Playoffs: U-32 stops HU Girls Soccer winning streak; boys soccer goes down to the wire in quarterfinals
November 7, 2020 | By Katie Martin After an exciting double overtime followed by penalty kick rounds in the state playoff quarterfinal match, third-place Harwood Boys Soccer fell to the sixth-seeded Montpelier Solons on Halloween.
Later that same day, No. 2 Harwood Girls Soccer emerged victorious from their quarterfinal game defeating Lamoille Union only to meet their match Nov. 4 in a shutout against U-32 in the semifinals.
Girls Soccer
Harwood 10, Lamoille 2
Louisa Thomsen controls the ball during the Oct. 31 quarterfinal match with Lamoille Union. Photo by Sarah Milligan.
In their quarterfinal game, the undefeated Harwood Girls Soccer (8-0-0) hosted 10th-ranked Lamoille Union High School (3-4-1) taking a high-scoring 10-2 win.
The Highlanders dominated the game with fast and precise passes and fast shots that worked the Lamoille goalkeeper.
Harwood girls watch as goalie Sarah Bartolomei, reaches to block a penalty kick. Photo by Sarah Milligan.
Harwood was on the board in the first 10 minutes of the game when Lousia Thomsen, assisted by Tanum Nelson got Harwood’s first goal. Nelson scored with 17 to go with an assist from Siena Mazer. Following the first two, Thomsen netted another unassisted. Not done yet in the first half, Emma Ravelin scored with seven minutes remaining; shortly after Quinn Nelson sunk the ball in for the final goal before half, the score 5-0.
Lamoille fired back in the opening minutes of the second half when Kaylee White scored on a penalty kick. Lamoille scored one more in the game, unable to catch up to Highlanders.
“It only fired everyone up, especially when they were given a roll in goal. Tanum brought the energy back up and scored with 27 minutes to go off an assist from Emma. Then she scored again within the next ten minutes. Following that, Ashley Proteau scored with a beautiful back of the net goal just above the goalie's fingertips with 19 minutes remaining,” said team manager senior Ellett Merriman.
Harwood’s Tessa Jernigan scored, followed by Harwood’s final goal from Emma Ravelin with another assist from Mazer.
The win sent the Highlanders to the semifinals to face the third-place U-32 Raiders (7-1-0) in the semifinals.
U-32 2, Harwood 0
The teams traveled to Burlington High School on Wednesday for the next-to-last round of the Division II playoffs played on turf while Harwood’s home field was blanketed with the season’s first wet snowfall.
The match kicked off in warm sunshine as both teams came out strong with fast starts and quick passes. U-32 got an opportunity early in the first quarter when Caroline Kirby had a free kick against Highlanders when Harwood’s goalkeeper was called for a handball. Kirby kicked a hard, low, blast and got past the Highlander with 32 left in the half.
Harwood tried to start the fire by utilizing back passes and switching the field as much as possible to open up the play. Ashley Proteau got a quick shot off but U-32 goalkeeper Evie Moore was able to make a diving catch to defend the net.
Lousia Thomsen fired a quick shot from the left side of the field almost making it in the net but U-32’s Moore again knocked it out of the way. As the intensity picked up, so did the aggressiveness on the field as both teams fought for possession.
U-32 had a fast track down the field, getting a hard shot from the right just missing their shot wide of the net. With 20 minutes remaining, U-32 had another close opportunity when the ball crossed right in front of the goal line in the penalty area and Harwood keeper, freshman Poppy Woods, ran to follow it out wide.
U-32 middies kept the ball in the neutral and offensive zone for the majority of the first half. In the last few minutes of the game, Harwood had a huge scoring opportunity when Tanum Nelson passed to her younger sister Quinn, who crossed the ball to the net but they again were thwarted by Moore in goal for U-32.
Sasha Kennedy for U-32 scored a slow rolling goal from the right side of the field, with 5:20 left in the first half putting the Raiders up by two unanswered goals.
Harwood earned a free kick with Tanum Nelson stepping up to take it as U-32 put up a four-person wall but Nelson overshot sending the ball over the crossbar. With 10 seconds left in the half, U-32 earned a free kick but missed landing it.
Heading into the second half, both teams came out of the gates earning shots on net. Harwood’s Tanum Nelson earned another free kick, this time a bouncing low ball that U-32’s Moore caught and sent back down the field. When Harwood earned a corner kick, Thomsen landed the ball in the box but it was cleared out by the U-32 defense. Another corner kick landed but was played out of bounds by Harwood. Despite tries by Tanum Nelson to weave in and out of the U-32 defense for a shot, Moore was ready allowing no rebounds this match, sending it back down the field with 13 minutes left to play.
A few minutes later, Caroline Kirby for the Raiders earned a corner kick touching off a scramble in front of the net that was finally cleared by the Highlanders defense. Kirby came close afterward with a shot that just missed the far and unchecked post.
The final buzzer brought the teams onto the field with the Raiders celebrating their win to take them into Saturday’s championship game and the Highlanders seeing the close of their otherwise undefeated season.
The title match will be played Nov. 7 at South Burlington High School at 1 p.m. between U-32 (7-1-0) and fifth-seeded Rice (6-3-1). Rice ended first-place Fair Haven’s undefeated season (8-0-0) in a 1-0 semifinal game on Wednesday.
Boys Soccer
Montpelier 8, Harwood 7 after PK rounds to settle a 1-1 tie
Hayden Adams splits two Montpelier defenders. Photo by Sarah Milligan.
After defeating the 14th-seeded Fair Haven Slaters on Oct. 28 in playdowns, No. 3 Harwood Boys Soccer hosted Montpelier (5-3-0) in the quarterfinal round of the D-II playoffs on Oct. 31.
The Highlanders (7-2-0) were hungry for another win and the first quarter consisted of back-and-forth long balls that produced a lot of turnovers in the neutral zone.
The Solons were quick to the ball, working well together with fast give-and-goes and back passes that utilized the width of the frost-covered field at Harwood Union High School. Harwood made a successful run up the field only to have it redirected before the keeper’s box, unable to get a strong shot off.
Montpelier put one up on the board first when Quinn Mills scored in the 19th minute unassisted. Harwood and Montpelier had many successful runs at net, and both skillfully dribbled, completing tackles to take the ball away from their opponent.
Neither team would score again until the 47th minute of the game when Harwood’s Gavin Thomsen tied up the game with a little help from teammate Jack Birmingham. Tied 1-1 at the end of regulation play, two rounds of overtime did not change the score sending the match into a series of penalty kicks to determine who would get to the next round of the playoffs.
Harwood was first up in the shootout round. Gavin Thomsen took the shot, scoring low in the right corner. Montpelier’s fast ball shot was saved by Harwood goalkeeper Jake Collier. Then Harwood’s Jordan Shullenberger shot hard to the middle, adding another tally for the Highlanders. Montpelier answered next with a low left shot, making it 2-1. The Solons goaltender made a hard shot save in the center of the net, denying Hayden Adams a point. Montpelier then tied things up in their next round, shooting a hard, fast, low ball in the bottom right pocket.
Jordan Shullenberger brings the ball up the field. during the Oct. 31 quarterfinal match against the Montpelier Solons. Photo by Sarah Milligan.
Matched 2-2 , Harwood’s Jack Birmingham scored on his kick; Montpelier fired right back with a trick-out shot to the high center of the net. Skylar Platt for Harwood next faked out the goalie to score, looking like he would shoot to the right with his right foot, only to kick it with his left and find the back of the net.
Montpelier pulled out a maneuver of their own, adding a slight hesitation right before their next kick resulting in a goal.
Tied 4-4 after the first PK round, the teams set up for another go at it. Thomsen back up for Harwood scored again with a return point from Montpelier. Up again, Shullenberger shot a low roller to the bottom right of the net that looked like it would get under Montpelier’s goalkeeper but, the keep held on tight to make the save.
The volleys continued with Harwood’s Jack Birmingham denied but Platt landed another shot. Tied 7-7 Montpelier took their last shot, scoring the game-winner for a final 8-7 for the penalty kick rounds.
While the finale came sooner than the Highlanders might have hoped, coach Joe Yalicki called it “really enjoyable in many ways” nonetheless.
“There's a lot of distracting things going on around us right now, so every time I went to Harwood and worked with these kids was awesome. We were really grateful for the chance to play this year,” he said. “I can say without any doubt that each player on the team contributed in positive ways that brought us to be a good team.
“I'm sad it's over, but I'm glad for the chance to get out there and give it a run. We fought hard in every game and we battled through adversity really honorably. Older players made a lasting mark on the team and the program and we are in a good position to be competitive for many years to come.”
Harwood goalie Jacob Collier deflects shots from Montpelier during penalty kicks following two overtime rounds. Photo by Sarah Milligan.
Katie Martin is the JV and middle school field hockey coach at Harwood Union High School and a member of the Waterbury Select Board.