FREEPORT — Sophomore Wes Parker, playing his first varsity game, scored with three minutes remaining Friday to lift Cape Elizabeth to a 2-1 victory against Freeport in a Western Maine Conference boys’ soccer opener.
Parker, a defensive midfielder, lifted in a shot from 10 yards following a corner kick to snap a 1-1 tie.
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“I just kind of got lucky with the situation,” Parker said. “The ball got crossed, the defender didn’t pick it up and I got a shot off.”
Parker’s goal came less a little more than 10 minutes after Chandler Wyman of Freeport rolled a shot in from inside the 14 after winning a battle with Cape back Owen Thoreck for control of the ball to make it 1-1.
“We got caught too far up and when they played the quick counter, they ended up winning (possession of the ball),” said Griffin Thoreck, Owen’s older brother.
“After that goal we played with a sense of urgency. We got the ball forward. We got many more chances and Wes capitalized.”
“I think we were all really upset,” Parker said. “No one wanted a draw.”
The Capers held a 29-5 edge in shots and a 7-2 edge in corner kicks but were unable to turn those advantages into goals.
“We had a lot of possession,” Cape Elizabeth Coach Ben Raymond said. “All over the field we were able to possess the ball throughout the game. We just weren’t as dangerous as we would like to be with that possession.
“We were really good in the midfield third buildup but not as good in the offensive third as we would like to be. We had lots of chances. We just didn’t finish.”
Freeport goalie Brendan Qualls made five of his nine saves in the first half to keep Cape scoreless, and three of them bordered on sensational.
“He’s an amazing athlete and he’s worked really hard to get better,” Freeport Coach Joe Heathco said. “He did a great job today.”
Cape Elizabeth finally broke through 14 minutes into the second half when Connor Thoreck, another brother who is on the team, got his right foot on a ball that had rolled across the front of the goal mouth, and poked it inside the right post.
The goal came after Owen Thoreck’s corner kick from the left side.
Despite the loss, Heathco wasn’t disappointed with the effort put forth by the Falcons.
“I’m pleased with the effort,” he said. “The boys worked their tails off the whole game and for us to be successful we have to do that.
“We’ve worked through the preseason and we have a few rough patches, so I’m really pleased with how far we’ve come during the last 10 days to be playing this organized. I’m pretty disappointed in the result right now but I think there are (positive) things to take from it.”
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