Exeter, n.h.
When Molly Seibel drew a foul for a free position shot with 1 minute, 27 seconds remaining in the first OT, Chris Seibel was assured of the pending outcome as he turned to assistant Whit Willocks on the sideline. “Game, set, match,” he uttered.
Molly Seibel didn’t disappoint, bouncing her shot off of Bill Ball Stadium’s turf and past Clippers goalie Grace Jackson for a 10-9 Marauder victory.
Capping a resurgent rally — Hanover trailed 9-7 before tying it on Perrin Milliken’s goal with 2.7 seconds left in regulation — it gave the Marauders their first state title in eight years and third overall.
Seibel finished with a team-high four goals and an assist as second-ranked Hanover (15-5) captured the all-important rubber match after splitting a pair in the regular season against Portsmouth (No. 1; 17-4).
Calling timeout with 2:02 to play, Chris Seibel used lacrosse balls on the sideline to diagram a play for an isolation shot by freshman Jasmine Lou.
The scheme worked, but Lou’s point blank bid was caught by Jackson. The goalie lost the ball out of bounds, keeping possession with Hanover. Molly Seibel quickly drew a whistle, setting up her 12th goal of the postseason and an emotional celebration for the Marauders.
“She’s the one I want shooting the ball in that situation,” said Chris Seibel, the Marauders’ fourth-year coach. “She has something like 120 points this year (goals plus assists), and I have a lot of confidence in Molly because I’ve been watching her for three years. She worked a lot with (Willocks) this season and really improved her game. That’s why I was so sure she was going to score.”
Johanna Copeland finished with three goals for the Marauders, who scored the first three goals of the game before Portsmouth’s speed and athleticism became a factor.
Seibel scored from behind the net on a deflection off Jackson, then set up Copeland for a man-advantage goal about seven minutes in.
Copeland made it 3-0 with an unassisted tally 25 seconds later, giving Hanover five of the game’s first six shots.
Senior midfielder Julia Luff finally sparked the Clippers, charging in for a pair of unassisted goals before answering Sonthaya Lacey’s free-position strike with another to make it 4-3.
“Even after we had a little bit of a lead, we knew it was going to be back-and-forth because Portsmouth is really good at getting you out of your comfort zone,” coach Seibel said. “They come at you with high pressure and are all over 50-50 balls.”
Molly Seibel and Portsmouth’s Lily Madden traded scores to maintain Hanover’s one-goal lead at halftime, but Portsmouth scored four of the second half’s first five to take the lead.
Grace Getman fed freshman Abbe Laurence with a nice dish at the post, Luff scored her fifth of the game off of a restart and Getman set up Sydney Ludes for a high shot past Hanover goalie Katelyn Hurd (seven saves) to give the Clippers an 8-6 lead with 8:43 to play.
“We were a little tentative the first 10 minutes of the game, but we regained our intensity,” Portsmouth coach Mary Squire said. “We wanted to stay aggressive down the stretch.”
Hanover’s defense — led by Mahler Meyerrose, Annika Cole, Cate Wagner and Maddie Wallace – began clamping down after Chris Seibel challenged them during a timeout.
During a sequence in the Hanover zone soon after that break, Portsmouth had three chances to take a three-goal lead, but were stymied by Marauder pressure and a big Hurd save against Madden.
The Marauders drew within one on Maddie Lyons’ goal, but senior Erica Hesser responded for Portsmouth to make it 9-7 with 7:44 left.
Copeland’s third goal got Hanover within 9-8, and back-and-forth play continued during the final five minutes.
Wagner was issued a yellow card for slamming the ball in frustration after a foul call against her, leaving Hanover a player down for the final minute of regulation.
After a steal by Amelia Lubrano and Hanover timeout, Hailey Fahey set up Copeland in front of the net and the latter drew a foul with 10 seconds left. Her subsequent bouncing shot was saved by Jackson, but Milliken was there to stuff in the rebound and force overtime.
“You’re not really thinking, ‘rebound’ there; I’m just taught to go for every ground ball,” said Milliken, a sophomore.
As for Seibel’s game winner, the player was every bit as confident as her dad.
“Everyone envisions that moment, where it’s up to you to come up big,” she said. “That’s where I wanted to be.”
Stick checks: The Marauders also beat Portsmouth in the D-II girls soccer final and D-II girls tennis final this school year. … It was the third state title this school year for Meyerrose, Wagner and Lyons (soccer, ice hockey). … Portsmouth held a 17-14 shots advantage. … The Clippers were whistled for 21 fouls, Hanover 20. … The Marauders had been 0-2 in finals since their 2008 crown, including a loss to Portsmouth three years ago on the same field. … Technical difficulties led to silence as the teams and fans waited for the playing of the National Anthem. Portsmouth’s players began singing it, eventually joined by some members of Hanover and the crowd. … Hanover loses only defender Georgina Stern to graduation.