TURNER – It’s not often a goalkeeper can say she affected the outcome of a game on the offensive side of the ball.

Leavitt Area High School’s Kat Rothe did that in Saturday’s soccer season-opener, though. She made a spectacular save on Lewiston’s Kaitlyn Pike in the 25th minute, giving her team the mental boost it needed.

Ashley Naylor and Erin Page scored goals less than three minutes apart, both coming within five minutes of Rothe’s save, and the Hornets held on as Lewiston attempted a furious comeback to upend the Blue Devils 2-0.

The save, one of nine Rothe had to make, was an immediate pick-me-up for her offense.

“Katherine has made some huge saves in the preseason,, and she really is one of our driving forces,” said Cifelli. “She can never win the game, but she can definitely keep us in the game with those saves.”

“It gave us such a pump,” said Page. “It gave us so much energy.”

On the other end, Naylor scored on a hustle play, beating Lewiston defender Lea Morin and goalkeeper Katie Cobb to a ball in the box in the 27th minute.

“It came to the middle out of nowhere on a cross,” said Naylor. “I had to think about it for a while, and (Lewiston’s misplay) threw me off, but when the goalie went down, I was able to kick it around her.”

In the 30th minute, Page finished a perfect left-to-right, field-wide feed from Natasha Varney at the left post to make it 2-0.

“We were driving really hard, and Tash brought that ball up the side,” said Page. “I was in the right place at the right time for that one.”

The second half was no cakewalk for the Hornets, though.

“By no stretch of the imagination is any Lewiston team ever dead,” said Cifelli. “It’s like a horror movie in a way. Until the credits roll, Lewiston isn’t done.”

A rejuvenated Lewiston team spent much of the second half on the Hornets’ side of the field. Among the 10 shots the Blue Devils launched in the final frame, two caught iron and four sailed wide. The rest fell into Rothe’s clutches.

“I thought we held possession of the game well,” said Lewiston coach Rick Meyers. “I think we just had trouble finishing, and they definitely capitalized on their chances.”

The Leavitt win was the first for the Hornets in at least four years, and Cifelli said he thought it might be the program’s first win for the girls over Lewiston since the Hornets started competing in Class A.

Both teams will be back in action Tuesday. Lewiston hosts Gardiner in the afternoon, while Leavitt visits Edward Little.