Hampden halts Bangor Uhrin goal keys surge by Broncos

BANGOR – A year ago, a momentum-changing, last-minute, first-half goal by Greely High School of Cumberland Center probably cost Hampden Academy its first state Class A boys soccer championship.

On Saturday afternoon, it was the Broncos who scored a last-minute, first-half goal to switch the momentum and set the stage for an impressive second-half performance that carried them to a 4-2 Eastern Maine Class A quarterfinal win over archrival Bangor.

The fifth-seeded Broncos improved to 12-2-1 entering a Wednesday semifinal at top seed Mount Ararat of Topsham (15-0) while the fourth-seeded Rams wound up 11-2-2.

Senior striker J Uhrin’s 22nd goal of the season tied it 2-2 with just 51 seconds left in the first half and he scored the game-winner 3:23 into the second half before fellow senior striker Martin Earley added an insurance goal, his 22nd, with a 10-yard blast just 2:24 before the final whistle.

Dylan George and JoJo Hwalek staked Bangor to a pair of one-goal leads, sandwiching a Scott Hiller goal.

Hampden Academy coach Ryan Shaw said Uhrin’s first-half goal was “huge.”

“You saw in the state game last year what a goal in the last minute does. It lifts you up or tears you apart,” said Shaw.

Uhrin said his first-half goal, from 14 yards out, “boosted our confidence” and credited Nate Brown with setting it up.

“That was probably the most beautiful ball I’ve ever had passed to me, and it came at a crucial time, too,” said Uhrin.

“I came in front of the defender and that allowed me to just turn the corner. I knew [goalie Austin Smith] was going to come out to this [short] side so I tried to go low, far side,” added Uhrin.

Uhrin used his exceptional dribbling and finishing skills to score the game-winner.

He had the ball near the end line and maneuvered past a Ram defender before beating Smith with an 8-yarder.

“I faked like I was going to shoot with my right foot, brought it back over, and shot it with my left foot,” said Uhrin. “Austin got his hands on it, but it deflected in.”

The tenacious and quicker Broncos never looked back.

They won the vast majority of 50-50 balls and prevented the Rams from generating any menacing opportunities until there were 11 minutes left.

“I told the team at halftime that the first 10 minutes of the second half would be the deciding time and it was,” said Bangor coach Adam Leach, whose Rams hadn’t allowed more than two goals in game. “Hampden played a great game. It was a bummer of a day for us to have a bad game.”

“We play uptempo for 80 minutes and wear teams down,” said standout Bronco midfielder Andre Cushing.

George opened the scoring by muscling past a defender and tucking a breakaway into the far corner for his 23rd goal.

But just 24 seconds later, Hiller equalized with a 6-yard header during a wild flurry.

Hwalek gave Bangor its second lead by taking a pass from George, breaking through the defense, and sliding a 12-yarder past HA goalie Max Silver.

Hampden outshot Bangor 23-16. Each goalie made four saves.