Sunday night’s game against Westchester SC had it all. An end to Portland’s winless streak, a world class save, and rainbows like this that shined its uncommon light on the game at Fitzpatrick Stadium. Photo by George Watson/The Hearts’ Beat
PORTLAND, Maine — The Portland Hearts of Pine hadn’t won a game in two months. They gave away a road match against the USL League One’s first place team last week in an unimaginable way. And the Hearts had just let Sunday night’s opponent back into the match by losing another 1-0 lead.
From a writer’s perspective, this game was writing itself, again. Portland had given up seven leads this season and won none of them. The term “beleaguered” would have fit perfectly for describing the players, or Coach Bobby Murphy, or the front office, or the fans.
But then some unexpected things happened. They were the sort of moments that Portland had enjoyed time and again last year in its exhilarating run to the playoff semifinals, but which had eluded the Hearts since the 2026 home opener, when the team's star midfielder Masashi Wada wrecked his knee and was lost for the season.
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Before anyone could really believe it, Portland had won the game 2-1 over Westchester SC, registering its first victory since early July.
Here’s what we saw:
Portland had just surrendered the game-tying goal to Westchester in the 66th minute. The Hearts’ opponent had been pressing hard throughout the second half after a fairly even first 45 minutes.
Suddenly, a brouhaha erupted near midfield after a hard Westchester foul. It wasn’t a brawl. But there was definitely some roughness to it as shoves were exchanged and the ball was knocked out of someone’s hands. The officials eventually got everyone under control and one yellow card apiece was issued to a player from both sides.
That’s when it all changed. Portland became focused. Westchester stayed mad.
Over the ensuing four minutes, Westchester players committed a pair of fouls that earned them yellow cards while the Hearts’ offense came to life. Jay Tee Kamara, the diminutive playmaker who had entered the game around the same time as the scrum, sliced through Westchester’s defense and made a bold pass to teammate Aboubacar Camara.
Camara took one touch to receive the ball. The defender was giving him too much space and time so he nudged it slightly forward and then ripped it off the goalkeeper who had dived to his right and got his gloves on the ball but failed to make the save.
“Every time he cuts in, I know (Kamara) is looking for me,” Camara said. “Jay Tee, man. What a player. One-v-one, no one can stop him.”
The goal gave Camara seven on the season, tying him for the team lead with Diego Gonzalez, who notched his score in the 11th minute off a penalty kick (thanks to a timely run and crossing pass from Matteo Kidd that led to a hand ball in the box).
Portland had the lead. Its offense had done the job. Now it was up to …
… the defense, which just happened to play its best game in a while.
Players marked their man tighter. Opponents didn’t get to carry the ball deep into Portland’s defensive shape without being challenged. More balls than usual were won in the air inside the Hearts’ own 18.
While Westchester took 21 shots in the game, only seven made it on target, often because Portland’s defense forced longer-range shots. When the shots were closer, the Hearts’ players typically blocked them.
None were bigger than when Serigne Faye placed himself directly in the way of a shot on an open goal after goalkeeper Hunter Morse had just made a save. The Westchester player had an open net until Faye got in the way and took the rocketed ball directly off his chest.
“They are always there for me,” Morse said of his defenders before mentioning Faye’s play. “I just love the heart to take one off the chest and not be afraid of getting hurt.”
Morse was also there for his teammates late in the match, and in doing so, made a save for the ages.
Early in the six minutes of extra time (the groan from the fans at the announced time may still be echoing through Casco Bay), Westchester’s Koen Blommestijn found himself alone in front of the goal and one-timed a blast seemingly sure to be knotting up the match.
Morse moved from his left to his right and, as the shot was about to be struck, dove and made his body as big as possible. At the last possible moment, hanging in the air, Morse shot out his left foot and miraculously blocked a ball that was behind him.
In the moments after the game’s conclusion, USL League One had already posted a photo on Instagram and asked, “Best Save in USL League One history?”
Morse chuckled and said he’d leave that to others to decide.
“The ball got played across and I had to kind of go desperation (mode) because I’m sprinting across my goal,” Morse said. “I threw my leg out and somehow I got it.”
It was the sort of athletic feat that fan bases in other sports might give it a name like “The Save” if the Hearts were threatening to at least make the playoffs. And while the Hearts are seven points back of eighth place after the victory with seven games to play, that takes nothing away from what was an extraordinary effort by Morse.
His teammates were in awe at what they saw.
“That’s probably the best save I have seen since I started playing,” Camara said. “I don’t even know how he stopped that … (but) he has been saving us all year.”
Late in the game, Hearts’ goalkeeper Hunter Morse made sure to hold onto the lead for the 2-1 victory Sunday at Fitzpatrick Stadium. Photo by George Watson/The Hearts’ Beat
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The groan still echoing across Casco Bay 😂😂😂