WEST CANAAN — A few words that should strike dread into the rest of NHIAA Division III field hockey: The Mascoma High defense is warming up again.
Last year’s defenders backed the school’s first state championship in 35 years and got better as the season went on, allowing just one goal over their final nine matches and none in the last seven. Coach Jenn Hammond’s latest edition is showing a similar tendency after Tuesday’s 1-0 shutout of Stevens.
The Royals (8-3-0) rode a 15th-minute goal from Mackenzie Labrie on penalty corner passes from Nicole Williams and Michaela Dowd. Williams fired a Dowd feed wide of goal, but Labrie was ready at the far post for the tap-in finish.
From there, the Mascoma back line ruled. Defender Kayleigh Thurston and midfielder Morgan Towne retreated to help form an impenetrable barrier in front of goaltender Emily Conrad, who didn’t have to make a save to post the Royals’ latest clean sheet.
“We have actually changed our formation a little,” Hammond said. “Before, we used to draw (the since-graduated) Bella Kondi up a lot; now we play our defense back more. We’re allowed to do that because we have such strong midfielders to overlap.”
Nicole Salls had a big game in goal for the Cardinals (6-4-0), making 10 saves.
Both teams are back in action on Wednesday, with Hopkinton visiting Stevens and the Royals traveling to White Mountains.
LEBANON — Sydney Gonyea factored on all three goals and netminder Autumn Crowell had an outstanding 17-save effort to keep the Raiders (8-3-0) on the winning track.
Gonyea put Lebanon ahead to stay with 1:09 left in the opening half with an unassisted tally. She would set up a Molly Smith goal with 18½ minutes left in the match before potting her second goal of the game and 15th of the season with 10:50 to play, again unassisted. The rest was left to Crowell.
“Newport is very fast and aggressive, and they got the ball down there,” Lebanon coach Amanda Valliere said. “They got some really good shots, and Autumn made some great saves.”
Kelsey Wheeler finished with 12 stops for the Tigers (6-5-0), who travel to Kearsarge on Friday. The Raiders visit Conant on Friday.
ORFORD — Junior A.J. DeBois scored two goals, including the game-winner, to power Rivendell (9-2) to a comeback victory.
Green Mountain scored six minutes into the game, but DeBois leveled the score in the 14th minute on an assist from Johnny Vogelien. DeBois scored the game-winning goal in the 55th minute.
Goalie Owen Mansur made 14 saves for the Raptors, who visit Arlington on Friday.
WEST CAANAN — Goalie Connor Thompson made 13 saves as the Royals won their fourth straight game.
Isaac Rayno scored the first goal of the game on a corner kick to give Mascoma (8-4) the lead going into the half.
Ben Seiler scored on a double assist from Olivia Bean and Gavin Giovagnoli, who added to the Royals’ lead off a corner kick from Rayno.
Seiler scored the final goal for Mascoma, which travels Friday to Trinity.
HANOVER — A second-minute own goal set the tone of an odd day for Hanover (9-2-0), which saw a seven-game winning streak come to an end.
A miscommunication at the back led to a ball headed over Marauder goalkeeper Joey Perras and into the Hanover net to gift Timberlane (7-2-2) its first goal. Dmitri Kakouris (eight saves) made several good saves to preserve the lead, to which Matthew Barney added in the 52nd minute for the visitors.
“They know how to circle the wagons,” Hanover coach Rob Grabill said. “They were content to put bodies behind the ball.”
Perras finished with five saves for the Marauders, who visit Winnacunnet on Friday.
BRADFORD, Vt. — Chrostopher Roy scored his first goal of the season for Oxbow (0-11-0).
Tyson Davison produced a three-goal hat trick for the Wildcats. Cody Davison and Reed Kehler both struck twice for the visitors, who held a 4-0 lead at halftime.
The Olympians visit Richford on Friday.
THETFORD — Riley Berkins recorded 19 saves on a busy afternoon in the Panthers’ net.
Thetford will seek an end to its nine-match losing streak at Lamoille on Friday.
HANOVER — Alex Nagy’s 63rd-minute goal provided the difference in the Catamounts’ nonleague win over the Big Green (4-4-1) at Burnham Field.
Nagy converted a Frosti Brynjolfsson feed to score on Dartmouth netminder Alex Budnik (three saves). The Big Green never found a way through UVM (6-4-0) despite a 21-9 advantage in shot attempts. Aron Runarsson earned a four-save shutout for the Cats.
Dartmouth heads to Yale for an Ivy League encounter on Saturday.
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. — Allie Winstanley’s natural hat trick powered the Big Green (8-3-0) to a an easy nonleague win over the Warriors.
Winstanley had her first just 36 seconds into the match with a rainbow shot over the head of the Merrimack goalkeeper on a feed from Kat Grgic. Winstanley doubled her tally in the 10th minute on an Isabella Villaflor pass and completed her hat trick in the 38th with help from Hayley Soriano. Winstanley now has seven goals on the season, the most by a Big Green player in four years.
Charlotte Esty tacked on Dartmouth’s fourth goal in the 76th minute. Charlotte Cyr won her varsity debut in goal with five saves, and Soriano finished with two assists.
Dartmouth returns to Ivy League play at Yale on Saturday.
WAITSFIELD, Vt. — Gretl Josselyn and Bella Boeri recorded their first varsity points, each setting up a second-half goal in the Hurricanes’ third straight victory.
After a scoreless first half, Eleanor Hinckley potted a Josselyn feed four minutes into the second half for her fourth goal of the season for Hartford (6-5-0). Boeri earned her debut point with a pass that Reilly Slusser finished in the 67th minute for her sixth goal of the campaign.
Erin Thompson recorded a four-save shutout for Hartford, which visits Woodstock on Saturday night.
LANGDON, N.H. — The Cardinals (11-0-1) bounced back from Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Kearsarge to blank their archrivals on the road.
Stevens, which remains atop the NHIAA Division III standings, hosts Hopkinton on Thursday. The Cards, who fell to the Hawks in last year’s D-III final, beat them earlier this season.
SHARON — The Presidents spoiled the Phoenix’s senior day by holding off the home team until converting a goalmouth scramble following a corner kick in overtime.
Sharon heads to Twin Valley on Saturday.
LEBANON — The Raiders’ scoring difficulties continued in a loss to the second-place team in NHIAA Division II. Lebanon sustained its second straight shutout, its third in four games and its ninth of the season.
The Raiders (2-7-3) will look to break out against Pelham on Friday. The contest is also Lebanon’s Play for a Cure game for breast cancer awareness; the Raiders are teaming up with Positive Tracks to raise money for the Upper Valley Aquatic Center’s Pals for Life program, and donations will be accepted at the contest.
PITTSFORD, Vt. — Playing as individuals, Woodstock’s Emily Dean and Mid Vermont Christian’s Allie Leary both finished in the top five at the VPA Division II state girls golf championship at Proctor-Pittsford Country Club.
Dean was third out of 19 golfers with a 27-over-par 99. Leary was one spot back in fourth at 31-over 103.
Otter Valley’s Mia Politano won the individual medal with a 12-over 84. Her Otters finished second as a team to Lake Region, which was paced by individual runner-up Tia Martinez (88).
Team scores: Lake Region 198, Otter Valley 208, Northfield 230, Milton 247, U-32 248.
HUDSON, N.H. — Jack Meehan birdied three of the last four holes of Green Meadow Golf Club’s Prairie front nine for an even-par 35 that secured in individual medal in the Marauders’ final team match of the regular season.
Justin Alderdice shot 37, Patrick Daley carded 38, and Cameron Woods and Natalie Morhun both finished at 42 for Hanover (16-6).
“We’re hoping to be fourth because the top four play together (at states),” Hanover coach John Donnelly said. “Realistically, Bedford is likely out of reach unless we have a really good day, but we have a realistic chance of coming in second, which would be nice. That would be an immediate goal.”
The NHIAA Division I team state tournament is Tuesday at Stonebridge Country Club in Goffstown.
Team scores: Hanover 194, Dover 203, Nashua South, 232.
HANOVER — Behind a 13-kill, two-block night from Willa Parkins, the Marauders (4-7-0) posted a 25-17, 25-10, 25-14 victory over the winless Cougars (0-12).
Hanover visits St. Thomas on Thursday.
Correction
Nicole Salls recorded 10 saves for Stevens High in a 1-0 field hockey loss to Lebanon on Tuesday. An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified the Stevens goaltender.