WEARE – It was smooth sailing for the John Stark High School girls’ soccer team in the early stages of the season. A 9-0 start in Division II had the Generals dreaming of a No. 1 seed, but up-and-down play over the last few weeks left Stark with three losses in its last five games. Coach Heather Doucette was hoping Monday offered a chance for her team to get back on track.
She was right.
Playing in front of their home crowd for their senior game, the Generals quickly piled up four first-half goals and held Pembroke Academy scoreless in the final 40 minutes en route to a tidy, 6-1, victory in Weare.
“I think we struggled over the last couple of weeks, we had some tough games against Goffstown and Milford gave us a hard time,” Doucette said. “Being able to come in here and play solid I think was really important for us. We’re getting some of our injured players back and to see some of the kids finding their groove was really nice.”
The victory lifted Stark’s record to 12-3 with one game left and was a perfect sendoff for the eight seniors in their final regular season home game as they prepare for the tournament.
“I thought we moved the ball really well and that was definitely one of our better games,” senior midfielder Jocelyn Dimond said. “I would say we’re confident, but we don’t want to go in too confident because that’s definitely hurt us before in the past.”
The Generals didn’t waste time getting their attack working as Cara Easter opened the scoring in the third minute, launching a shot from 25 yards out for the 1-0 advantage. A few minutes later, senior Morgan Hawkes doubled the lead with a goal off an assist from Brooke Shatney.
In total, Stark received six goals from six different players, a recipe for success according to Doucette.
“We play together as a family and play together as a group so we don’t rely on just one person to do anything whether it be defending or on our attack,” Doucette said. “So yeah, we like to spread it out a little bit.
Despite the sudden 2-0 deficit in the outset of the contest, Pembroke answered with a goal of its own, a strike from Emilee Harlow to make it a one-score game. The offense, though, fell flat after the goal as the Spartans (8-6) were handed their fourth straight loss.
“We really need to work on not coming out sleeping and that’s what we did as evident by them scoring two goals quickly,” Pembroke Coach Jess Croft said. “I was concerned, but the girls didn’t hang their heads. They came back and got us back in the game … I just think that John Stark plays at a really, really fast pace and we were just a little frantic at times.”
Staked to a 4-1 lead at the half after goals from Hannah Marquis and Chelsea Woodsum in the 33rd and 35th minutes, respectively, Stark continued to dominate in the second.
Meg Gawthorpe increased the lead to five when she scored an unassisted goal in the 64th minute and Cadence Loos, who also notched a pair of assists, delivered an insurance tally in the final 20 minutes to round out the scoring.
Doucette viewed the game as a good test for the Generals heading into their final regular season game at Trinity on Friday. Pembroke takes on St. Thomas Aquinas today.
“They got great coaching and they are a great team,” Doucette said. “I love (Kayla Paquin), she’s just such a competitor and we came in here expecting a really, really tough game and I think they gave it to us, they never gave up.”
(Jay McAree can be reached at 369-3340, jmcaree@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @JayMcAree.)
Merrimack Valley 3, Plymouth 2
Key players: MV – Caleb Willett (3 goals), Dillon Arrant (assist), Owen Fuller (manager)
Highlights/key moments: MV trailed by one with 20 minutes left and Willett buried the equalizer and the game-winner with minutes to go.
Coach’s quote: “Under the lights on senior night, it was clear that we came to play … This group has a great deal of talent and we have shown that over the past two weeks.” – MV’s Ken Fuller
Records: MV 2-11-2; Plymouth 3-10-2
Kennett 1, Bow 0
Highlights/key moments: The Falcons have now lost back-to-back games for the first time since Sept. 2.
Coach’s quote: “This game has to be one of the most frustrating games that I have coached and I have been coaching since the dinosaur’s ruled the earth.” – Bow’s George Pinkham
Records: Bow 8-7; Kennett 4-10-1
Laconia 3, Plymouth 1
Key players: Laconia – Abby Crowell (ace, 8 kills, 29 digs), Rylee Littlefield (2 kills, 3 digs, 30 assists), Allyssa Miner (3 aces, 2 kills, 6 digs)
Highlights/key moments: The Sachems started slow and lost their first game, 25-20, but bounced back in the next three games, 25-17, 25-21, 26-24. Crowell, Littlefield and Miner contributed strong play in their final home game on Senior Night.
Records: Laconia 8-5; Plymouth 7-7
Concord 3, Pinkerton 0
Key players: Concord – Caitlyn Shea (24 assists, 7 digs), Lauren Hatch (12 kills, 4 blocks), Maria Wimpey (9 kills, 7 aces)
Highlights/key moments: Wimpey was in great form for the Tide and Pinkerton had no answers for her attacks out of the right side nor her aggressive serves.
Coach’s quote: “Tonight was a strong showing for our team (before we play) Spaulding this Wednesday at home. They are second in the state and it should be a great match.” – Concord’s Jonathan Flower
Records: Concord 15-1; Pinkerton 7-10
Nute 3, Inter-Lakes 1
Key players: Inter-Lakes – Emma Wheeler (8 aces, 5 kills), Jessalyn Brown (17 assists, 9 digs), Hailey Hart (4 kills)
Highlights/key moments: Wheeler, a freshman middle hitter, was strong with her serves but it wasn’t enough to beat undefeated Nute.
Records: Nute 15-0; Inter-Lakes 11-3
Belmont 3, Trinity 1
Key players: Belmont – Emily LaFlam (31 assists, 4 aces, 3 digs), Shannon Davies (8 kills, 4 aces), Jordan Lavalle (13 kills, 2 aces, 5 digs)
Highlights/key moments: After getting ahead, 1-0, Belmont gave up its next game in a close 25-23 set but recovered to close the match in sets three and four.
Records: Belmont 9-5; Trinity 4-9
John Stark 3, Hanover 1
Key players: Stark – Cassidy Gilman (13 kills, 5 digs), Sarah Wagner (5 kills, 3 blocks), Nicole Yelle (20 assists, 5 aces)
Highlights/key moments: The two sides battled in a tightly played match before Stark caught fire in the fourth and final set.
Coach’s quote: “We didn’t play to our ability most of the match until the fourth set. It is a great win over a tough and scrappy team.” – Stark’s Jeff McClellan
Records: Stark 11-3; Hanover 4-10
Winnisquam 3, Stevens 0
Key players: Winnisquam – Aubrey St. Onge (8 aces, 6 assists, 5 digs), Rebekah Persson (7 aces), Talia DeBlasie (10 assists, 7 aces), Shannon Goodwin (7 kills, 4 aces)
Highlights/key moments: The Bears used 31 aces to down Stevens in straight sets.
Coach’s quote: “Stevens put forth a great effort but they really struggled with serve receive and our servers took advantage of that.” – Winnisquam’s Mike Livernois
Records: Winnisquam 14-1; Stevens 0-15
Coe-Brown 3, Oyster River 0
Key players: Coe-Brown – Amaya Newport (9 kills), Kerry Riley (8 kills, 12 digs), Emma Dubois (7 kills), Shannon Riley (32 assists), Molly Swansberg (21 digs)
Highlights/key moments: All three of the matches were decided by two points.
Coach’s quote: “I think we played strong defense which helped us play consistent.” – Coe-Brown’s Rick Veno
Records: Coe-Brown 9-5; Oyster River 8-6
Farmington 3, Franklin 0
Key players: Franklin – Brianna Judkins (3 kills), Lexy Lynch (3 kills, block), Sarah Sorette (6 digs)
Coach’s quote: “The girls played hard tonight. Communication breakdowns really hurt us on the court.” – Franklin’s Stephanie Shepard
Records: Farmington 11-3; Franklin 2-12