HOOKSETT – The Concord High boys’ hockey team drew a hard line in the Division I standings after defeating Londonderry, 7-1, at Tri-Town Ice Arena on Saturday.
At the top, it’s undefeated Bedford and the Tide, whose only loss came against the defending champion Bulldogs at the beginning of the season. Pinkerton, at 9-2, is right there at No. 3 with its only two losses coming against Concord and Bedford, though both games were decided by large margins.
Londonderry (8-4) came into Saturday’s game with the fourth-best record in the division, but as the goals mounted, the Lancers didn’t look like a team that would give Concord (11-1), or the other top-three teams in the division, too much trouble.
“When I look at them and Bedford, they’re the class of the league,” Londonderry Coach Peter Bedford said after the game. “When you’ve got that level of skill and you can have that level of confidence in your players, the game is easy. And they make it look easy. They really do.”
The teams were tied at a goal apiece after the first period, but the floodgates opened wide in the second. Concord tallied four goals and added two more in the third period.
Matthew Chorlian put the Tide on the board first, 10:45 into the game on a shot from the point assisted by Daniel LeBell and Trevor Bickford.
Chorlian’s goal arrived shortly after Londonderry’s Jack Thompson hit the post on a breakaway that would have given the Lancers an early lead.
Londonderry still had an answer and scored with 1:19 left on a goal by Troy Muldoon.
Concord took control in the second period and didn’t look back. The Tide started by capitalizing on two power plays early in the period. Drew Livingston scored his first of two goals 5:08 into the second to give Concord a 2-1 lead.
Alex Marceau scored on the Tide’s next power play chance about three minutes later for a two-goal cushion. Another 36 seconds after that, Colin Kastle (goal, assist) scored an even-strength goal for a 4-1 lead.
Coach Bedford called a timeout to adjust. Concord Coach Dunc Walsh didn’t change his plans.
“After the first period, I really think we dominated the second and third,” Walsh said. “I thought we really controlled it in their end and made some good decisions.”
Livingston said the team hit the ice with the right amount of intensity and focus.
“We all came out hard knowing it would be a good game,” he said. “I think we just outplayed them as the game went on, and then we started to pump a few in. So I think they lost their momentum there and we gained it.”
Marceau (goal, 3 assists) led Concord with four points, followed by Chorlian (goal, 2 assists), Lebell (goal, 2 assists), Andrew Cole (goal, assist), Trevor Bickford (2 assists) and Anders Norton (assist).
Livingston scored 33 seconds into the second period to give Concord a five-goal lead. Marceau carried the puck over the blue line for a two-on-one and slid a pass over to Livingston, who buried a shot low off the post and into the net.
Livingston missed four games at the beginning of the season with a back injury, but he hasn’t wasted any time getting involved in the offense as the Tide have put together 11 straight wins.
“He’s a skill guy. He’s a scorer,” Walsh said. “Having him back is huge because you give us another guy that can score. We got seven tonight, but generally you play the top teams the games are 3-2, 3-1, 2-1, not 7-5. So if you have a guy like that … he’s a weapon.”
Concord is back at Everett Arena to face Hanover on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. The Tide have six games left on the schedule before playoffs, including a road game against Pinkerton on Feb. 15.
“We’re looking forward to this stretch we have now,” Walsh said. “We’re gonna start playing some teams in the top five. So we’re happy with tonight, but we need to keep it going.”
(Nick Stoico can be reached at 369-3339, nstoico@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @NickStoico.)
Bishop Brady 7,
Manchester Memorial 2
Key players: Bishop Brady – Max Lamora (3 goals), Pat Earley (2 goals), Nate Bowler (goal), Kegan Vincent (goal)
Highlights/key moments: The Green Giants held a 1-0 lead after the first period, but broke the game open during the second, taking a 5-2 lead heading into the third. Lamora scored the only goal of the first and potted a key goal in the second, giving Brady a 4-2 lead.
Records: Bishop Brady 3-8-1; Memorial 1-11
Bow 8, Kingswood 1
Key players: Bow – Doug Champagne (2 goals, 2 assists), Ryan Tobeler (2 goals, 2 assists), Chris Mead (goal, assist), Colin Tracy (goal, 2 assists), Ben Wheeler (goal), Brendan Ulrich (goal), Ryan Tobeler (goal)
Highlights/key moments: The Falcons led 3-0 after the first period thanks to a pair of goals 18 seconds apart in the second minute of the period. Bow wrapped its scoring in the second period.
Coach’s quote: “I am happy with our start tonight and how we supported each other in the offensive zone with short passes and constant movement without the puck. We played a solid three periods and many players that don’t get to play a lot of minutes were able to get a good amount of action.” – Bow’s Tim Walsh
Records: Bow 12-1-1; Kingswood 4-7-1
Somersworth/Coe-Brown 6,
Berlin-Gorham 0
Key players: Somersworth/Coe-Brown – Casey Pridham (3 goals), Casper Marrot (shutout)
Highlights/key moments: The third-place Bearcats bounced back from a tough loss Wednesday with a shutout victory on their home ice against fourth-place Berlin-Gorham.
Records: Somersworth/Coe-Brown 10-2-1; Berlin-Gorham 9-3-0
Kearsarge-Plymouth 7,
Pembroke-Campbell 1
Key players: Kearsarge-Plymouth – Cody Rowe (24 saves), Alex Nangle (2 goals, assist), Doug Breault (goal), Tucker James (goal), Jakob Arnold (goal), Tony Velez (goal), Gordy Hoyt (goal)
Highlights/key moments: Rowe stopped 24 of the 25 shots he faced and was supported by goals from six different players as the Cats won their third straight.
Coach’s quote: “It’s good to see Cody having fun out there. He seems to have found his stride. He’s a good leader of the team and they really like to work hard for him while he’s between the pipes. Pembroke-Campbell is a good team and they are well coached. All of the players really chipped in and kept each other mentally strong all night.” – Kearsarge-Plymouth’s Dave McKenney
Records: Kearsarge-Plymouth 5-7; Pembroke-Campbell 7-5
Bishop Brady-Trinity-West 10,
Man. Central 0
Key players: Brady – Mary Anne Wiley (4 goals), Lauren Trippiedi (2 goals), Maddie Beliveau (2 goals, assist), Malena Miller (goal, assist), Brianna Brack (goal), Emma Windsor (6 saves)
Highlights/key moments: Bishop Brady took a 6-0 lead after the first period, 8-0 lead after the second and had five different goal scorers in the shutout victory.
Records: Brady-Trinity-West 7-5; Man. Central 1-12
Concord 2, Oyster River 1
Key players: Concord – Maddy Audet (17 saves), Nicole Jones (goal), Delana Erickson (goal), Lilly Vezina (assist), Sarah Morin (assist)
Highlights/key moments: Audet made 17 saves and the Tide got goals from Jones and Erickson to lift Concord to its sixth straight win.
Records: Concord 9-3; Oyster River 7-5
Concord 78, Pelham 2
Concord 72, Goffstown 6
Key players: Concord – Sam Wagner (2 wins at 106), David Cook (2 wins at 113), Ethan Comeau (2 wins at 120), Forest Mackenzie (2 wins at 138), Liddon Ling (2 wins at 145), Isaac Habimana (2 wins at 152), Chris Munell (2 wins at 160), Isaac Gladey (2 wins at 170), George Tarwo (2 wins at 182), Noah Giffard (2 wins at 195), Alex Buteau (2 wins at 220), William Woods (2 wins at 285)
Highlights/key moments: The Tide had 12 wrestlers win both of their matches as Concord had decisive wins in both of their dual meets.
Records: Concord 14-0
Concord B 3rd, Winnisquam 5th, Kearsarge 9th, John Stark 10th
Key players: Concord – Ian Schafer (1st 220), Isaac Bosa (3rd 160), Austin Lewis (3rd 285), Sebasitan Pardo (4th (106), Junior Gray (4th 120), Hugh Gunnison (4th 170), Tristan Sharich (4th 182)
Highlights/key moments: The Concord B team competed in the Twin Rivers Tournament in Franklin. Campbell (144 points) narrowly topped Newport (141) with the Concord B team (109) coming in third. White Mountains (107) finished fourth while Winnisquam and ConVal tied for fifth with 68 points. Kearsarge (49) and John Stark (28) finished ninth and 10th respectively.
NH Coaches Series Race
Key players: Gilford – Josh Valentine (3rd), Mark Young (5th), Sander Valpey (18th), Seth Valpey (30th); Concord – Jamie Wilkes (9th), Nathaniel Nichols (12th), Cameron Brochu (24th), Alex Duncan (37th); Belmont – Zach Ennis (15th); Inter-Lakes – Ian Daly (22nd), Samuel Seeley (27th); Hopkinton – Simon Doneski (44th), Justin Durant (99th); Kearsarge – Hunter Burns (46th), Michael Salo (48th); Bow – Sully Blair (50th), Robby Ciotti (58th)
Highlights/key moments: The Golden Eagles placed two skiers in the top five as Gilford kicked off the New Hampshire Coaches Series Race by finishing third in the first race, a 5K classic held at Gunstock. Scores are combined from Saturday’s race at Gunstock and the results of a skate race on Feb. 18 at Plymouth High School to decide who really is the best Nordic team in the state. The Ford Sayre Nordic team (28 points) currently leads Kennett (41), Gilford (47) and Concord (69). Inter-Lakes (eighth), Bow (12th), Kearsarge (13th) and Hopkinton (17th) are also competing in the 19-team field.
Coaches Series Race
Key players: Concord – Heather Deacon (6th), Jessica Nelson (10th), Jennika Mannesto (40th), Brenna McNamara (43rd); Kearsarge – Maggie Lee (20th), Maddie Cook (34th), Hayden Keene (60th), Marliese Baer (72nd); Hopkinton – Emma Rothe (25th), Lily Sabol (46th), Carley Kanter (57th); Inter-Lakes – Maya Weil-Cooley (32nd), Alison Haight (49th); Bow – Sohani Demian (41st), Isabella Urbina (61st); Gilford – Abigael Fillion (65th)
Highlights/key moments: Concord placed two skiers in the top 10 to take third place through the classic race of the New Hampshire Coaches Series. Ford Sayre (24), Kennett (37) and Concord (86) are the top three teams with Kearsarge (sixth), Hopkinton (eighth), Inter-Lakes (11th) and Bow (16th) also competing in the 19-team field.
Concord Christian 41,
Farmington 39
Key players: Concord Christian – Kara Jarvis (16 points), Jade Bell (13 points, 5 steals), Jasmine Bell (6 points, 16 rebounds)
Highlights/key moments: The Kingsmen trailed by nine points at halftime, but came back in the second half and took the lead in the final seconds of the game.
Coach’s quote: “We made some adjustments at the half and went to work. Our shot selection and movement of the ball was better. That and tough defense gave us the win.” – Concord Christian’s Shelby Purtell
Records: Concord Christian 6-8; Farmington 7-5
Newport 47, Franklin 31
Key players: Franklin – Zoe Kaplan (13 points), Anna Doherty (9 rebounds, 4 points)
Highlights/key moments: The Golden Tornadoes suffered their third straight defeat with a loss against the Tigers on Friday.
Coach’s quote: “We had trouble with the pressure that Newport applied and we couldn’t dig out of that hole.” – Franklin’s JJ Winters
Records: Newport 6-7; Franklin 4-11
Farmington 48, Pittsfield 26
Key players: Pittsfield – Katie Rollins (14 points, 8 rebounds)
Highlights/key moments: Pittsfield played even with Farmington through the first half, but the Tigers offense came alive and outscored the Panthers 31-15 in the second half to take the win Friday night.
Coach’s quote: “We did a great job at shutting down Farmington’s top scorers in the first half, we just couldn’t sustain it for the whole game.” – Pittsfield’s Heidi Hall
Records: Farmington 7-4; Pittsfield 2-12
BOYS’ ALPINE SKIING
Pembroke third slalom, fifth GS
Key players: Pembroke – Jack Thomas (1st slalom, 36th giant slalom), Jackson Frazier (8th slalom, 13th GS), Cole Sporcic (24th GS, 42nd slalom), Ryan Burns (33rd GS, 39th slalom)
Highlights/key moments: Thomas won the slalom event with the fastest combined time of two runs, leading the Spartans to third place in a race at Waterville Valley on Friday. The Spartans finished fifth in the giant slalom.
Pembroke fourth slalom, fifth GS
Key players: Pembroke – Jessica Boyajian (17th giant slalom, 20th slalom), Samantha Boyajian (18th slalom, 21st GS), Emily Duffy (29th slalom, 42nd GS), Lily Gilbert (31st slalom), Katie Muise (38th GS)
Highlights/key moments: Samantha and Jessica Boyajian were the top skiers in both events as the Spartans finished fourth in the slalom and fifth in the giant slalom.