham began the second half with its first corner kick, resulting in a scrum in front of the net. Cawley made two blocks, finally punching the ball out to keep the game scoreless.

But the Rams kept up the pressure. Forgues blasted a shot, that a defender blocked in front of the net. Shiers was right there to bury the rebound.

It was 1-0, but Rams Coach Jeanne Zarrilli knew it could have been more.

“We struggled to finish this year,” she said. “We should have scored a couple. You can’t hold a one-goal lead against a team like Cheverus.”

Speedy Cheverus sophomore Emma Gallant began creating chances, including a shot in the top left corner that goalkeeper Michelle Rowe knocked away. Gallant can also pass and saw Paszyc in front of the goal.

“Emma set me up perfectly,” Paszyc said. “I was able to get it down and play it in the corner.”

That sent the game into overtime, where Cheverus got the break, giving the Stags their first semifinal appearance in seven years.

“We got a fortunate bounce and capitalized. That’s part of soccer,” Cheverus Coach Craig Roberts said. “We’re resilient. We’re experienced. … We’re playing with more of a sense of urgency.”

Cheverus met Scarborough once during the year, losing 3-0.

Kevin Thomas can be reached at 791-6411 or:

kthomas@pressherald.com

Twitter: @KevinThomasPPH