Hanover Ends Regular Season Undefeated
The Hanover boys finished their unbeaten regular season in style on Friday, blanking Monadnock 5-0 to conclude the campaign with a 14-0-2 mark. It was the first time since 1993 that the Marauders have been undefeated, but larger challenges loom with the start of the NHIAA Class I playoffs next Tuesday.
Although it took the Marauders a while to score their first goal on a Monadnock team fighting for a playoff spot, they remained patient and were rewarded with ten minutes remaining in the first half when Casey Maue finished a sweet cross from Yosef Osheyack for his seventh goal of the season. Monadnock goalie Kyle Wright was doing a fabulous job in goal for the Huskies, and made the save of the day shortly afterwards, denying Lou Gemunden on a penalty kick with a dazzling dive to his left. Hanover grabed another goal at the death of the half when Angus Kennedy jumped on a loose ball after a Ben Rimmer corner kick and put a bulge in the onion bag for a 2-0 lead.
Despite the steady rain, Hanover remained composed and efficient in the second half, quickly doubling the lead before all eleven starters entered the game for the final 30 minutes. Osheyack scored his team-leading 12th goal of the season, tapping in a cross from Angus Kennedy after Casey Maue’s convincing dummy let the ball run through to him. Kennedy notched his second of the game and eighth of the season a few minutes later, converting pass from Eric Barthold, who took over the team lead in assists with his eighth helper of the year.
Even with a new face at every position, Hanover maintained territorial dominance. Coach Grabill has maintained all year that the Marauder reserves are perhaps one of the better teams in Class I, and this exhibition underscored that point. Erik Barth and Oliver Horton did a masterful job at distributing the ball at midfield, and wing midfielders Paul Burchard and Dylan Riessen were consistently dangerous. Backup goalkeeper Sam Gest wasn’t called on to make any saves to close out Hanover’s 13th shutout of the season, but he handled the ball well on several occasions, and made a great play on a dangerous through ball with split-second decision making.
Erik Barth closed the scoring for Hanover, banging home his second score of the season. Kevin Dade came close thereafter, generating three shots in a goalmouth flurry. All too soon the clock wound down, and the soggy Marauders briefly celebrated a feat which deserved more than that perfunctory apotheosis. Hanover teams have a long tradition of excellence, but it’s been more than a decade that a Marauder team has completed an undefeated season. The scoring statistics tell a story of dominance: Hanover has scored 67 goals and allowed only four, and it will take some archival research to figure out the school record for goals against. Many of the Hanover wins have been one-sided whitewashes against weak teams, but there have also been some classic nailbiters that have toughened this team for the second season which now beckons.
The first round of the NHIAA Class I tournament starts Tuesday, and top-seeded Hanover will probably host Coe-Brown. Game time has yet to be determined. No matter when the teams kick off, the game will be preceded by a short ceremony to honor the eleven graduating seniors and their parents. There is already much to celebrate, but this edition of Hanover soccer would love to add a few more chapters before they close the books.
