RallyNorth.net

No. 1 Andover won both doubles matches, but was swept in singles and fell to No. 2 Acton-Boxboro 3-2 in the Division 1 North title game on Friday. Both teams entered the match undefeated. 

LOWELL — Given a second chance, Andover captain Olivia Schwinn-Clanton was right on the money Monday afternoon.

Her free kick from about 30 yards out early in the second half curved beautifully over the head of the Acton-Boxboro goalie and into the back corner of the net to give the Golden Warriors what proved to be the game-winner in a 2-1 Division 1 North victory.

READING — With a trip to the state semifinals on the line, Andover's Paige Gillette refused to crack.

The goalie turned in a whopping 32 saves, keeping unbeaten No. 1 seed Acton-Boxboro scoreless through regular and two overtimes, and No. 3 seed Andover delivered in the penalty stroke shootout to earn a, technically, 1-0 victory and the Division 1 North championship.

METHUEN - Yes, it was only one play in a long game of many, but it certainly didn't help Methuen.

On the game's opening kickoff, Zac Bergeron caught it at the 20 and weaved his way through Acton-Boxboro defenders on his way to the end zone, firing up the Methuen faithful that sat frozen to their seats on a brutally cold night (24 degrees, 12 degrees with wind chill) at Nicholson Stadium.

For a time, it seemed as if Andover was on the verge of stealing momentum with the Division 1 North title on the line.

With the Golden Warriors trailing 1-0, the team of Elia Petros and Anna Higgins stormed to a dominant victory at No. 2 doubles, handing their teammates a spark and sending fans into massive cheers.

Haverhill wrestling had a great start to the season, sweeping its quad-meet with Arlington, Marlborough and Acton-Boxboro while getting contributions from unlikely places. Jake Nicolosi chief among them. The sophomore 138-pounder went 3-0 on the day, and beat a returning Arlington senior who placed at states last year. Ron Fuller, Devin Smith and Ryan McCartney also went undefeated for the Hillies.

Mike Tanguay was 3-0 with three pins as Windham won twice in a quad-meet, losing to Winchester, niping Acton-Boxboro (36-35) and defeating Wesley, R.I.

NORTH ANDOVER — Andover field hockey coach Maureen Noone has never been a fan of penalty strokes as a method for deciding games. After Saturday’s heartbreaking Division 1 North finals loss on penalty strokes — for the second straight year to unbeaten and defending state champion Acton-Boxboro — Noone is even less of a fan. “Big games like this should be decided in overtime,” said Noone. “You’re putting a lot of pressure on a few girls. I’d rather see another overtime.” Another overtime probably would have been to Andover’s advantage the way it had been playing following the first half. Trailing 2-0 at halftime, the Golden Warriors stepped up their game big time in the second half, cutting their deficit to 2-1 with 11:03 to play on a Brenna Keefe goal after a flurry in front of the net. Then they tied it up with just 1:40 remaining on a penalty shot converted by Jillian Hughes. With the momentum on their side, the Warriors totally controlled the first 15-minute overtime, barely missing a goal on at least two opportunities, and nearly converting two penalty corners late in the second overtime. Andover dominated the final five minutes. Hughes and Caroline Curtin in particular shined in OT. After the two 15-minute overtimes, which are played 7 on 7, it went to penalty strokes. Curtin scored on Andover’s first attempt, but the Warriors then missed three in a row, two because of nice saves by A-B senior goalie Hayley Reierson, and the No. 1-seed Colonials converted three of four shots to seal the win and improve to 21-0. “She (Reierson) has been the heart and soul of this team so it was great to see that,” said A-B coach Mae Shoemaker, who has won four state titles in the last decade. “This was like watching instant replay because we were ahead last year, too, they came back and then we won on the penalty strokes. “I’m just so proud of these girls. After losing the two All-Americans to Michigan (Maggie Bettez and Leah Cardarelli), I didn’t know how we’d do this year, but the girls really came together.” It may have been deja vu for the Colonials, but it was far from pleasant for the Warriors. “This was tougher to take (than last year),” said Noone. “The girls showed so much character coming back and they really controlled the play. I thought in overtime we should have had another penalty shot and that could have made the difference.” On the positive side, the Warriors (19-2-1) only graduate four seniors while A-B has nine seniors on its roster. “We have a lot of good young players and they’re chomping on the bit to get in there,” said Noone. The future, the past One of the youngsters, sophomore Emma Farnham, played a particularly strong first half and classmate Hannah Littlewood was also impressive. Andover’s seniors completed a four-year record of 66-9-9. Over the last eight years, Andover field hockey is 149-12-12 with two state titles and five appearances in the Division 1 North championship game.

Unbeaten, top-seeded Acton-Boxboro took out No. 8 North Andover, 4-2, to move to 19-0 in the Division 1 North field hockey quarterfinals. Sara Bagley and Lexi Davidson netted the goals for the Knights, who finish up at 15-4-1.