CONCORD, N.H. – An entire season now comes down to just one night.
The Hollis-Brookline/Derryfield Warriors earned a trip to the NHIAA Division III Boys’ Hockey Finals on Saturday, defeating the Eagles of Kennett 1-0 in an overtime thriller on Wednesday night.
Jacob Roy had the game-winner just over two-and-a-half minutes into the extra period, assisted by sophomore forward Jesse Gertz.
Roy’s shot was the last of 60 combined shots between the two teams during the contest, with Roy’s marking the 40th of the night for the Warriors.
Kennett squandered a five-minute power play in the third period off Quinn Silvio’s boarding penalty in what was probably the best opportunity for either side in regulation.
Ultimately, it just was a matter of time before one side came out on top in this grind-it-out affair as it became clear that just one mistake would determine a winner.
“They had had great goaltending, so we just kept peppering the shots and saw what we could get and we finally got one to go through,” said Hollis-Brookline/Derryfield Assistant Coach Derek Lautieri. “They didn’t stop fighting. We told the guys just keep it hard and low. After the goal, Jacob reminded me of that, telling me ‘I just shot it low and hard and put it by him.’”
Roy’s goal wasn’t a matter of planning, but a result of the Warriors’ philosophy of persistence and deeper roster.
“It was going to be an ugly goal no matter what, we were just trying to wear them down,” said Lautieri.” They had a short bench, so we just wanted to wear them down and make the most of the opportunity when it presented itself.”
Hollis-Brookline/Derryfield returns to Concord for a championship showdown against Berlin-Gorham, with puck drop slated for 7 p.m. Earlier in the day, Berlin-Gorham rallied from a 3-0 deficit in the third period to record a 5-3 victory over Hanover-Stevens-Mount Royal.
“I’ve dreamt of this moment for a long time,” said Roy. “I think if we bring our A-game against Berlin, things will turn out alright.”
Hollis-Brookline/Derryfield is now the last remaining winter sports team with participants in Manchester’s high schools.
The other two remaining Manchester teams could not make it into their respective finals with Trinity losing to Winnacunnet 61-48 in the Division I Boys’ Basketball semifinals and Portsmouth Christian defeating Holy Family 55-53 in the Division IV Boys’ Basketball semifinals.
