JV1 Finishes The Season at Nashua JV Tournament

The Hanover JV1 team would have the chance to compete in the Roger Desmarais JV boys soccer state tournament this past Sunday for the first time since 2018 (2019 being cancelled due to rain and 2020 due to COVID). The lads took to the bus at 6:25 slated to play their first game of group play at 8:50. Upon arrival just before 8:00, the team was met with a brisk cold morning with frost still covering most of the fields. The team slowly got dressed for the first game vs Dover and many opted to leave their sweats (shirt or pants) on to maintain some warmth as they played. Watching the resolve of the Winnacunnet vs. South match end in a 0-0 draw, Hanover was hopeful with that result knowing that it could be possible to advance with a win and two draws. 

The first game vs. The Green Wave of Dover had some spot starts by Marco Rodreguiz, Joseph Rudd, Sayan Bhattacharya, with coach Willie looking to get everyone a start during group play. Hanover would lose the coin flip and be stuck on a dreadfully sunny end of the field that seemed to give Dover the initial advantage. Dover would keep Hanover defending out of its own end for much of the first game, however Hanover was able to put together several strong breaks on goal, transitioning out of the middle third. Sam Calderwood, playing a classic number nine positioning, had three chances going to goal after being played through and registered a shot on frame with each one, but the Dover keeper was equal to the task and denied all three. The five dedicated backs of Rudd, Cam Forbush, Ethan Munson, Davey Tolliday and Freddie Mierke were able to steer away the opportunities Dover was creating and only allowed two shots on goal that were saved by Christian Blix. Blix was able to take charge in his box several times scooping up some rollers that would be shielded by the backs. Henry Werner would have some of his best soccer playing a center midfield and getting the ball deep for a couple crosses as well as recovering back to the defensive third. The final play of the game would see Ian Press being played through and calmly finishing as the keeper rushed on to take down the angle, giving Hanover a 1-0 lead. That would be the final kick of that game as full time was whistled before Dover would kick off again

Pumped up from earning a result, Hanover would have a game off to have some caloric intake and watch parts of the Nashua South vs Dover. South would post the same 1-0 result vs. Dover as Hanover had and clearly showed that they were another force in the group. Seeing this result, it was clear that if Hanover could earn a win vs. Winnacunnet that they would advance. Hanover would once again lose the coin flip and were made to defend the sunny end of the field for a second straight 40 minute game. Hanover would open with another different line-up including Aidan Bradley and Nick Riess. The game was similar to last Thursday, in that most of it was played between the boxes, with few scoring chances. Sayan Bhattachayra would suffer a brief injury in the 27th minute that would not see him return to the field of play, but he was able to walk off the field. The highlight of this game was Wyatt Seelig's punch save on a Winnacunnet free kick in the left channel outside the 18 in the 37th minute to keep the game 0-0. Time would expire with that same scoreline and Hanover knew that there was still a path to get out of group play, and was very interested in the ensuing game between Winnacunnet and Dover. 

The Hanover JV would gather their gear and have another break to watch the Dover vs. Winnacunnet game while cheering on Dover knowing that if The Green Wave would earn a win or tie, that would greatly increase the likelihood of advancing to the quarter finals. Unfortunately, Winnacunnet would post a 2-0 result vs. Dover and thus necessitating a win vs. the Panthers of Nashua South in order to advance.  

Hanover would finally win its first coin flip of the day and started by defending the shaded end. Having watched some of the other games South had played, it seemed as though a few of their players had different uniforms than their teammates, and several players mentioned that the team looked "different" than our regular season matchup. Nonetheless, Hanover would open by keeping some possession on Panther end of the field, but would concede an early goal in transition. South's left wing dribbled the ball deep towards the touchline and made a nifty little flick that found a teammate in the center of the six, who popped a header in to get the early 1-0 advantage in the 8th minute. It wasn't too long after, South would double its lead to 2-0 in the 14th with a play that had the Hanover backs putting up their hands looking to indicate an offsides, but play was allowed to continue and led to the second goal. Feeling itself, the South right winger took a chance from 25 yards out in the 17th that went across the goal mouth and right under the bar to give a 3-0. The team continued to give it their all despite the score, and played with composure for the resolve of the game. 

Despite the challenges of the tournament setting, this season was a great success finishing with a 10-4-2 record vs some of the best New Hampshire and Vermont has to offer.