HANOVER TOPS HOLLIS TO RETURN TO THE FINALS
The Hanover boys earned a return ticket to the NHIAA Class I Finals with a workmanlike 2-0 victory over Hollis-Brookline. Junior Henry Caldwell led the attack for the Marauders, scoring the winning goal at the 13-minute mark and then setting up the clinching goal in the final minutes with a corner kick that Captain Casey Maue headed home for his team-leading 13th goal.
The victory kept Hanover undefeated through 19 games and vaulted them into the Championship game against Bow at 4:30 on Saturday at Bill Ball Stadium at Exeter High School. The Marauders are 17-0-2 on the season, and earned their 16th shutout of the campaign by blanking Hollis-Brookline.
Hollis-Brookline entered Tuesday’s semifinal after overturning a strong Oyster River team in overtime, and they showed both athleticism and good organization. Hanover slowly established a territorial edge, and generated the first good scoring chance at the ten minute mark when Matt Wetherell headed a Ben Rimmer corner kick over the bar. Soon afterwards, Coach Grabill removed leading scorer Eric Barthold to rest his sore foot, inserting Caldwell on the left flank. The versatile junior wasted little time making an impact, ripping a left-footed rocket from 15 yards just inside the near post for 1-0 lead.
Hanover kept probing the Cavalier defense, with Yosef Osheyack making a number of dangerous runs and the midfield duo of Aussie Cyrus and Angus Kennedy keeping a firm hold on the center of the park. Hollis-Brookline managed its only real shot on goal 15 minutes from the end of the half when midfielder Ryan Rodgers hit a challenging shot from well outside the box that forced Marauder goalkeeper Ben Harwick to make a diving save. Although no more shots found their way through, Hanover looked tentative as the half ended, and the 1-0 lead looked precarious.
Grabill challenged his troops to play more aggressively after the interval, and they responded magnificently in the first 15 minutes of the second half, buzzing in and around the Hollis end of the field, and re-establishing an edge that wore the Cavaliers out. Hollis goalie Sean Hamilton was forced to make several tough saves to keep the game in hand, and his teammates were unable to muster much in the way of a counterattack.
Hanover stayed calm as the clock wound down, and with a few minutes to play Angus Kennedy made a great run into the Hollis box, blasting a left-footed drive over the bar. Not to be outdone, Maue finished off the match inside the two-minute mark, taking advantage of his near-post position to stretch his scoring streak to six games. In seven NHIAA playoff games over two seasons, Maue has scored in six of them including two straight semifinals.
Hanover heads back to Bill Ball Stadium for a Saturday showdown with second-seeded Bow, 4-2 victors over Souhegan in the other semifinal. The Falcons will have revenge on their minds, remembering their 1-0 loss to the Marauders two years ago in the Class I Final at Stellos Stadium. They bring a 17-1-1 into this year’s final, with a 2-I loss to Oyster River as the only loss on their ledger. “This is what the finals are all about,” commented Grabill. “The two best teams in the state going at it with everything on the line. We’re anticipating our biggest challenge of the season, which means that there is a good chance we’ll have the opportunity to play our best soccer of the year. That’s what we have been working hard and hoping for. We can’t wait.”
