NASHUA - When Kearsarge's lacrosse season ended last year with a quarterfinal loss to Merrimack Valley, the ball happened to be in Cody Anderson's stick. The defensemen kept it as redemption motivation over the summer, but the ball was tossed when Kearsarge beat MV in the season-opener this spring.

And when the horn sounded yesterday at Stellos Stadium to mark the end of Kearsarge's 10-8 win over top-ranked Monadnock for the Division III championship, the ball was once again in Anderson's stick. While the rest of the Cougars mobbed goalie Chris Galluzzo, Anderson carried the ball to midfield by himself.

"I was just trying to take it all in. It's a once in a lifetime thing, you've got to take it in," said Anderson, a senior captain. "The crowd, my teammates, everyone so pumped up, it was just amazing."

It was the first loss of the season for the Huskies (16-1), who were making their first title game appearance. No. 3 Kearsarge (15-2) is a much more established program, having reached the finals from 2003-2006 and winning it all in '06. But this title may be a high-water mark for the program.

"This team is more complete. We didn't have to rely on one or two players as much as we did in 2006," Kearsarge Coach Herb said. "I think we're deeper, so I believe, as a team, this is the best team we've had."

The Cougars' depth, and conditioning, was pivotal in the third quarter, which proved to be the difference. After a seesaw first half where neither team led by more than one goal and there were five ties, Kearsarge held a 5-4 lead at halftime. But the Cougars felt their advantage was greater than just a goal.

"At halftime we said they were starting to get tired and our conditioning, which we do plenty of, was starting to take over," Anderson said. "And we were able to run them around, get them breathless and put some goals in."

Monadnock's Collin Hart actually scored the first goal of the half to make it 5-5 with 7:54 to play in the third. That was the only third-period goal Monadnock would score.

Kearsarge senior Stephen Patch (three goals) scored on a sweet wraparound with 4:38 to go in the third. Two minutes later senior Chaz Giles (goal, three assists) converted a pretty pass from sophomore Sam Morgan (who was critical in the first half with all three of his goals). And senior Alex Pons (two goals), who helped set up the Giles goal, finished the crucial run when he cut down the middle and one-timed a pass from Giles to make it 8-5 with 1:12 left in the third.

The Huskies were lagging because the Cougars can run all day. They were lagging because Kearsarge's 10 seniors were complemented by strong junior and sophomore classes. And they wore themselves out because they simply could not clear the ball. Monadnock goalie Tim Richmond was outstanding with 15 saves, but his team couldn't capitalize on those saves with sustained possessions.

"We usually pressure (the clear) and we decided that we were going to back off a little bit and make them complete the accurate passes," Hatch said. "We challenged their goalies and long sticks to do that, and they couldn't."

Kearsarge maintained its championship momentum to start the fourth and held a 10-6 lead with 6:09 to play after a goal from Pons, assisted by Matt Miller. Still, it wasn't over. Monadnock's Josh Guion (three goals) scored in transition with 3:03 left and then Ryan Hart (three goals) scored off a Kearsarge turnover and suddenly it was a two-goal game with 2:13 to play.

"I got a little nervous, but I knew if we just played our game, with our defense, we got it," said Kearsarge senior captain Scott Rankins (goal, assist).

Rankins faith was well-founded. The Kearsarge D - led by Anderson, Adam Severance and Dennis Horten - didn't allow another shot to reach Galluzzo, but if it had, chances are the sophomore goalie, who was a rock all game with 15 saves, would have stopped it.

Instead, three last-gasp Monadnock shots missed the cage. In the end, the ball wound up with Anderson, right where it belonged.