TOPSHAM — Mt. Ararat coach Kelly LaFountain talked about defending the far goal in the first half if her Eagles field hockey team won the coin toss.

With rain drenching the field by the second, and the goal area becoming as slippery as an ice hockey rink, the Eagles decided to shoot toward the “muddy” end first.

The strategy nearly backfired.

Edward Little cut Mt. Ararat’s two-goal lead in half with 10:05 remaining in regulation, and had several chances to tie things up. But the Eagles held on for 2-1 victory in KVAC action Thursday.

Mt. Ararat’s third consecutive win gives the Eagles an 8-4 record in a battle with Lewiston for home field advantage in the Eastern Maine Class A quarterfinals. Mt. Ararat is currently fourth in the Heal Point standings, with the Blue Devils close behind in fifth.

“Did I make the right call?” LaFountain said after the game. “I figured I would allow my goaltender (Taylor Pare) to be comfortable and make the choice, and she wanted to defend the dryer half first, so we went with it.”

Down 2-0, Samantha Goulette’s shot deflected off a Mt. Ararat defender and past a crossed-up Pare, who did the splits and fell to the ground while attempting to get back to the near post, her second tumble of the second half.

With 3:48 remaining, LaFountain called timeout.

“Our plan was to keep the ball out of the circle, but Edward Little is a good team and they can have a good day or an off day, and they showed up and played hard,” LaFountain said of the Eddies, who visit rival Lewiston on Monday. “When you look at the standings, teams three through 14 are really one goal away in most games. In this kind of weather, everyone was really even.”

Edward Little had two solid chances to tie things, with Goulette’s bid stopped by Pare and a shot by Taylor Berube just wide of the target.

“I was extremely pleased that they came to play because it is hard when you’re losing to maintain that intensity,” said Edward Little coach Greg Perkins, whose Eddies are 2-10-1. “We gave them everything that they wanted. It was a close game, and a couple of breaks, it could have been an overtime game.

“We talked about taking this momentum to that last game against our rival. We know we’re not going to make the playoffs, but we want to go out and play like we can in that last game.”

Eagles on top

Both teams sprinted end-to-end in the early going. EL goaltender Amanda Williams made 11 stops, while Pare turned aside five in the first half.

The Eagles cashed in on their best opportunity. Carly Raymond sent a pass through the circle to a waiting Charlotte Crosby, who tipped a shot underneath a diving Williams for a 1-0 lead with 7:53 remaining until halftime.

“In practice, we work on going up and around the goalie,” said Raymond. “I was looking for post and tried to get Edward Little mixed up, and Charlotte put the ball in.”

Williams came up big on a drive by Crosby seconds into the second half, and moments later stopped Micaela Mitchell on a breakaway to keep the Eddies down one goal.

Mt. Ararat’s next transition proved to be the difference in this one. Mallory Nelson sent a long pass to sprinting Caitlin LaFountain, who one-timed a rocket into the cage to double the Eagles’ lead with 17:57 remaining.

But, the Eddies were not done. 

After Williams stopped Raymond from point-blank range, EL converted its fifth penalty corner into a goal.

“Before the penalty corner (teammate) Hannah (Johnston) told me to take the shot and I went with it,” said Goulette. “We played with a lot of intensity and it was a good fight. We came to play this game unlike any game we have played this season. Knowing we can compete with such a good team, we feel we have a chance against Lewiston.”

Williams finished with 21 saves on 23 Mt. Ararat shots, while Pare turned aside eight on nine EL attempts. The Eagles held a 12-5 advantage in penalty corners.

“This team is confident, but not over-confident, knowing they can play with everyone,” said coach LaFountain, whose Eagles visit Bangor on Friday before concluding the regular season Tuesday at home against rival Brunswick. “We want to be playing our best field hockey as we begin the playoffs, so we are looking to finish well.”