EAST MILLINOCKET – A year ago, about the only things Tim Therrian had to think about saving were his class notes.

On a bone-chilling Saturday afternoon at Ron Marks Field, Therrian came up with some big saves and manned his net like a pit bull guarding a bone to help Carrabec of North Anson notch its first boys state soccer championship.

Senior Paul Roderick’s shot from the right side provided the game-winning goal with 1:34 left in triple overtime as the Carrabec Cobras edged Madawaska 2-1 for the Class C title.

Roderick took a loose ball and dribbled through a gap on the right side for a breakout run to the net, made goalie Paul Michaud commit to the right side, and blasted a shot to the left corner of the net from 15 yards away.

“This is the first one for our boys team ever. It feels great,” said Roderick.

It was an appropriate situation for the 15-3 Cobras, who have played only one regulation game in the playoffs. They won a quadruple-overtime quarterfinal, a semifinal in penalty kicks, and now this.

“Once it went into overtime, we weren’t going to panic,” said Cobras coach Scooter Gleason.

Senior goalie Therrian had never played high school soccer before this year, when friends were finally able to persuade him to go out for the team.

“I thought I’d try it out since my friends have been trying to get me to play the last three years,” he said.

Good thing. Therrian’s large frame, athletic ability, and aggressiveness around the net let him keep a high-powered Owls offense at bay with seven saves on 11 shots.

“He’s the biggest goaltender we’ve seen this year and he’s really excellent in the air, so we just focused on trying to get that ball on the ground, but we didn’t do a great job with that,” said Owls coach Ben Sirois.

The 10-7-2 Owls didn’t solve Therrian until the game was 70 minutes old. With 9:34 to play, Myles Morneault scored with a header to the right corner of the net off a direct kick by Michael Arnold from the left sideline.

The score tied the game as Carrabec held a 1-0 lead, thanks to a shot by Derik Jordan off a rebounded penalty kick 11:44 into the second half. Kris Brewster was awarded the penalty kick on a tripping call and his shot bounced off the crossbar and just above goalie Paul Michaud’s outstretched hand. The bang-bang play left Michaud little chance to react to Jordan’s kickback.

One goal by each team was disallowed earlier in the game. Madawaska’s apparent goal 10 minutes into the first half was nullified by an offsides call. A corner kick shot by Carrabec’s Sam Shaw with 29:32 left in the second was initially called good, but then reversed after officials huddled. They determined that the shot hit the crossbar and bounced straight down did not cross the goal line before Michaud (10 saves on 13 shots) was able to push it out.

The disappointment of Saturday’s loss was tough to overcome, but Sirois says his low-seeded Owls should be nothing but happy with their season.

“They pulled off a miracle just getting here as far as I’m concerned,” Sirois said. “Being 10th-ranked and making it all the way here is something they can’t be ashamed of and should be proud of.”