Hanover's dream season came to a hard end on Wednesday, as the Marauders were eliminated from the Semifinals of the NIHAA Division One Tournament by Londonderry after a 2-2 draw through regulation and overtime. Hanover played wonderfully for much of the game, trading great scoring opportunities with a veteran Lancer team that had beaten them 5-1 during the regular season. It was the second year in a row that the Mauarders were downed in the Semis on PKs.
The two teams traded early goals and then battled for the rest of regulation without scoring again. With less than two minutes remaining Londonderry scored to seemingly end it, but Marauder Captain Asa Berolzheimer connected on a magical free kick with less than a minute to play to stave off elimination and send the match into golden goal overtime. Hanover just missed on several sweet chances, especially in the second period, and after twenty minutes of bonus soccer the two exhausted teams gathered on the field to watch five players from each team line up for penalties.
Hanover's luck had run out. Londonderry scored on their first attempt, and Berolzheimer matched the goal with a lower left finish of his own. The next two Lancers also scored, but both Marauders missed, with one shot clanging off the crossbar and another skidding past the left post. Connor Edson, who had played the best game of his career, kept Hanover alive with a diving save on Londonderry's fourth shot, but the Lances goalie then saved Sam Strohbehn's shot, and the season was over.
The bitter sting of the loss on penalties cannot detract from the amazing spectacle of the preceding 100 minutes of hard-fought, exciting soccer, however. The two teams set the stage before the large crowd at Stellos Stadium had settled into their seats. As he has done so many times this season, Tim Alibozek got things cooking in the fourth minute, finding room on the right side, beating a defender and centering the ball to Asa Berolzheimer, who made no mistake and gave the Marauders a 1-0 lead. The assist was Tim's 10th of the season, capping an incredible senior year.
It didn't take Londonderry long to answer. Less than 90 seconds later, the Lancers counterattacked against a drawn up defense and speedy senior Griffin Cowles worked free for a danderous shot on Connor Edson. The Marauder netminder, who had already turned aside a dangerous free kick with a sprawling save to the near post, made the initial save, but Jayden West got the the rebound first and tied the game at 5:15.
The fast-paced game continued, with Hanover producing a number of good scoring opportunities. Sam Strobehn beat his defender down the left side of the park and whipped a ball through the box that just missed making connections. At the 14-minute mark, Berolzheimer laid a ball back to Jonah Levine at the top of the box, and the tireless senior ripped a shot to the lower right side, forcing Lancer goalkeeper Tim McEachern to make a diving save. Ten minutes from the end of the half, Levine had not one but two point blank shots blocked following a corner kick. Sophomore Henry Kahl also got close, hitting a turnaround shot on goal and proving once again at the second wave of Kahl, Messersmith and Stadheim were a valuable component of the Marauder attack.
Londonderry was not without their chances. Will Smith blocked a shot by the dangerous Nate Gaw, who had singlehandedly buried the Marauders in the first game between the teams. This time around, the Marauder back four showed how much they had grown with a sterling performance. Sam Pych was a monster in the middle, winning ball after ball in the air, and Adam Pikelny turned in another string two-way performance. Ian Caldwell was the anchor of it all, confidently marshalling his troops and oozing leadership with every move. Late in the half Londonderry almost hit paydirt on a corner kick, with center back Ryan Johnson narrowly missing the goal on a header.
The two teams picked up the action in the second half, and once again Hanover had the edge, eventually outshooting Londonderry 8-3 and winning the corner kick battle 2-0. One of those corner kicks almost connected at the 53 minute mark when Ian Caldwell narrowly missed getting his foot on a Strohbehn serve. As was the case in the first half the Lancers were always dangerous. Senior back Nick Vanini had a clear look at an open net with a header from a free kick, but drove the ball over the bar.
Connor Edson, who had not played well the first time around against Londonderry, was a tower of strength for the Marauders. In addition to several strong saves, the senior netminder came out strongly in traffic on several serves into the box, negating one of Londonderry's most potent weapons. His kicking game was spectacular, and his strong voice (that's right Connor Edson's strong voice!) kept his defenders in exactly the right place.
As the half wound down the shots were less frequent and more than a few players on both sides fell to the turf with cramps. It was an incredibly demanding game. With the prospect of overtime looming,
Griffin Cowles ran through midfield and after clearly controlling a bouncing ball with his hand, continued to the edge of the box where he took a hard shot to the lower left corner. Edson made a diving save, but the rebound popped loose and fell right to the feet of forward Tarik Dallahi. It looked like certain defeat for Hanover, with less than two minutes to play.
Hanover refused to quit. The Marauders pressed the attack into the Londonderry end, and Ian Caldwell, without needing to be told, moved into an attacking role. He received a ball on the edge of the penalty area and was fouled just enough to be awarded a free kick. The Lancers set their defensive wall, and Berozheimer lined up and took a kick that he had practiced times. Not surprisingly to his teammates and coaches, he hit a perfect shot, clearing the wall and bending just inside the right post past the desperate dive on McEacharn. It will be remembered as one of the most spectacular goal in Hanover's proud history.
Given the exhaustion of the players and the frantic nature of the situation, the two 10-minute overtime periods were not much to look at. Play was direct and not always productive. Londonderry was more dangerous, and Lancer back Maxwell Hastings forced Edson to make a good save on a long range shot. Hanover took over in the second half, and had two great chances to win it all. Seth Stadheim broke free on the right side of the box and had a clear look at goal, but his hard shot was saved by McEacharn. With time running down, Hanover was rewarded a free kick outside of the penalty area near the right corner. This was Sam Strohbehn territory. The talented junior lined up his free kick and hit an amazing shot, nearly the equal of Berolzheimer's. McEacharn was equal to the task this time, however, making an amazing diving save to preserve his team's chances.
Moments later the final whistle sounded and the Marauders, who had seen every one of their kickers nail their spot kicks in the final practice at Merriman-Branch, couldn't replicate that result when it counted, and the season was over. Penalties aren't a great way to end any contest, and two years in a row is a bit tough to take. But that format is far better than some of the other fanciful alternatives being bandied around by some of the self-appointed geniuses at the NHIAA. We'll stick with the status quo like the rest of the soccer universe, as hard as it is to take at the time.
What can't be taken from Hanover is the amazing team chemistry that characterized their season from start to finish. Hanover teams usually develop good chemistry, but this year's was exceptional. Every player bought into the collective ethic of hard work and improvement, and every player had the opportunity to play a significant role in the team's success. Long after the sting of Wednesday's Semifinal defeat has faded, the Marauders will maintain a bond with each other that was truly remarkable. The season was exciting, fun and productive. All eleven seniors set a high standard for leadership that will benefit the program for years to come. Although the results of the annual sportsmanship survey won't be known for weeks, the Marauders once again exemplified all of the highest attributes of honorable play. They qualified once again for an NSCAA Silver Merit Award by earning only three yellow cards in 19 games, an admirable total in the rough and tumble world of Division One. This year's season established Hanover as one of the gilt-edged programs in the division. They made the Semifinals for the fourth straight year, something no other D1 team has done. They became the fifth-highest scoring team in Hanover history, with 74 goals, many of them memorable. Although it's way too early for any discussion of next year, the seeds have certainly been sown for another year like this one, thanks to the maturity and dedication of this year's crew. They will gather to celebrate the season one more time in two weeks, line up on the Saturday after Thanksgiving to defend their honor against the Alumni, and then proudly take their place as yet another of Hanover's great teams.
No comments:
Post a Comment