NASHUA, N.H. – They were mad as heck, and the Hollis Brookline-Derryfield Warriors used that to their advantage on Saturday.
They stormed off the ice, furious at only themselves after giving up the game-tying goal with 17 seconds left in regulation in their Division III quarterfinal with Conway Arena vs. No. 7 Kearsarge-Lebanon.
When they returned for sudden death overtime, it took them just 1:22 to make amends on a Torin White backhander for the 3-2 victory that puts them in Wednesday’s 7:30 p.m. semifinals vs. No. 3 Belmont-Gilford at Plymouth State University.
“We definintely came out mad,” White said. “We knew after that goal in the third period, we were a little bit down, but we got back.”
They came out with a vengance, put one rush on K-P, whom they beat twice by three goals each in the regular season, before the visitors just missed a chance at the other end.
But the No. 2, 16-3 Warriors wasted no time in bringing the puck back into the opponent’s zone, and when K-P’s Nolan Fullerton slipped near the blue line, the puck stayed in and White, a defenseman took advantage and flipped it past Kearsarge-Plymouth goalie Owen Garzia.
“I saw the opportunity to go after it and backhanded it,” White said.
But the visitors had an upset on their minds when Lincoln Manson fired one from just inside the blue line with 17 seconds left in regulation that beat Warriors goalie Cavin Quinn, stunning him and the Conway crowd.
“We put one of our best shooters at the point and he buried it,” Kearsarge-Plymouth coach Justin Garzia said.
But they weren’t able to harness that momentum.
“In the overtime we were a little too hesitant to move the puck up the ice,” Garzia said. “You look at that last play, they did a great job all afternoon keeping pucks in. They kept us running, that’s what they do, they have a good forecheck and a lot of their goals came off those kinds of plays.”
HB took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Paul Vachon (assists to Luke Vella and Kyle Sanborn) at 12:54 of the first period, but the visitors (9-9-2) tied it on a goal by Brock Tanner at 5:21 of the second. HB grabbed the lead again just 3:04 into the third on a goal by Vella, but then came the stunning tally to send things to OT after each team had called time out in the final 1:12 of regulation.
Oh to be a fly on the wall in that Warrior locker room prior to OT.
“We just couldn’t get the puck out of the zone,” Sanborn said. “They were mad, we’ve been down that road a few times. We went in there, kind of put our heads together, kept a positive attitude, and came out firing.
“We need to bury our chances, and it comes down to we have to take advantage of our opportunities.
We were all over them all three periods.”
Perhaps the way they won makes the Warriors, winners of seven straight, a bit stronger. Their last loss, incidentally, came at the hands of B-G back on Feb. 12.
“I think it does,” Sanborn said. “I think it shows the kids if they don’t quit, they can do it. … It’s high school sports, and it’s about momentum. Coming out after the third period, they (K-P) had it.
“One shot on net (at the end of regulation) changed everything. But then one shot the other way changed it again.”
For the better this time.
