Marauders shut down Cavaliers
Class I Boys Soccer semifinals: Hanover 2, H/B 0
By GARY FITZ, Telegraph Staff
gfitz@nashuatelegraph.com
EXETER – Before Tuesday night's Class I boys soccer semifinal against fifth-ranked Hollis/Brookline, Hanover High School coach Rob Grabil made sure his team knew exactly what it was up against.
"I told them this was a Hollis team that beat Souhegan 6-1 in the season opener,'' Grabil said. "We played them at home in the midseason when they had some kids out.
"I warned the team, this is not the Hollis team we saw that day. Hollis is a well-organized, well-coached team, and I think you saw that out there tonight.''
Grabil's team heeded the warning, and the Marauders went out and did what they've done all season, completely shutting down the opposing team's offense en route to a 2-0 win to advance to the Class I final on Saturday.
It was still just 1-0 in the final two minutes before Hanover scored a late goal to add a cushion. But the Marauders (17-0-2), who have given up just four goal all season, marked talented Cavaliers midfielder Owen Hawkins tightly and otherwise completely shut down the Hollis attack.
"They have a lot of speed and transition is what their game is all about,'' Hollis/Brookline coach Scott Zarba said. "There isn't one player on that team that doesn't know what he's going to do with the ball before he touches it.
"We did run for the last 35 minutes and challenge them, but when we did get inside the 18 they just cluster.''
Against a smothering defense which began the season with 11 straight shutouts and hasn't allowed a goal in their last five games, it took 33 minutes for Hollis to get its first shot on goal. It was struck from 25 yards out by Ryan Rodgers and was caught just inside the left post by Hanover goalkeeper Benjamin Harwick. It would turn out to be the Cavaliers' best chance of the game.
Hanover struck first 13 minutes into the game when Henry Caldwell slid home a feed from Austin Cyrus. The Marauders wouldn't get on the board again until Casey Maue headed home a lose ball in front of the Hollis net in the final minute.
The loss ended an eight-game Cavaliers winning streak, which came after they dropped four of five matches during an injury plagued midseason stretch.
"It was a great run,'' Zarba said. "We had our share of injuries, but we developed some depth and the kids really stepped up.''
Zarba singled out the play of midfielder Kyle Walton, and defenders Aaron Landolt and Brett Angevine, who helped neutralize a high-powered Hanover offense that has outscored opponents 79-4 so far.
So in Saturday's final it will be the state's stingiest defense against its most prolific goal scorer, second-seeded Bow's Ryan Obolewicz, whose three goals against Souhegan in Tuesday night's other semifinal game him 31 on the season.
