Girls’ soccerLexi Insana, Bow

“IN A STATE OF INSANA-TY” read the Monitor’s headline after she scored her second overtime game-winning goal in the Division II semifinal over Kingswood.

No. 2 Bow’s run in the playoffs began with a thrilling victory over local rival, Merrimack Valley. After the Pride equalized at the death of regulation time, Bow drew a penalty at the top of the box a minute into overtime. Insana stepped up when it mattered most, against a lower-seeded rival to keep the season alive, and delivered a well-placed powerful kick to win the game.

Against Kingswood, Bow equalized in the first half after going down early. But the score was tied at the end of the second and the Falcons needed magic again. Seven minutes into the first OT period, Insana jumped head and shoulders above the Knights’ defenders to head in a cross to win the game in Exeter and move on to the final.

Ultimately, Bow fell to a very strong Hollis-Brookline in the championship, but Insana’s goal-scoring heroics in the playoffs, positional awareness and precise passing deserve praise. Insana, a senior leader in the midfielder, finished her season with eight goals and one assist and was named to the D-II All-State First Team and the Lions Cup senior all-star team.

Boys’ soccer:Fin Murphy, Hopkinton

Fin Murphy was the most impactful player on the field for the Hawks and was instrumental in their undefeated D-III championship run. He led the team with 15 goals and 12 assists in 20 games (regular season and playoffs), bringing his Goals+Assists per match ratio to 1.35. The senior attacking midfielder was essential in head coach Scott Zipke’s set-piece-focused and heavy possession-based brand of soccer.

In the semifinal, Murphy provided the game-winning assist to Nolan Linstad with seven minutes left against Saint Thomas, and, although he was held to none in the championship against Mascoma, he found spaces in between lines and contributed to build-up play in the midfield that enabled both of Hopkinton’s goals.

The work of midfielders can be overlooked on the pitch if they don’t score, but Murphy was the main set-piece taker for the Hawks, and yet he led his team in goals and assists. If advanced metrics were tracked in high school, his chances created, xG (expected goal ratio), and passing effectiveness stats would probably be through the roof.

All in all, Murphy’s leadership in the midfield, his ability to play a range of passes in any direction and his instincts in front of goal to become an undefeated champion are worthy of player of the season laurels.

Murphy was named the D-III Player of the Year award and earned a spot on the All-State First Team, alongside teammates Noah Aframe and Nate Windhurst.

FootballColby Nyhan, Concord

With a game-winning field goal in the season opener against Goffstown, Nyhan cemented himself as a key piece for the Crimson Tide.

“Colby was a great leader for us all season and was willing to do whatever it took to make our team better. He played through injury and refused to come off the field. He was the epitome of toughness in his senior season,” said his head coach, Jim Corkum.

With 10 touchdowns this season, the senior quarterback, defensive back, punter and placekicker led the Tide in all facets of the game. Playing in every game and rarely stepping off the field, he carried the Tide to a 4-4 record which was much better than last year’s 1-7 finish. This year’s playoff appearance was Concord’s second since 2014, and it was in large part thanks to Nyhan.

On top of the touchdowns, Nyhan had over 1,000 all-purpose yards in nine games. His ability to run with the ball, throw deep and clutch up in key moments set him apart from the rest and his leadership under center will surely be missed next season.

Field hockeyJillian Fredette, John Stark

Senior forward Jillian Fredette was part of the Generals’ back-to-back championship-winning runs in 2022 and 2023 and of their runners-up campaign this season. Her 58 varsity goals for John Stark broke the previous record and set the bar high for generations to come.

Fredette was a key piece of her team’s attack, always trying to get a stick on the ball and generating chances for teammates in the circle. On top of her 58 goals, she assisted 28 times as well and was a threat to goalies everywhere.

“Her drive and motivation were unmatched and she made a huge impact on this team. She always pushed everyone to work harder and every game put all her effort in. I may have only had her for one season but her hard work and skill set impressed me beyond measure,” said head coach Cassidy Huckins.

Playing on the wing and more centrally, she was essential in counter-attacking situations and corners. She was quick and precise in carrying the ball upfield and dribbling through defenders to open up the field. Defensively, she battled hard and created turnovers all over the field.

She will take her talents to Colby-Sawyer College to play D-III women’s field hockey next year.

VolleyballHaile Comeau, Coe-Brown

Comeau played varsity volleyball all four seasons and was a captain for the last two. The senior libero took her game to the next level this season and carried her team to the semifinal with impressive defensive work for the Bears.

“She helped this year’s team who was fighting every day to get better have the best opportunity possible to run an aggressive offense. Haile plays with passion, intensity, and authenticity,” said head coach Renee Zobel.

She led the Bears from the service line, passed 90% of her serves and had a team-high 71 aces. She was even better at receiving serves as she passed about 50% of the serves from opponents. That alone is impressive, but the quality of her receives was stellar and she amassed 250 digs on the season.

In volleyball, passes are rated on a three-point scale with three being a perfect pass. Comeau passed approximately 500 serves at an incredible 2.5 average rating, and 86% of those were above a 2, setting up good attacks for the Bears’ aggressive hitters.

“Early on, she and our other returners showed the eight newcomers to the team that they believed anything was possible,” Zobel said.

Comeau exemplified the team’s motto “gritty not pretty,” and will take that toughness to D-II volleyball at Dominican University of New York next year.

Boys’ cross countryJosiah Conley, Concord

From the fields at Merrimack Valley High School to the trails at Wickham Park in Manchester, Conn., Conley established himself this past season as an elite runner.

Conley, a junior, claimed the 47th Capital Area Cross Country Championship crown with a 5K time of 15 minutes, 48.22 seconds (a 37-second margin of victory) on the MVHS course after finishing as the runner-up in the two previous seasons.

He finished 12th in the D-I championship, but then bounced back with a fourth-place finish at the Meet of Champions and capped his season with a 15th-place finish at New Englands. Conley clocked a 15:53 at Wickham Park, the third-fastest runner from New Hampshire to cross the finish line.

Not only did Conley stand out individually, he was a big factor in helping the Concord boys’ cross country team improve from 13th place in D-I in 2023 to 10th place this past season. Conley should help the Tide continue to rise in his senior year, as three of his varsity teammates are freshmen and will return more experienced next year.

Girls’ cross countryMaddy Lane, Hopkinton

It’s hard to have a more dominant season than the one Lane had this past autumn. Lane was undefeated against all D-III runners and her team was undefeated against all other D-III programs as the Hawks swept both titles at the D-III championship.

Lane defended her D-III crown with a 5K time of 19 minutes, 39.6 seconds on Derryfield Park’s course, leading the entire race from gun to tape. Such was Lane’s dominance, she only lost to two New Hampshire runners all season, winning several major invitational, including the 50-plus team Manchester Invitational and the Capital Area Cross Country Championship prior to her division title.

Lane finished second to Bedford’s Mikita Barry at the Meet of Champions and then finished fifth in New England the following weekend. Lane ran an 18:22 and was the second-fastest Granite State runner to cross the line, after Barry in third place.

The Hawks finished fourth at MOC and 13th in New England, following their fourth D-III title in the last five years.

Regardless of what kind of competition she was facing, you can always expect to be out in front pushing the pace.

“Whether she’s running alone or fighting, she’s still going to leave it all out there,” Hopkinton head coach Rob Rothe said.

GolfAiden Boule, Bishop Brady

The only thing better than ending your high school career with one title is ending it with two. That’s what Boule did in his final season on the Bishop Brady golf team.

Boule, a senior captain, helped lead the Giants to the D-III team title at Rochester Country Club, the program’s first team championship since 2005, and then won the D-III individual title at Beaver Meadow two days later.

Boule was tied at the top of the leaderboard at 9-over 81 with Owen Wilkinson of Stevens at the end of the first round and shot well enough in the second round (15-over 87) to once again end up in a tie with Lebanon’s Ben Britton at 24-over. Boule won the playoff hole to claim the crown.

The lone senior on the Giants’ roster, Boule earned medalist honors on senior day at Beaver Meadow and was part of a powerful three at the top of Brady’s lineup with teammates Mady Savary and Cam Fortier.

“Aiden is very capable of putting up those (strong) numbers when he is dialed in,” Bishop Brady head coach Jason Bird said. “And he was (that day).”

Alexander Rapp can be reached at arapp@cmonitor.com

Dan Attorri can be reached at dattorri@cmonitor.com