PORTLAND — Yarmouth stayed close early, but Cape Elizabeth had just enough firepower and a stifling defense to make sure that “close” was all that Yarmouth achieved.

Griffin Thoreck netted a pair of goals and the Cape Elizabeth defense held Yarmouth scoreless for a span of 34:16 through the middle of the game as the Capers rolled to a 6-3 win over the Clippers in the Class B state championship game Saturday at Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland.

The Capers capped a 15-0 season and earned back-to-back state crowns, making it three in five years and nine since 1998, when the Maine Principals’ Association first started sanctioning the sport.

Yarmouth took the lead early Saturday when Brendan Dioli found the cage in the opening quarter. Owen Thoreck evened things at 1-1 later in the first, which is how the stanza ended.

The Capers created space in the second. Griffin Thoreck tallied a pair of unassisted goals to push Cape’s lead to 3-1. Noah Haversat made it 4-1 before the half.

Danny Brett netted the lone third-quarter goal for either side to extend the lead to 5-1, and Jack Drinan made it 6-1 in the fourth before the Clippers found some footing.

Max Watson pulled Yarmouth within four, and Joe Oliva made it 6-3 in the final two minutes with a goal on an assist from Watson with a man advantage.

The unbeaten season for Cape is its first since 2002.

Four-OT classic as Massabesic edges Cheverus

One overtime wasn’t enough. Not even close.

Nor were two or three overtimes.

Enough was enough for Massabesic’s Karli Pike, who found the back of the net early in the fourth extra session to lift the Mustangs to a 9-8 win over Cheverus in the Class A girls’ state lacrosse final Saturday at Fitzpatrick Stadium.

The first two, three-minute overtime periods were played in their entirety, regardless if one team scored. Knotted at 6-6 at the end of regulation, the teams played through the first OT without incident.

Massabesic went ahead by two, in the second extra frame, but Cheverus rallied for two goals in the final 1:04 to again knot things up. The third OT was a sudden-victory period, but neither team managed the golden goal, pushing the game into the fourth.

The win gives the Mustangs their second Class A crown, and first since 2007. The game was also a rematch of last year’s final, which Cheverus carried, 8-7.

Cheverus’ Meredith Willard helped her team out to a 4-1 lead in the first half with three goals and a helper.

Delia Sylvain’s second knotted the game at 4-4 with 20 minutes to play, and the teams traded goals down the stretch to finish regulation tied, 6-6.