Carter lifts Presque Isle by Caribou Wildcats improve to 3-0; Vikes scoreless in 1st half

CARIBOU – The members of the Presque Isle boys soccer team used their heads to win a matchup against Aroostook County and Class B rival Caribou Thursday night.

Sure, the Wildcats played smart soccer. But they also used headers to cross the ball, clear out their defensive half, and move play up the field.

And Presque Isle scored with headers, too – twice in the first half, both by Nate Carter – on the way to a 4-1 victory over the Vikings at the high school field.

Coach Scott Young’s 3-0 Wildcats held Caribou scoreless in the first half, and the Vikes had just four shots on goal. Meanwhile, Carter headed a loose ball into the net almost five minutes into the game. With 8:34 left he passed a through-ball to left wing Greg Whitaker, who hit a hard shot on the ground past Caribou goalie Brad Ala.

The wet field had something to do with all the headers.

“It’s really important to head the ball when it’s wet out because [otherwise] it will skip and give the other team a chance,” Carter said.

Three minutes later Carter headed in a ball during a play that started after a corner kick.

“You’ve got to go to the ball and take that away from them,” said Caribou coach Mark Shea. “The fact is, it’s tough to defend. Their front three forwards are as good as any forwards in the state. They’re lethal not only with their heads but with their feet.”

Right wing Travis Brooker plays with Whitaker and Carter on the front line.

Caribou (0-2-1) was able to generate more offense in the second half, which culminated in a Kyle Corrigan goal with 28:45 left in the game. Eamonn Harrigan picked up the assist. Shea switched around his starters’ positions after halftime – Corrigan, for example, spent much of the first half marking Carter but was on the front line in the second half.

“We flip-flopped the defense to the offense, pretty much all over the field,” Shea said. “I didn’t like what I saw in the first half, and by doing that we created a little more motivation for people to go out there and get the job done.”

But almost two minutes later, Carter got a breakaway in the penalty area and made it 4-1. Although the shots were much more even in the second half, the Vikings were unable to break through again.

Presque Isle defender Trent Legassie said the Wildcats knew they had to watch Harrigan, who is one of the top midfielders in the state.

“We had Derrek [Belanger] on him,” Legassie said. “We contained him mostly, just made sure he didn’t make any big passes or take any shots. He does have a boot.”

Ala and promising freshman Chris Brown combined for 11 saves on 20 shots. Presque Isle starter Adam Kingsbury and Chris Wilcox combined to make eight saves on 12 shots.

JV: Presque Isle 1-0 (2OT)