Ellsworth edges Winslow in 2 OTs Berry’s goal gives Eagles ‘B’ crown

ELLSWORTH – It might have been a dream come true, but it was nothing like Andy Berry had envisioned it.

A defensive player all his life, Berry never imagined it would be his shot from near midfield, in double overtime no less, that would lift the Ellsworth boys soccer team to an Eastern Maine Class B championship.

But that’s just what happened. Berry took an indirect kick, hoping one of his teammates would get a head on the ball. But it sailed over the rest of the players, slipped through the fingers of Winslow goalie Tyler Levasseur, and fell into the back of the net for Ellsworth’s 2-1 victory over the Black Raiders and the 14th regional crown for Eagles coach Brian Higgins.

Ellsworth, now 14-1-2, will face Western Maine winner Yarmouth on Saturday for the state title. It will be the Eagles’ first appearance in a state game since 1999.

While Ellsworth is no surprise to land in the final, the fact it was Berry who got them there, was. Even to him, when he scored with 5:53 left in the second overtime.

“It didn’t even hit me until I got piled on in the middle,” Berry said with a wide smile. “Everyone just turned around and started screaming. It hasn’t really hit me yet. I don’t think it’s going to hit me for a few hours.”

Berry said he was just looking to create something for the Eagles as the Raiders seemed to be getting better chances.

“It was kind of a screen play on the goalie,” he said. “He was kind of small, so we figured we could get a man in front of him. I think he came out [of the goal] thinking somebody was going to head it and he just couldn’t get back in time.”

The teams played fairly even in the first half, but the Raiders (14-2-1) put on a lot more pressure in the second half. Winslow, which was the two-time defending Eastern Maine champion, had a 14-11 edge in shots, including an 8-6 advantage in the second half and overtime.

“We played conservatively when we needed to, and we took chances when we needed to, particularly at the end,” Winslow coach Mike Smith said. “We carried play and it was just a matter of time before we were going to get one. But sometimes it just doesn’t work out that way.”

The Eagles got worried, and even when Jensen Rich scored his 20th goal of the season off a beautiful left-footed shot from 25 yards out with 17:12 left in the second half.

“I think when we got the goal, we were playing defensively and it just stayed that way,” Ellsworth midfielder Jacques Tardie said.

Ellsworth worked 13 minutes off the clock, but the Raiders kept pressing the ball. They managed to tie it with 3:55 left in regulation when Oren Smith kicked in a loose ball in front of the goal. Ellsworth ‘keeper Cory Smith (five saves) had made a save on the previous shot but lost the ball on the ground.

The key defensive matchup for the Eagles was putting Alex Wentworth on Winslow striker Colin Hay, who had a team-high 23 goals this season.

“We heard he was good and Alex has played great for us all year, especially marking, so we told him not to leave [Hay],” Berry said.

“We really had to scratch and fight to keep it out,” Berry said of the overall defensive effort.