BELMONT – Angelo Papadopolis was on the attack from the opening whistle, which is exactly what Mike Foley wants from his outside defenders.
“We always beg him to push forward, but you also can’t take on the world,” said Foley, now in his 18th year as the head coach for the Belmont boys’ soccer team.
Papadopolis found the right balance between getting forward and playing within himself on Tuesday against Laconia. The junior scored the first goal of the game (and his varsity career) in the first half and was part of the late second-half scoring binge as the Raiders pulled away for a comfortable 5-0 win.
“Today we were really working on some stuff,” Papadopolis said. “It was about showing our dominance, working as a team to make those opportunities happen and getting our goals.”
Belmont (5-2-1) created opportunities in its last game, but couldn’t finish with goals in a 1-0 loss to a tough Gilford team. So the “5” on the board on Tuesday was a welcome sight.
“We’ve been hard pressed the last week and a half to score goals,” Foley said, “so from that point of view it’s nice to put a few on the board and give guys some confidence.”
Laconia (3-3-0) lost to the Raiders by the same 5-0 score last year, but the Sachems feel better about this result.
“We were 4-12 last year and we got beat bad by a lot of teams, and every time we go out and we’re playing a team we lost bad to, it’s okay, how are we going to improve on that this year? How are we going to grow as a program?” Laconia Coach Joey DiTommaso said. “And although we lost by the same score, it didn’t feel the same.”
Knowing how skilled and dangerous the Raiders can be, DiTommaso went with a more defensive formation on Tuesday. Laconia used just one forward and kept its midfielders, for the most part, behind the ball.
“We also man-marked kids at times (midfielders Zach Ennis and River Mathieu in particular), but unfortunately for us they’re skilled at every position on the field,” DiTommaso said. “We did a good job on Ennis and Mathieu, and Ennis is one of the best players in the state, but they have a lot of guys that can pick up his slack.”
Griffen Embree and Nate Sottak are two of the Raiders who can, and did, pick up the slack on Tuesday. Embree made a sweet move on the end line in the 24th minute that led to a shot from Sottak, which led to a corner kick. Ennis took the corner and Papadopolis finished it.
“I usually try to put it there, right around the PK dot and away from the goalie, and Angelo was at the right place at the right time,” Ennis said. “He made it happen.”
Belmont took that 1-0 lead into halftime, although it could have been more if not for Laconia keeper Cam Souda (10 saves), the effort of central back Ryan Paiva and the midfielder work from Thomas Turpin and Kaleb Shumway. The Raiders, who had a 10-1 edge in first-half shots, stayed on the front foot to start the second half, but it was still just a one-goal game until the 62nd minute. That’s when a mistake from Laconia opened the scoring flood gates and led to four goals in 14 minutes.
The first of those late goals came after Souda saved a point blank shot from Evan Cochran, Belmont’s other outside back who also pushed dangerously into the attack all game. Souda held on to Cochran’s shot initially, but a Laconia defender ran into him and knocked the ball free. Belmont’s Brendan Kelley jumped on the loose ball and put into the open net for a 2-0 lead.
Four minutes later, the Sachems whiffed on a clearing header, Sottak ran on to the ball and blistered a shot past Souda to make it 3-0. That became 4-0 in the 72nd minute after a corner kick from Ennis bounced around the scrum in front and eventually caromed into the net. Hunter Dupuis was credited with the goal.
Papadopolis finished the scoring with just four minutes left on the clock when he made a pretty move down the right side to beat a defender and then hammered a shot through Souda.
Belmont lost a lot of talent from last year’s semifinal team, but the expectations were still high for 2017. That hasn’t changed now that the Raiders have reached the halfway point of the season.
“No, I’m not happy with where we are, our team is sort of never satisfied, we always want to get better,” Ennis said. “No way we want to be happy at this point in the season. We want to be happy and we want to peak toward the end, when it really counts.”
The schedule stays tough for the Sachems, who host 7-1 Gilford on Thursday. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
“It doesn’t get any easier, but that’s good,” DiTommaso said. “As nice as it is to beat up on weaker teams, this is where we want to be as a program, so we’ve got to take steps in the right direction.”
(Tim O’Sullivan can be reached at 369-3341 or tosullivan@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @timosullivan20)
Concord 3, Salem 0
Key players: Concord – Sebastian Pardo (goal), Taylor Silverstein (goal, assist), Joshua Adams (goal, assist), Liam Bennett (defense), Jonathan Weinberg (midfield)
Highlights/key moments: The Tide went ahead 1-0 in the first half on Pardo’s goal and put the game out of reach with some playmaking from Silverstein and Adams down the stretch, handing Salem its first loss of the season. Liam Devanny notched the shutout and Concord piled up eight shots on goal.
Coach’s quote: “We played very well today. By far our most complete game of the season.” – Concord’s Scott Dunlop
Records: Concord 6-2; Salem 6-1
Pembroke 1, Oyster River 0
Key players: Pembroke – Matt Ferguson (goal)
Highlights/key moments: The lone goal of the game came off the foot of Ferguson in the 56th minute to aid the Spartans.
Coach’s quote: “It feels good to get the win and play well against a quality opponent.” – Pembroke’s Peter Bisson
Records: Pembroke 6-1-1; Oyster River 3-2-1
John Stark 3, Kingswood 1
Key players: Stark – Lawson Murphy (goal), Jonathan Rizzitano (assist), Evan Caswell (goal), Patrick Kalob (assist), Kayden Easter (defense), Tyler Restuccia (defense), Jared Peterson, Orry Murdough
Highlights/key moments: The Generals controlled play in the first half, but things were knotted 1-1 at halftime. Murphy’s goal gave Stark a 2-1 lead and Caswell put the game away with three minutes left after a pretty assist from Kalob.
Coach’s quote: “Kingswood is a very well-coached team that defends well. They can be a challenge to break down. In the second half we started to figure it out. As always, the team worked hard and it helped to create chances for us.” – Stark’s Jeff Vogt
Records: John Stark 6-1; Kingswood 1-4-1
Plymouth 3, Kearsarge 2, OT
Key players: Kearsarge – Levi Wilson (12 saves), Ben Corbyn (goal), Corbin Montminey (goal), Brad Underhill (assist), Owen Cottrill (assist)
Highlights/key moments: The Cougars built a 2-0 lead in the first half, but Plymouth found the answers in the second half and scored the game-winner five minutes into overtime.
Coach’s quote: “Plymouth has a few very talented players that were hard to contain and were able to score three unanswered goals after halftime. The loss hurts, but the team worked very hard and I was pleased with the way they played.” – Kearsarge’s Matt Burch
Records: Kearsarge 2-4-1; Plymouth 3-4-1
Newfound 8, Franklin 1
Key players: Franklin – Garrett Pelletier (goal), Jadyn Lutz (assist), Hanna Hicks (defense), Logan Hannigan (midfield); Newfound – Justin Shokal (3 goals, assist), Cian Connor (2 goal, assist), Brad MacDonald (goal), Ryan Quinn (goal), Jacob Huckins (goal)
Highlights/key moments: The Bears used a hat trick from Shokal to run away with things against the winless Golden Tornadoes.
Coach’s quote: “It’s a transition year for us and it’s taken us a while to start to finally find our shape.” – Franklin’s Kevin VanGorden
“Newfound came out strong and moved the ball well today. We finished opportunities and had several players with strong contributions.” – Newfound’s Jason Hill
Records: Newfound 2-3; Franklin 0-6
Hopkinton 4, Mascoma 2
Key players: Hopkinton – Gerry Donahue (2 goals, assist), Zach Signor (goal), Dustin Rose (goal), Max Rossignol (assist)
Highlights/key moments: Scoring two goals in each half, the Hawks generated plenty of offense to handle an improved Mascenic squad and remain undefeated. Signor’s goal in the 36th minute was the highlight of the match as he wove through four defenders and slotted home a shot from a tough angle.
Records: Hopkinton 7-0; Mascoma 5-2-1
Hillsboro-Deering 3, Fall Mountain 1
Key players: H-D – Jacinto Caceres (2 goals), Elijah Winters (goal, assist), Cam Jones (defense), Julian Howell (offense), Thomas Ferguson (7 saves). Ben Ketterer, Kieren Kenny
Highlights/key moments: Caceres opened the scoring in the eighth minute on an assist from Winters, but the Wildcats tied the game in the 28th minute and it stayed that way until halftime. Caceres scored an unassisted goal in the 59th minute and Winters put the game away in the 70th minute with a goal off a set piece. Jones was filling in at right back and shut down everything that came his way.
Records: H-D 4-3-1; Fall Mountain 2-6
Concord 4, Salem 2
Key players: Concord – Grace Devanny (3 goals), Elise O’Neill (goal), Caitlyn Kelly (defense)
Highlights/key moments: Devanny netted three goals for the Tide in just under 45 minutes of play in the victory. Concord went up 4-0 before getting younger players some valuable minutes in varsity action.
Coach’s quote: “This was our only game this week so I’m glad our team took care of this game like we knew we had to.” – Concord’s Phil Tuttle
Records: Concord 6-1; Salem 2-5
Bow 4, St. Thomas 0
Key players: Bow – Kayleigh Marshall (goal), Lauren Goyette (assist), Amanda Marshall (goal), Lindsay Burnham (2 assists), Madi Paul (goal, assist), Kristina Pizzi (first varsity goal), Megan Remick (assist)
Highlights/key moments: A great cross from Goyette and the finish from Marshall gave Bow a 1-0 lead going into halftime. The Falcons then scored twice in the first nine minutes of the second half to take control.
Coach’s quote: “We did not have a great first half, but the girls really stepped it up in the second half and showed what they are capable of. We need to move forward and learn from it.” – Bow’s Jay Vogt
Records: Bow 7-1; St. Thomas 2-4
Merrimack Valley 2, Portsmouth 1
Key players: MV – Kylie Curtin (2 goals), Ashley Daniels (assist), Hanah Corliss (assist), McKayla Palhof (midfield), Sara Osborne (defense), Asia Grace Hanson (defense), Kylie Marquis (defense), Miah Boucher (defense)
Highlights/key moments: The Pride trailed 1-0 at halftime, but Curtin tied it up in the 55th minute and then found the game-winner with just three minutes left on the clock to hand Portsmouth its second loss of the season.
Coach’s quote: “I’m unbelievably proud of these girls tonight. They really took it to a great team. Not only did they not let up, they turned it up a notch pressuring and not backing away from physical play. We had a great practice yesterday and they executed it beautifully.” – MV’s Jeff Richard
Records: MV 6-2; Portsmouth 5-2
John Stark 8, Kingswood 0
Key players: Stark – Cara Easter (2 goals, 3 assists), Aria Ulmer (goal), Abby Brandt (goal), Chelsea Woodsum (goal), Meg Blanchette (goal), Sara Nikias (goal), Elizabeth Downing (goal)
Highlights/key moments: It was a monster game for Easter, who assisted on the first two goals to give the Generals a 2-0 lead after 24 minutes. Blanchette and Nikias both scored long-distance highlight goals.
Records: John Stark 6-0-1; Kingswood 0-5
Goffstown 2, Coe-Brown 1
Key players: Coe-Brown – Kiley St. Francis (goal), Morgan Burnap (assist)
Highlights/key moments: Goffstown led 2-0 at halftime, but Coe-Brown took control in the second half and cut the lead in half in the 60th minute. The Bears kept attacking in the final stages, but the Grizzlies held on for the win.
Coach’s quote: “We have to play an emotional first 40 minutes. We play better when we are behind because we are angry. Our energy has to improve when we take the field. Once we do that, we will be fine. We can’t wait until we get behind.” – Coe-Brown’s Josh Hils
Records: Coe-Brown 3-5; Goffstown 4-3
Gilford 4, Laconia 2
Key players: Gilford – Sarah Fillion (3 goals), Shelby Cole (goal); Laconia – Sabrina LaDuke (goal), Megan Gaspa (goal)
Highlights/key moments: Fillion netted the second of her three goals 15 minutes into the second half as it proved to be the game-winning score. The winning tally came off a free kick from keeper Hannah Perkins.
Coach’s quote: “After a slow first half, we were able to put together a strong second half, consistently pressuring Laconia’s defense.” – Gilford’s Tom Raymond
Records: Gilford 4-4; Laconia 2-4-1
Hopkinton 11, Monadnock 0
Key players: Hopkinton – Grace Clark (2 goals, 2 assists), Catherine O’Keeffe (2 goals), Amelia Fitzgerald (2 goals, assist), Taylor Signor (assist), Megan Ellsworth (goal), Ellie Owen (goal)
Highlights/key moments: The Hawks put on an offensive clinic, finding the back of the net eight times in the first half alone in the shutout win. Eight different players scored for Hopkinton, which was led on defense by keeper Amelia Bassett.
Coach’s quote: “The Hawks did well with possession and defensive switching of the field as the game progressed.” – Hopkinton’s Lauri Izzi
Records: Hopkinton 5-1-2; Monadnock 0-7
Bishop Brady 2, Derryfield 1
Key players: Brady – Danni DesRuisseaux (2 goals), Olivia Crainich (assist), Sam Will (assist), Sarah Doherty (defense)
Highlights/key moments: Despite falling behind on the road early, the Green Giants found a way to rally back. DesRuisseaux’s second score and eventual game-winner came off an assist from Crainich on a breakaway.
Coach’s quote: “After a very slow start, giving up an early goal in the first minutes of the game, the girls were able to battle back and get the victory on the road.” – Brady’s Andrew Mattarazzo
Records: Brady 5-2; Derryfield 2-6
Pembroke 1, Bishop Brady 0
Key players: Brady – Emma Windsor (4 saves); Pembroke – Maddie Bennett (goal), Alysee Cleasby (assist)
Highlights/key moments: Cleasby connected with Bennett for the game’s only goal as the Spartans escaped with their second win.
Coach’s quote: “We are really excited to come out of this game with a win. Bishop Brady gave us a run for our money. It wasn’t the best game we’ve played, but my girls fought hard and I’m glad they got the job done” – Pembroke’s Aimee Monterio
Records: Brady 0-5; Pembroke 2-5
Bow 3, Kearsarge 0
Key players:Bow – Sonya Delorie (2 goals), Erin Brown (goal, assist), Shannon Ford (assist), Isabelle Dolcino (assist, strong offense), Bri Mullen (defense), Courtney Baer (12 saves); Kearsarge – Jordan Pollard (midfield), Chase Lennon (midfield), Hannah Tockman (defense), Marissa Pickman (24 saves)
Highlights/key moments: Brown’s goal was the first of her varsity career and Baer made several nail-biter saves as the Falcons earned the road win.
Coach’s quote: “Our defense worked together very well today and I saw improvement on the part of many offensive players. This win was a morale booster after a disappointing loss on Friday.” – Bow’s Rebecca Cleary
“Despite the loss, this was the game I have been waiting for as a coach, where they finally started to click as a team and move the ball. Their chemistry is building and I hope to see continued progress in games based on the hard work we are doing in practice.” – Kearsarge’s Dianne Chadwick
Records: Bow 4-2; Kearsarge 1-5
Newfound 7, Littleton 0
Key players: Newfound – Kylee MacDonald (3 goals, assist), Tiffany Doan (goal), Jasmine Peterson (goal, 3 assists), Julianne Marchand (goal, assist), Hayleigh LeTourneau (assist), Madison Hanley (goal)
Highlights/key moments: Newfound dominated with huge advantages in shots (24-0) and corners (14-1).
Coach’s quote: “It was a nice, all-around team effort with numerous different lineups continuing to work on certain points of emphasis in our team game.” – Newfound’s Karri Peterson
Records: Newfound 7-0; Littleton 1-4
Pelham 6, John Stark 1
Key players: Stark – Olivia Desainde (first varsity goal), Lauren Zervos (assist), Olivia Fatcheric (midfield), Melina Jackson (31 saves)
Highlights/key moments: The Generals hung with undefeated Pelham for three-quarters of the game before the Pythons pulled away.
Coach’s quote: “Another good effort from our team. We controlled parts of the game against a really strong team and showed great development. Pelham has great team speed on the outside and was able to take advantage of some match ups. But we showed we could hang with one of the division’s best teams for a good part of that game.” – Stark’s Dennis Pelletier
Records: John Stark 1-5; Pelham 7-0
Merrimack Valley third
Key players: MV – Emma York (1st, 21:49), Lauren Rouse (11th, 23:26), Noelle Colarusso (13th, 23:48), Tristan Beyer (18th, 24:19), Madisyn Garrity (20th, 24:41)
Highlights/key moments: The Pride finished with 53 points to finish behind Souhegan (45) and John Stark (51) and ahead of St. Thomas (90) and Plymouth 96. MV sophomore York notched her first career victory.
Coach’s quote: “It was a really good day for the girls. Four of the top five ran their best times of the season and (York) winning her first ever race really put an exclamation point on the day.” – MV’s David Irving
Merrimack Valley second
Key players: MV – David Reynolds (1st, 17:42), Matt Reynolds (5th, 18:15), Matt Lyle (7th, 18:33), Mason Graham (25th, 20:10), Ethan Dodenhoff (26th, 20:12)
Highlights/key moments: Paced by the top-five finishes from the Reynolds, MV was second with 64 points to finish ahead of Windham (67), Trinity (68), John Stark (86), Plymouth 174 and St. Homas (214). Dodenhoff made huge strides with his result.
Coach’s quote: “Today was a really hard tempo day for the top three (runners), so it was nice for them to run as well as they did.” – MV’s David Irving
Concord second
Key players: Concord – Quentin Barry (43), Jeremiah Barry (43), Sean McDonough (43), Matt Burns (43), Winsor Bean (44)
Highlights/key moments: The Crimson Tide carded a 216 to beat Merrimack (255) but lose to Dover (212).
Records: Concord 10-4; Dover 5-5; Merrimack 0-10