LISBON — When the Lisbon and Wiscasset boys’ soccer teams took the pitch for Friday’s Mountain Valley Conference clash, big things were on both teams’ minds.

With the Wolverines and Greyhounds battling for a high seed in Class C South, this was a contest played with a playoff aggressiveness, with neither squad backing down an inch.

Consequently, the game turned into an even affair, and ended in a 1-1 deadlock, a tie that moved both teams up one spot in the standings as the regular season winds down.

Wiscasset, which finished its regular season with three games in four days this week, moved up to second with a 9-4-1 final mark, while Lisbon is now third after moving up a spot.

“We are mentally exhausted. It was a rough, but the boys stepped up and did all that they could do. But, a tie is better than a loss,” Wiscasset coach Chris Cossette said.

“We are all pretty worn out, and we are bruised up, but we have a week to rest up,” Wiscasset senior defenseman Kevin Lynch said.

The Greyhounds still have one more mountain to climb, visiting Telstar on Monday with revenge on the their minds. Just six days earlier, the Rebels stunned Lisbon, 2-1.

After celebrating its 10 seniors prior to Friday’s game, Lisbon came out of the gates slowly. Wiscasset took advantage when Russell Marr transitioned quickly from the midfield and fed hard-charging Max Sampson. Greyhound keeper Jonah Sautter came out quickly from his goal, but Sampson received Marr’s pass a step before Sautter arrived and rolled a shot into the vacated cage for a 1-0 Wolverines lead with 24:53 remaining until halftime.

“I thought we gave a little bit too much space, and what happens is they score,” said Lisbon coach Dan Sylvester.

“We were all amped up in warm-ups, then the delay kind of stalled us a bit,” Lisbon senior Ryley Austin said. “We have fought that all year, where we don’t get off to a good start.”

Wiscasset continued to press forward, with Sautter playing aggressive around his cage. He darted from his line to deflect a corner kick out of danger, then just beat Marr to a loose ball.

Lisbon awoke from its early-game slumber when Austin sent a perfectly-placed chip shot over Wiscasset goaltender Conlon Ranta’s hands, off the far post and into the cage for a 1-1 tie.

“I knew that we were not getting real good looks to the net, so I just tried to put one far side and kind of on net,” said Austin of his tying goal with 9:04 remaining in the first half. “Worst case, it stays in play, and best case is it goes in.”

“Ryley’s goal was one of the best goals that I have seen in a while,” added Sylvester.

“We had a lapse where we missed a mark and he put a beautiful shot in,” said Cossette.

At the half, shots (7-6) and corner kicks (2-1) slightly favored the Greyhounds, with Sautter making four saves and Ranta turning three Lisbon chances away.

“We saw two teams in playoff mode with a lot of intensity. I thought both teams put everything on the line today,” said Lisbon coach Dan Sylvester.

Big save

The second half continued the even play. Austin just missed on a header and teammate Bradley Boulet had his shot stopped by Ranta.

On the other end, Sautter watched Brandon Goud’s header sail wide of the target, then twice stopped Marr from the top of the penalty area.

Lisbon had the best chance in the second frame. Austin hustled to keep a loose ball alive, freeing it from the hands of Ranta. He gathered the ball and sent a pass high to the far post, with Bryant Hall getting his head on it. But, Lynch saved the game when he headed the ball out of danger, taking away what appeared to be a sure Lisbon goal.

“I had to step in and do what I could to keep the ball out of the goal,” said Lynch of his defensive play.

Through 80 minutes, Wiscasset held a 13-12 shot advantage. In overtime, the Greyhounds produced a two chances, but Ranta, who had eight saves, stopped them both.

“Lisbon did a great job marking up,” said Cossette. “We had plenty of our own opportunities, we just didn’t put enough in.”

Lisbon held a 7-1 edge in corner kicks, with Sautter making nine saves.

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