WATERVILLE — Winslow boys soccer coach Aaron Wolfe had a young trio at forward coming into this season. But he also knew he had talent in that group as well.
As for how talented, Landen Gillis, Andrew Poulin and Thorn Dubois gave an indication Tuesday afternoon.
The Black Raiders’ forwards generated all four goals as Winslow scored a dramatic 4-3 victory over rival Waterville at Webber Field.
Gillis scored three goals and had an assist, Dubois had a goal and Poulin had two assists. It was an impressive scoring punch — and, as the afternoon proved, an essential one.
“We have a strong group up there, so I expect, most games, they’re going to generate a lot of opportunities,” said Wolfe, whose team improved to 2-0-1. “We kind of go through them a lot. They create a lot of opportunities for themselves, but sometimes other players too.”
Gillis said the forwards — himself on the left, with Dubois in the middle and Poulin on the right — have gained a feel for each other’s play on the field.
“(Thorn) has really excelled in his game,” he said, “… and Andrew, he’s one of the best I’ve seen, so I think we’re really good up there.”
The three led attacks on the Waterville (0-2-0) net all game long, but these aren’t battle-tested seniors. Gillis and Dubois are juniors, and Poulin is a sophomore. They’re still on the rise, and Wolfe said he’s seen improvement from all three in the young season.
“They’ve gotten better, every year,” he said. “There are still things I think they can improve on, and they know that. But I’ve definitely seen improvement the first three games from what I saw last year.”
Gillis said he’s seen the progression as well.
“Physicality, speed, all of us have gotten faster, all of us have gotten stronger,” he said. “Size, Thorn’s gotten a lot bigger, so has Andrew. And our chemistry, it’s all melding together.”
Poulin said he feels more acclimated to the varsity pace in his second year with the team.
Winslow defender Landen Gillis, left, tries to gain possession from Waterville’s Jay Brock during a game Tuesday at Webber Field in Waterville. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal Buy this Photo
“I play a lot quicker,” he said. “Junior high is kind of slow, in high school you need to play the ball quicker and know when to make your runs. I built my stamina up, and have been able to play a longer time out on the field.”
It was all on display Tuesday, first when Poulin won a battle for the ball in the right corner, and then sent a cross that Gillis was able to finish for a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute. The two combined again for a score in the 35th minute when Poulin sent the ball in toward the net and Gillis outran the Waterville keeper to the ball and bumped it into the goal with his body.
“Me and Andrew can match each other in our speed pretty well,” Gillis said. “He takes it down the line, I draw the defenders with me until he gets to the corner, and then the defenders want to crash on him. That’s when he sends the ball over, and I’m wide open.”
Waterville struck first in the second half on the first of three goals by Kaden Works, making it 2-1, but Winslow’s forwards answered. It was just over a minute later that Dubois raced in to follow up a save on a Gillis shot and make it 3-1, and it was a little more than three minutes after that that Winslow fired a shot off the crossbar, but Gillis swooped in to kick home the loose ball for a 4-1 lead.
The goals proved crucial when the Purple Panthers ramped up the attack. Works scored his second goal less than a minute after Gillis’ third, making it 4-2 in the 47th minute, and he scored again in the 65th minute to narrow the gap to one.
That was as close as Waterville got, however, as Winslow turned away chances at the equalizer.
“It was a really good effort in the final 20,” Waterville coach Kerry Serdjenian said. “A little late, maybe. There were some moments, there were some flashes where I saw what we’ve been practicing, where we put some passes together to feet and moved the ball well.”
It was too big a hole to escape, and Wolfe is hoping his forwards can do that to more opponents. And with all three returning next fall, there’s the hope they’ll eventually be able to make that kind of difference in the playoffs as well.
“It’s definitely good to know that,” Gillis said. “I think this year’s a great year to set ourselves up for a real deep run in the playoffs next year.”
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