RUMFORD — Mountain Valley was looking at Thursday’s boys’ soccer game as another chance to play well against a quality opponent and to see where it is.
Lisbon provided a challenge, scoring two goals in the final stages to rally for a 5-4 victory over the Falcons.
Ryan Fairbanks recorded a hat trick, including the game-winner with 12.2 seconds remaining.
The teams dealt with the elements at Chet Bulger Field, which proved to be tricky by raining throughout the contest.
The winning play began with Morgan Reeves taking a free kick on the left. He led Fairbanks, rushing in on the right side, who beat Falcon goalie Kyle Gauvin (16 saves).
“It was a great (advancing) pass by Morgan,” Fairbanks said. “I knew I needed to continue going in and get off a low shot on goal. We had found we were successful by dumping the ball in over the top, and it created quite a few chances for us.”
Lisbon (7-1-1) maintained pressure throughout the second half. Morgan Reeves scored to tie the game at 4-4 with 1:43 left, when his boot from the left side hit high off the far post and dropped down into the goal.
“We were playing defense for the final 20 minutes of the game,” Mountain Valley coach Jarrod Dumas said. “You just can’t afford to do that against a good team because they will produce scoring chances. Still, this is the best I’ve seen a team of mine play because, in the past, if we fell behind it was tough for us to get back up. But, not this year, and that’s the sign of a mature team.”
Mountain Valley (4-4-1) scored four consecutive goals, two each by Robin Baxmann and Shawn Bennentt, to take a 4-3 lead. The initial one followed a 70-yard free kick by Simon Jensen, with Baxmann kicking the ball into the far corner. Baxmann skillfully dribbled past two defenders and forced Lisbon goalie Shane Tanguay (9 saves) to rush out, before turning and drilling the ball to the far corner. Bennett converted a Baxmann pass, with 10 seconds left in the first half.
The Falcons entered the game with momentum following 8-4 and 4-0 victories over Spruce Mountain and Winthrop. The Falcons’ goal production has increased during the season.
“We had (16) goals from (six) players, ” Dumas said. “Which means we’re scoring in many different ways. That’s good. The win over Spruce helped us with Heal points, and Lisbon (would have) definitely been worth a lot.”
The Falcons led 4-3 when Bennett’s high-arching shot hit the crossbar and beyond Tanguay’s outstretched arms 5:41 into the second half.
Lisbon had threatened to run away by scoring three in the opening 10 minutes of the game. Fairbanks (two) and Reeves each rushed in to beat Gauvin.
“We have great team speed,” Lisbon coach Dan Sylvester said. “We needed to make adjustment for injuries, and rain is the great equalizer. We needed to dig down deep in the second half.”
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