After losing the season opener against Fall Mountain, the Hillsboro-Deering girls’ soccer team reeled off eight straight wins as they marched toward Tuesday’s rematch with the Wildcats.
H-D scored first on their home turf Tuesday and held that lead until only three minutes remained on the clock. But the Hillcats couldn’t make it stand and wound up losing in overtime, 2-1, to undefeated Fall Mountain (9-0).
The loss hurt, but that doesn’t mean the H-D girls won’t try again.
“The girls kept their heads up, they’re okay,” Hillsboro-Deering Coach Susan Else said. “They just want revenge. They said they’ll see them again. They want to see them in the playoffs. They were upset, but they just want another chance to go at it.”
The Hillcats (8-2) started slow, but they kept things scoreless in the first half and eventually found their groove.
“They were coming at us pretty strong in the first half, but I do think we’re a team that takes a while to get going, sometimes it takes the whole first half to really start to play well or to put our game on the field,” Else said. “But we got there before the end of the first half and it really started to even out about 20 minutes into the game. I think we possess the ball with the passing game better than they do, but they’re so quick and they make nice diagonal runs.”
The first goal came off a cross from H-D junior Mara Grady 10 minutes into the second half. The ball was headed for the far post but deflected off a Fall Mountain defender and went in for an own goal and 1-0 lead for the Hillcats.
One goal seemed like it would be enough given the way H-D keeper Melissa Veitch (10 saves) was playing.
“She played the best game I’ve seen her play,” Else said. “She made some great saves and she was really vocal, too.”
But there was little Veitch could do on a long-range shot that slid in beneath the crossbar in the 77th minute. The overtime goal can’t really be put on Veitch, either, as an H-D defender missed a clearance chance on a shot that never should have reached the keeper.
Hillsboro-Deering was powered, as usual, by Bridgette Winters and Izabella Warren. Kiersten Clough also played a good game on the outside and Emily Wightman made an impact at stopper, a position that’s relatively new for her.
The Hillcats were 10-0 at this point last year, and took that undefeated record with them into the postseason, where they lost in the semifinals. Of course they would like to have a win against Fall Mountain this year, but regular-season losses aren’t always the worst thing.
“It’s less pressure this year,” Else said. “As the season went on last year dealing with being undefeated was a lot of mental pressure, especially going into the playoffs.”
GIRLS’ SOCCER
Bedford 5, Concord 1
Key players: Concord – Grace Devanny (goal), Jess Nelson (assist), Ellie Pope (assist)
Highlights/key moments: Bedford opened the scoring on a first-half penalty kick and then added two late first-half goal to take a 3-0 lead into the break. Concord responded with Devanny’s goal early in the second half, but as the Crimson Tide tried to press for another, Bedford scored on the counter.
Coach’s quote: “Concord showed great resiliency, but Bedford is a talented team. They’re 8-1 for a reason.” – Concord’s Jeremy DuClos
Records: Concord 6-3; Bedford 8-1
John Stark 5, Sanborn 0
Key players: John Stark – Brooke Shatney (3 goals), Morgan Hawkes (goal), Lexi Knapton (goal), Meg Blanchette (assist, defense), Cara Easter (midfield, assist), Aria Ulmer (assist), Jocelyn Dimond (defense), Abby Brandt (defense)
Coach’s quote: “The Lady Generals controlled play despite the physical play of Sanborn. Hawkes put pressure on Sanborn’s defense creating many offensive opportunities. Defensively, the Generals remain solid under the command of Blanchette.” – John Stark’s Heather Doucette
Records: John Stark 9-0; Sanborn 2-7
ConVal 5, MV 1
Key players: Merrimack Valley – Asia Grace Hanson (goal), Asia Hazeltine (assist)
Coach’s quote: “Generating offense has been a struggle all year for us, but bringing pressure and intensity early can help set the tone.” – Merrimack Valley’s Jeff Richard
Records: Merrimack Valley 1-8-1; ConVal 2-8
Bow 1, Hollis-Brookline 0
Key players: Bow – Lauren Goyette (game-winning goal), Crista Alfano (assist), Bridget Ehrenberg (shutout), Elin Warwick (defense), Taylor Burnham (defense), Emma Gagne (defense)
0Highlights/key moments: Alfano played a great cross that Goyette ran onto and headed past the Hollis-Brookline keeper 11 minutes into the second half. Alfano also did her job protecting the post on a corner kick late in the second half, saving a goal from going in.
Coach’s quote: “It was kind of a flat first half with Hollis-Brookline having the better of the play. At halftime, we talked about what changes needed to be made and the girls executed the changes. This was a good win against a well-coached and talented team.” – Bow’s Jay Vogt
Records: Bow 7-3; Hollis-Brookline 7-2
Bishop Brady 2, Somersworth 0
Key players: Emily Santis (strong defense), Maddie Boyer (goal), Gwen Tupman (goal)
Coach’s quote: “The girls played well today and controlled most of the game with possession. The first half was back-and-forth, but we held strong and didn’t have any mental lapses. We had chances to score in the first and didn’t put them away. The second half we controlled play from start to finish and put our shots away.” – Bishop Brady’s Andrew Mattarazzo
Records: Bishop Brady 2-6; Somersworth 2-7
Hopkinton 1, Raymond 0
Key players: Lilias Whitehead (goal), Amelia Bassett (11 saves), Caitlin Ball (defense), Megan Ellsworth (defense), Grace Clark (defense), Aaliyah Curley, Belle Sullivan
Highlights/key moments: Hopkinton’s Ellie Morrall started the scoring sequence with strong possession and a pass that sent Whitehead into the Raymond end. Whitehead then took on a defender and calmly beat the keeper to put the Hawks on top in the 73rd minute.
Coach’s quote: “The Hawks stepped up in the second half to give a good showing to balls in the air, possession game and consistent shots.” – Hopkinton’s Lauri Izzi
Records: Hopkinton 7-2; Raymond 6-3
Bedford 1, Concord 0
Key players: Concord – Liam Devanny (7 saves), Liam Bennett (defense), Cole Gorham (defense), Taylor Silvertein (midfield), Ngongo Mungeta (midfield), Adam Bryant (midfield)
Highlights/key moments: The Tide controlled the first half, held a 20-10 advantage in shots and created plenty of scoring chances, but it was Bedford the netted the game’s only goal with just nine minutes left on the clock.
Coach’s quote: “It was a great game and we played very well, we just didn’t finish the opportunities we created. Bedford is a tough side, they’ve only given up one goal all season, but we definitely showed we can create the chances needed to beat them.” – Concord’s Scott Dunlop
Records: Concord 7-2; Bedford 8-1
Pembroke 5, Kennett 1
Key players: Pembroke – Glen Dion (2 goals), Max Putnam (two assists), Cole Sporcic (goal), Jaydon Anderson (goal), Patrick Chase (goal), Ben Mehegan (assist)
Highlights/key moments: Dion and Putnam teamed up for the first two goals as the Spartans won at home.
Records: Pembroke 9-1; Kennett 1-9
Coe-Brown 5, Plymouth 1
Key players: Coe-Brown – Noah Wojtkowski (3 assists), Alex Gray (2 goals), Mitchell Wade (goal), Ryan Whitcher (goal), Tanner Bane (goal), Bean Healey (midfield)
Highlights/key moments: After losing a two-goal lead in their last game, a 3-2 loss to Bow, the Bears worried for a moment if the same would happen against Plymouth after the Bobcats cut Coe-Brown’s two-goal lead in half just before halftime. But the Bears controlled the second half for the win at home.
Records: Coe-Brown 5-4-1; Plymouth 3-6-1
Kearsarge 0, Milford 0, OT
Key players: Kearsarge – Levi Wilson (shutout in net), Bo Underhill (defense), Elijah Westerberg (defense), Sam Lick (defense), David Willis (defense), Brandon Bullis (defense)
Highlights/key moments: It was the second straight shutout for Wilson and the Cougars, who extended a three-game unbeaten streak after starting the season with sixth straight losses.
Coach’s quote: “It was a hard-fought 100 minutes of soccer. I was happy to walk away with (the tie).” – Kearsarge’s Matt Burch
Records: Kearsarge 1-6-2; Milford 2-6-1
Bow 5, Hollis-Brookline 1
Key players: Bow – J.P. Merchan (goal), Chris Gallier (goal, two assists), Will Russo (goal), Bryce Northrup (goal), Max Elsasser (goal), Chase Chamberlin (defense), Aidan Koornneef (defense)
Highlights/key moments: The Falcons scored three goals in a 10-minute span during the first half and the Cavaliers couldn’t recover.
Coach’s quote: “Great team effort across the board. We must continue to work on the little things that will pay dividends down the road. We can’t get ahead of ourselves. There is still a lot of work to do.” – Bow’s George Pinkham
Records: Bow 6-4; Hollis-Brookline 2-7
ConVal 5, MV 3
Key players: Merrimack Valley – Chase Mercier (goal, assist), James Shattuck (assist), Caleb Willett (goal), Logan Cassin (goal), Herman Nixon (defense)
Highlights/key moments: The Pride scored first, but first-place ConVal tied things before halftime, took the lead early in the second half and held off a late push from MV.
Coach’s quote: “When we show up to play we can play with any team in Division II. Tonight was an example of this. We controlled the first half and moved the ball around well.” – MV’s Ken Fuller
Records: Merrimack Valley 1-8; ConVal 9-1
Belmont 1, Newfound 0
Key players: Belmont – Logan Wilder (goal), Ryan Gelinaas (assist), Jonny LeClair (4 saves), Zach Ennis (midfield), Doug Price (midfield)
Highlights/key moments: Belmont’s goal came in the 68th minute after Gelinas ficked a header across the box that Wilder headed home.
Records: Belmont 8-1; Newfound 4-5
Derryfield 5, Hopkinton 1
Key players: Hopkinton – Tucker Windhurst (effort at center back), Max Rossignol (goal), tim Meserve (5 saves)
Highlights/key moments: Derryfield’s Jeff Pratt scored a natural hat trick before Rossignol got Hopkinton on the board in the 51st minute.
Coach’s quote: “The Hawks took one on the chin the afternoon, as we got outworked for most of the game and lost in truly ugly fashion.” – Hopkinton’s Scott Zipke
Records: Hopkinton 7-2; Derryfield 9-1
Coe-Brown first
Key players:Coe-Brown – Joel Boulanger (33, medalist), Dylan Andrews (37), Derek Elwell (43), Shane Fillion (44), Max Begin (45); Brady – Nick Grimbilas (40), Maddy Smith (41); Pembroke – David Hammond (43), Steve Cavanaugh (44)
Highlights/key moments: Boulanger picked up medalist honors for the sixth time this season, helping the Bears (202 points) beat out Bisho pBrady (213) and Pembroke (232).
Coach’s quote: “It was the lowest we’ve shot all year. So it was a pretty good day for us.” – Coe-Brown’s Tim Tenasco
Records: Coe-Brown 14-7; Brady 12-9; Pembroke 6-17
Kearsarge second
Key players: Kearsarge – Jake Bears (44), Sean Higgins (44), Will Chadwick (45), Solomon Neuwirt (53)
Highlights/key moments: Kearsarge carded a 186 to beat Plymouth (197) and fall to Derryfield (172).
Records: Kearsarge 16-6; Derryfield 20-1; Plymouth 11-7
John Stark third
Highlights/key moments: the Generals shot a 229 to finish behind Windham (193) and St. Thomas (210). Windham’s James McKee was the medallist with a 32.
Records: John Stark 2-20; Windham 21-0; St. Thomas 9-12
Belmont third
Key players: Belmont – Will Robarge (43)
Highlights/key moments: Robarge tied for medallist honors as Belmont finished with 188 to beat out Laconia (200) but lose to Campbell (173).
Coach’s quote: “As a team we played better than our average scoring this year, which is reason for optimism. Robarge, a freshman, played great and earned a share of his first high school medallist honors.” Belmont’s Kevin Charleston
Records: Belmont 8-16; Laconia 2-17; Campbell 11-11
Concord first
Key players: Concord – Jamie Wilkes (1st, 16:28), Forest Mackenzie (2nd, 16:40), Ryan Devine (4th, 16:56), Ollie Spencer (5th, 16:59), Alex Duncan (6th, 17:09, David Cook (7th, 17:16), Matt O’Brien (9th 17:26)
Highlights/key moments: The Crimson Tide scored 18 points to beat out Merrimack (58) and Bedford (66).
Coach’s quote: “Strong performance from all the boys today as we continue to build towards our big targets for the end to the season.” – Concord’s Tristan Black-Ingersoll
Concord first
Key players: Concord – Cassie Shea (1st, 19:50), Jennika Mannesto (3rd, 20:19), Molly Bragg (21:02), Gabby Czrerula (21:21), Sarah Zarakotas (22:05)
Highlights/key moments: The Tide finished with 26 points to edge out Bedford (32) and Merrimack (100). Heather Deacon and Brinkley Brown also ran well for Concord.
Winnisquam 1, Mascenic 0
Key players: Winnisquam – Cailey Clogston (goal), Makenzie Snow (assist)
Highlights/key moments: Clogston scored at 3:49 of the first half for the game’s only goal.
Records: Winnisquam 5-4; Mascenic 5-3