Abdulkarim Abdulle’s two goals early in the second half Wednesday proved to be the difference in a 2-1 win over Brunswick in the Eastern Class A regional championship.

After a pair of disappointing overtime losses in the regional final the past two years, the Blue Devils tasted victory instead.

“To sum it up in one word:  ‘Finally,'” senior defender Mike Wong said. “Finally, we brought it home. We deserved this. All our hard work the last few years, to be heartbroken just killed us. So to get this, I can’t describe it.”

Top-seeded Lewiston (16-0-1) advances to Saturday’s state championship game against Cheverus, which knocked off both second-ranked Falmouth in the quarterfinals and top-seeded Scarborough on Wednesday. The game is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Hampden Academy, but could be changed because of field conditions.

The win marks Lewiston’s first regional crown since the Devils won the Western A title in 1991 and lost in the state final to Brunswick, 2-0.

“We played into their strength in the first half,” Lewiston coach Mike McGraw said. “We opened the second half and found the openings that we needed.Then it was just a matter of scoring the goals we did.”

Abdulle scored the pair in sudden fashion, turning a scoreless game into a quick 2-0 advantage.

“We knew would couldn’t shut them out,” Brunswick coach Mark Roma, whose team tied Lewiston 2-2 in the regular season, said. “They’re a good team. Our game plan was to absorb the pressure and take control in the second half. That’s what we did at our house. It was going according to script. I told them we had to absorb the first 10 minutes after the half. They were able to sneak a couple quick ones.”

Abdulle buried a shot from the outside, putting it high and inside the left post for the 1-0 lead 5:23 into the second half.

“In the first half, Coach told me that if I got a chance, take a shot,” Abdulle said. “Their goalie was not that tall. So that’s all I had to do.”

Before the Dragons (12-3-3) could recover, Lewiston was at the doorstep again. Hassan Mohamed made a cross from the right side. Brunswick keeper Josh Dorr knocked it down, but Abdulle was there to put in the rebound at 5:50.

“We had to play a short passing game,” McGraw said. “When we played it long, they were smart enough to pick it up and put it right back at us. We also wanted to get it a little bit wider — getting the ball outside. Speedy (Mohamed) had some great threats from the outside and Maulid (Abdow) had some great threats from the outside.”

Lewiston had some prime opportunities to add to the lead but Dorr was outstanding in goal for the Dragons. Then Brunswick got a tally with 5:49 left. Keenen Welzel burst in from the left side for the goal. It was the first goal Lewiston has allowed in the playoffs.

“I think we just like the drama,” McGraw said. “There were chances where we could have put goals in. They made the save. We put it wide or were a little too late. They came down and got one nice shot, and it was in the back of the net.”

That sparked a Dragon rally, but Lewiston managed to fend off Brunswick’s comeback hopes in the final minutes. Lewiston’s back line of Wong, Ibrahim Hussein, Zakariya Abdulle and Mohamed Khalid prevented the Dragons from getting the equalizer. Keeper Austin Wing played an especially strong second half as well for Lewiston.

“Our kids have a ton of heart,” Roma said. “That’s how we came back from 2-0. We refused to give up. They believed in themselves.”

Lewiston controlled play for much of the first half, but Brunswick’s defense did a nice job blocking passes and clearing threats. The Blue Devils got a shot from Mohamed Abdislan and Hassan Mohamed but couldn’t turn their possession into a an abundance of chances.

Brunswick didn’t get its two shots in the half until the final minute. Welzel had a rush for the Dragons best chance but his attempt at a shot was broken up. Lewiston’s defense did a great job preventing Brunswick from getting much offense going.

“It’s all about playing together,” said Wong, who was celebrating his birthday Wednesday. “As we get fatigued, our talking gets less. We just have to stay mentally focused and stay strong the whole game.”

Lewiston made some adjustments and tried to create new opportunities on the offensive end. A shot from the outside and a cross from the corner led to the two quick goals and the Blue Devils lead.

“You just have to get momentum,” Wong said. “That’s what this game’s about. Once you get things going and things get rolling, things turn out great.”

Lewiston rallied to force overtime last year but lost to Hampden in overtime on the road. In 2012, the Blue Devils tied Mt. Ararat late in regulation only to lose in overtime.

“This is a big difference,” Abdulle. “We’re so happy right now.”

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