Souhegan hangs on for win over Portsmouth to advance to D2 field hockey final (video)

EXETER - Before the Souhegan High School field hockey team got off the bus Wednesday for the Division II semifinals, coach Kelli Braley had one last thing to tell the players.

Getting up by a goal or two wasn't going to be enough against Portsmouth and the Sabers needed to keep pushing if they got the lead.

Braley turned out to be spot on, as No. 2 Souhegan took a three-goal lead early in the fourth quarter and then had to hang on tight as No. 3 Portsmouth came back. The Clippers had a chance to tie the game on an untimed penalty corner, but the Sabers' defense held to come away with a 4-3 win at Bill Bill Stadium in Exeter.

The win sends Souhegan to the D2 title game for the third time in four years, where it will face No. 1 John Stark, which defeated Hollis Brookline 2-0 in the other semifinal. The game is schedule for 11 a.m. Sunday at Bedford High School.

"The last thing I said before we got off the bus was that a one- or two-goal lead is not going to take care of this team," Braley said. "Holy smokes was I right. Even a three-goal lead was questionable."

Souhegan (15-0-1) fell behind by a goal in the first quarter, but tied it before halftime and carried that momentum into the second half. The Sabers scored twice in the first five minutes to take a 3-1 lead and added another goal midway though the fourth to go up by three.

But the Clippers (13-4) kept coming and got within one just three minutes after Souhegan's fourth goal.

"We dug ourselves into a hole and obviously that was going to be difficult to get out of, but they almost did," Portsmouth coach Sara Carpenter said. "I think it’s our second game with them that’s ended on a corner. When you get yourselves behind by that much, it’s always going to be difficult to win.

"There really isn’t any quit in them. Obviously, it’s cliché, but they had to give a hundred percent to get the outcome they wanted. Just a little short. Time ran out on us. Had we had five more minutes, it might have gone a different way."

Ari Goulet led Souhegan with two goals and Allison Jordan had a goal and an assist and Ella Barrett also scored. Annie Raduazzo came up with five saves, while Maddie Lim, Annika Madeja and Chloe Luongo also played well.

Many of those players have been a part of Souhegan's recent success, as the Sabers have been in the semifinals for four straight years. But despite that, there were still nerves early.

"We were so unbelievably frantic in the first quarter," Braley said. "It doesn’t matter how many times you come here, I’ve got 10 seniors who have been four times in a row now, they know nothing else, but getting to this point. But there is still something of the aura of being a final four team.

"You’ve got one more game to possibly achieve the goal we set out to seek. I think that played into the first quarter for us a little bit. It doesn’t change. Play our game, breathe, remember how we got here and execute. The second quarter definitely shifted momentum and then we kept going."

Sydney Moreau gave Portsmouth a 1-0 lead, as she took a couple of whacks at the ball before getting it past Raduazzo on a corner with 4:20 remaining in the first. That's where it stood until late in the second quarter, when Souhegan got the ball in the circle and put a shot on Portsmouth goalie Samara Buck.

Buck made the initial save, but the rebound went to Jordan, who sent the ball back toward the left post, where Goulet was waiting to redirect it into the corner of the goal. That tied it with 3:26 left in the half and Souhegan took the lead for good early in the third quarter.

Barrett moved in on Buck alone early in the half and chipped the ball in to make it 2-1, and two minutes later, Jordan got a goal of her own, knocking in a loose ball on a corner for a 3-1 lead.

"They came back big and hard," Carpenter said. "We let some of their super speedy ones get by us. It’s hard when people are unmarked. We tried to make adjustments and didn’t make them quickly enough."

Portsmouth took a timeout after the second goal and righted the ship, getting chances to cut into the lead, but the Clippers either came up just short and Souhegan's defense was able to make a stop. Charlotte Marston had a great look late in the third, but her shot went just wide to the near side of the goal.

With a little more than eight minutes remaining in the game, the Sabers sent the ball behind the Clippers defense, and Barrett was the first one to it. She chipped a shot on goal and Buck made the save, but the rebound bounced toward Goulet, who was able to hit it in for a 4-1 lead with 7:58 to play.

The Clippers had an answer, as Mia Edwards took possession after the goal, maneuvered through Souhegan's defense and fired in a shot that hit Raduazzo and deflected in to make it 4-2 just 1:21 after the Sabers scored.

Portsmouth scored again less than two minutes later, as Darla Mahoney took a shot that Audrey Walsh was able to redirect into the goal, cutting the lead to 4-3 with 4:58 left.

"When you’ve got some unbelievable skilled players like Portsmouth does, with Mia (Edwards) leading the way and Charlotte (Marston) supporting, Sam Ruel and Darla (Mahoney)," Braley said. "They have just as many pieces as we do, as far as ‘we’ve gotta stop this girls and this girl and this girl.’

"I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have some flashbacks to last year when Mia won it for them in overtime. She put the team on her back, carried them down the field and willed herself to score. I think for us, it came as a big shock and we had a little bit of trouble resetting."

Marston had another great look in the final minute, but that shot went wide and it looked like Souhegan was going to be able to run out the clock. Instead, Portsmouth had one final surge and it led to a corner with no time left, just like when the teams met in the regular season, in a 2-1 Sabers win.

Moreau put the ball in play to Ruel, who sent it back down to Moreau, who tried to get a shot through near the post. But Raduazzo was there and the ball went out over the end line to end the corner and the game.