WEARE – Jeff McClellan wasn’t about to ruin the mojo.
The John Stark volleyball coach knew that one of his seniors had surpassed a special milestone in the fourth set on Wednesday. But he was also aware that the Generals were on the verge of a comeback, still scrapping and clawing for their playoff lives with one set to go.
So instead of stopping the match to announce setter Nicole Yelle’s 1,000th career assist – a normal procedure during games – the Generals played straight through to the decisive fifth set, eventually making Yelle’s accomplishment that much sweeter when they blitzed the No. 11 Souhegan Sabers, 15-7, in the final game to complete the rally and advance to the quarterfinals of the Division II tournament.
“It meant the world because that’s a good team,” McClellan said of the win for his sixth-seeded Generals, who take on No. 3 Windham in the quarterfinals on Saturday. “It’s good because the girls never quit. With six seniors, what I finally found out is that my seniors can step up and take control. They have a never-die attitude and it showed in these last two sets. As a coach, how proud can you be? All of them are like my second daughters.”
Yelle got the win, the milestone and a few minutes in the spotlight after the final kill from senior Sarah Wagner put John Stark’s postseason win on ice. Yelle finished with 38 assists and now has 1,008 for her career in a Generals uniform.
“It means so much to me and I definitely couldn’t have gotten any assists without all my teammates,” Yelle said after receiving an ovation from the home crowd. “They’re just always there for me. I can really rely on them and I’m just really happy to have them.”
Yelle makes the game look easy, but for a Generals team facing an unfamiliar opponent in the opening round of the tournament, the contest was anything but.
“I think we really didn’t know what we were getting into because we haven’t seen Souhegan yet,” said senior co-captain Sydney Story, who matched Wagner with a team-high 13 kills. “We heard from other teams that (Souhegan) is kind of on and off, and that’s how we’ve been this season, too. So we knew it was going to be really close.”
Stark set the tone in the opening set with a dominant performance, storming ahead 15-7 before swiftly putting the Sabers away, 25-13. But momentum escaped the Generals in sets two and three.
Souhegan pulled away late in the second, fending off a Stark rally to win, 25-20, and then took it to the Generals in a 25-17 third-set win that saw Stark commit 14 unforced errors.
“I think we got a little confident, too confident, and maybe too cocky,” McClellan said. “We started having some mental lapses and fell back into some bad habits.”
“We started really well, we had a lot of energy,” Story said. “Then we got into the second and third matches and it kind of like deflated us a little bit and we got in our own heads.”
So with their backs against the wall in the fourth set, the Generals responded in impressive fashion. Stark led by as much as five points midway through, limited its mistakes and came away with a 25-21 victory.
Stark took that momentum and carried it straight into the fifth set, using a kill from Hannah Chartier (seven aces), and two perfect serves from Yelle to pull ahead, 4-0. It was a cushion the Generals rode to the finish in a 15-7 match-clinching win.
“Every single kill we got, I may have jumped higher than I ever have,” Yelle said. “I was just so excited, so much adrenaline and we were all so hyped. I can barely hear because we were all screaming so loud.”
John Stark now turns its attention towards a powerful Windham team that swept the Generals on Oct. 18 in Weare.
McClellan knows there will be little room for error.
“When we play like you saw in the first set – when we play good volleyball – we can play with anybody and we can dominate,” McClellan said. “So we’re going to have to play good volleyball every single point all three, four, five sets in Windham.”
(Jay McAree can be reached at 369-3371, jmcaree@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @JayMcAree.)
No. 4 Hopkinton 3, No. 13 Derryfield 0
Key players: Hopkinton – Amelia Bassett (2 saves, shutout), Taylor Signor (goal), Grace Clark (2 goals), Cathen Hall (assist)
Highlights/key moments: With 13 shots on goal, the Hawks were in control from start to finish in their playoff opener. Hopkinton stayed scoreless until the 42nd minute when Hall sent a cross over to Signor for the header goal. Clark handled the rest of the scoring, converting a penalty kick and adding an insurance goal late in the second half. Hopkinton hosts Belmont in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
Records: Hopkinton 13-3-1; Derryfield 6-9-2
No. 5 Belmont 3, No. 12 White Mountains 0
Key players: Belmont – Julianna Estremera (goal, 2 assists), Gabrielle Day (goal), Rebecca Fleming (goal), Makenzie Donovan (3 assists), Emma Cochran (3 saves), Madison Lima (midfield), Morgan Hall (midfield)
Highlights/key moments: In a game moved to Laconia High School due to a wet field, the Bears took a 1-0 lead into halftime and improved down the stretch – cementing the victory with a Fleming’s goal off a corner kick – to earn a spot in the quarterfinals against Hopkinton.
Coach’s quote: “It was good to get some experience on the turf. We struggled with the speed of the play early, but got in a groove in the second half. White Mountains has really improved.” – Belmont’s Mark Dawalga
Records: Belmont 11-3-3, White Mountains 7-9-1
No. 6 Campbell 5, No. 11 Gilford 2
Key players: Gilford – Maddi Rector (goal), Lauren Dean (goal), Julianna Coulstring (assist), Hannah Perkins (15 saves)
Highlights/key moments: Despite striking the first blow in this first-round matchup, the Golden Eagles couldn’t contain Campbell. Gilford managed to tie the game up at 2-all before halftime, but Campbell used three second-half goals to stay alive in the tournament.
Coach’s quote: “We played them hard but just didn’t get a few bounces to go our way. I’m very proud of the 15 seniors on this team and their dedication, hard work, leadership and growth they showed this season and over their four years playing for the program.” – Gilford’s Tom Raymond
Records: Gilford 9-8; Campbell 13-4-1
No. 10 Hillsboro-Deering 3,
No. 7 Conant 2, OT
Key players: H-D – Izabella Warren (2 goals), Mara Grady (goal), Morgan Racine (assist), Madeline Parisi (assist), Zoe Kemp (17 saves)
Highlights/key moments: The teams traded goals in the first 15 minutes before Racine put the Hillcats on top with an unassisted goal in the 39th minute. Conant battled back to tie the game late, but Parisi found Grady for the game-winning score in extra time to pull off the upset. Hillsboro-Deering travels to No. 2 Fall Mountain for Saturday’s quarterfinal contest.
Coach’s quote: “The girls played well as a team with good transitions, possession and lots of heart.” – H-D’s Susan Else
Records: H-D 10-7; Conant 10-6-1
No. 2 Pembroke 4, No. 15 Kearsarge 0
Key players: Pembroke – Matt Ferguson (goal), Patrick Chase (goal), Damon Smith (goal, 2 assists), Justin Smith (goal)
Highlights/key moments: Damon Smith was all over the place for the Spartans, playing a key role in leading Pembroke to a 3-0 halftime lead. The Spartans were able to maintain that lead throughout the second half and added late score from Justin Smith to advance. Pembroke gets No. 7 Oyster River next.
Coach’s quote: “The early goals were hard to come back from in the first half. We played much better in the second half and created chances, but we’re unable to find the back of the net.” – Kearsarge’s Matt Burch
Records: Pembroke 15-1-1; Kearsarge 6-10-1
No. 7 Oyster River 2,
No. 10 Merrimack Valley 0
Highlights/key moments: Oyster River found the back of the net twice in the game’s first 10 minutes, putting the Pride on its heels from the jump in the first-round matchup. While the deficit wasn’t insurmountable, Merrimack Valley struggled all game converting chances into goals.
Coach’s quote: “I think we came out a little nervous and Oyster River jumped all over it. I was proud of how hard my guys kept fighting. Every single one of them gave everything they had tonight.” – MV’s Ken Fuller
Records: MV 9-8; Oyster River 9-4-2
No. 3 Bow 4, No. 14 St. Thomas 2
Key players: Bow – Max Elsasser (3 goals, assist), Chris Besho (midfield), Matt Ferland (midfield), Joseph Rychwalski (keeper)
Highlights/key moments: The Falcons have high expectations for this postseason and kicked things off on the right note. Bow took a 1-0 lead in the 17th minute, and then exploded for three more goals before halftime for the commanding lead. The Falcons host No. 6 John Stark in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
Coach’s quote: “Good way to start the tournament. All 20 active players were able to play in the game and contribute. We get to play again.” – Bow’s George Pinkham
Records: Bow 14-3; St. Thomas 6-10-3
No. 6 John Stark 1, No. 11 Coe-Brown 0
Key players:Stark – Chase Patterson (shutout), Jake Reynolds (goal), Tyler Restuccia (defense), Kayden Easter (defense), Patrick Kalob (attack); Coe-Brown – Hogan Cain (strong in goal), Mitchell Wade, Ben Watson, Nick Sanderson, Ben Heyliger
Highlights/key moments: The Generals relied on Patterson in the first half to keep Coe-Brown scoreless, and he delivered with a handful of huge saves. The contest remained scoreless until the very end when Reynolds jumped on a deflected clearance and netted the game-winning score with two minutes left. John Stark plays No. 3 Bow in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
Coach’s quote: “It took most of the first half for us to get settled in and that is a reflection of the pressure Coe-Brown put on us. They are a very good team.” – Stark’s Jeff Vogt
“Thank you to the seniors for a good season. They kept the team together and carried us on their backs.” – Coe-Brown’s Christian Gompert
Records: Stark 11-5-1; Coe-Brown 7-8-2