The Boothbay and Oceanside lacrosse teams entered a May 9 contest with identical 4-1 records, but the Seahawks couldn’t match the Mariners’ intensity and lost, 11-4, at Sherman Field. Oceanside scored five times in the first 16 minutes, taking a 5-1 lead. The Mariners’ quick, sharp passing and aggressive defense never really gave Boothbay any hope during the contest.

Oceanside opened the scoring with a goal in the first two minutes. Boothbay countered with its own when Jackie McLoon scored at the seven minutes and 35 seconds mark. But McLoon’s goal was only a bump in the road for Oceanside. The Mariners responded with four goals before Boothbay’s Kate Friant scored the first of her two goals with six minutes and 43 seconds remaining in the half.

The half ended with Oceanside leading 6-2. But the intermission didn’t improve Boothbay’s prospects. The Seahawks were held scoreless for 18 minutes and 43 seconds of the second half before Friant scored again, trimming Oceanside’s lead to 8-3. The Mariners scored three consecutive goals, building an 11-3 lead until Boothbay’s Lincoln Hamblett capped the scoring with 9.7 seconds remaining.

Oceanside is now 5-1 in third place in the Class B North Heal point standings. Boothbay falls to 4-2 and is in fourth place.

Boothbay entered the game with a four-game winning streak. The Seahawks used a quick striking offense and aggressive defense in winning four of their first five games. Boothbay has used a zone defense and strong communication in thwarting opposing offenses this season. But on May 9, it was Oceanside’s aggressive and tenacious play which controlled play.

“By far, they’re the most aggressive team we’ve faced,” said defender Lexi Welch. “They have a fast and talented offense and we struggled to match their intensity today.”

Boothbay’s defense has shown a marked improvement over last year. The Seahawks have a solid nucleus of veterans in the midfield and defensive zone. But their positioning and team communication broke down too many times against Oceanside, forcing them to abandon their zone defense in favor of a man-to-man.

“We did a good job yesterday (Boothbay defeated Lincoln Academy 11-1 on May 8), but today everything seem to break down,” said Boothbay goalkeeper Page Brown. “They move the ball around very well and we didn’t adjust to their cutters.”

Brown made 12 saves on 22 Oceanside shots.

Boothbay’s next game is at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 13 versus Noble High School of Berwick at Sherman Field.