YARMOUTH — Despite scoring the final four goals of the game against No. 4 Yarmouth, fifth-seeded Kennebunk was the team that had to fight late in the game for a victory, as the Rams killed off an extended Clipper power play in the third period to win a Western Class B boys hockey quarterfinal 4-1 at the Travis Roy Arena on Tuesday.

The Rams got off to a rough start, something head coach Sean Smith said his team couldn’t do, as Yarmouth scored just 1:29 into the game on a goal by Bob Murray.

“We just needed that (first) five minutes to settle in,” said Kennebunk sophomore Patrick Gassman. “And, unfortunately, they scored within those five minutes. But then we settled in, worked hard and gave it (our) all.”

“We came out a little flat the first five minutes. But after that, that team in there worked harder than I’ve seen a team work all season the next 40,” said Smith.

But Kennebunk responded well to falling behind early, as the Rams got physical with the Clippers. That led to increased time in the attacking zone, and just over nine minutes into the opening period, Gassman scored off a Boden Beveridge pass from behind the net.

“You never want to go into (intermission) being down a goal. We were just fortunate to go into the next period with a tie game,” said Gassman. “It was either do or die. So we all gave it our all; we didn’t a take a shift off.”

Yarmouth created a few opportunities again early in the second period, but this time, the Rams didn’t surrender a goal and responded much quicker. Freshman Brendan Keefe stole the puck in the neutral zone and found Brandon Merchant open between the circles, who in turn fired a shot past Yarmouth goalie Nicholas Allen 2:22 into the middle period.

“(That was) really the turning point in the game right there,” said Smith.

Allen held his own in net as the Rams dominated play in the second, but Gassman bested him again midway through the period, as he collected the puck along the left boards, then carried it into the offensive zone before firing an open shot from the left circle.

“Just after the goal, I was just happy,” said Gassman. “I broke my stick. I used (Jack Graydon’s). And I didn’t think I’d score, but fortunately, I did.”

There was no let-down in effort for Kennebunk in the third, despite having all the momentum and a two-goal lead. But the Rams did let their guard down in terms of playing smart, as they went to the penalty box for the first of five times 2:30 into the third on a Ben Bath slashing minor.

Kennebunk junior goalie Mike LeBlanc was tough in net throughout the two-minute penalty kill, which was just a preview of things to come.

The Yarmouth power play was cut short, as Bill Jacobs was called for boarding with seven seconds left in the man-advantage.

When 5-on-5 play finally resumed again ”“ after a couple solid power play chances from Kennebunk’s James Ross ”“ it didn’t last long. Bath went back to the box just 24 seconds after the Yarmouth penalty expired. And as the Rams were trying to fight off another penalty kill, both Ryan Keefe and Bryce Fisher were called for tripping on the same sequence.

That gave the Clippers 2:52 worth of power play ”“ including a full 2:00 of 5-on-3. And try as they may, LeBlanc blanked every Clipper attempt throughout the penalty kill, none more difficult than a save on a Dylan Tureff back-door attempt with 6:20 to play.

“I’ve got to give our penalty killing units incredible props tonight, to kill off that crazy 5-on-3,” said Smith. “Mike LeBlanc, that was the greatest game I’ve seen Mike LeBlanc play in a long time. And he didn’t have a ton of stops, but he made incredibly important ones. He was the difference in the game right there. If they scored right there, it could be a completely different game.”

To top off a forgettable period for Bath, the senior assistant captain was called for his third minor with 55.2 seconds left in the game. But his classmate, Keefe, bailed him out, as he scored a short-handed, empty-net goal with 44.5 seconds to play to seal the victory.

“Ryan Keefe played an incredible game tonight; blocking shots, doing all the little things. (He) does that every single night ”¦ and he deserved that more than anyone in that locker room,” said Smith.

The Rams advance to Friday’s semifinals at the Androscoggin Bank Colisee in Lewiston, where they will face top-seeded Gorham. Kennebunk lost the only meeting between the two teams this season 3-1 back on Feb. 1.

“This team’s come a long way since then already,” Smith said of the first matchup against Gorham. “I told the kids that we can be a scary team in the playoffs. Teams don’t want to play us.”

— Staff Writer Wil Kramlich can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 323 or sports@journaltribune.com. Follow him on Twitter @WilTalkSports.