Wins over the Bishop Guertin and Concord High contingents last week enabled the Londonderry High girls’ soccer squad to up its 2014 record to 4-0.
The undefeated Lady Lancers (3-0) notched a big early-season win at home against the tough Bishop Guertin Lady Cardinals of Nashua on Wednesday, Sept. 10, potting the lone goal in the first half and then working diligently to make it stand up while attempting to extend the lead.
There were a total of 33 shots on net in the hard-fought contest, with Londonderry goalie Jackie Luckhardt making 18 of them in contributing in a significant way to the 1-0 shutout.
Freshman Erin Barnes netted the game’s only goal – set up by Haley Laliberte – in the 28th minute of the first half.
“We’re a young team. Our place in the standings at the end of the season will be determined by whether or not we win the one-goal games. It was one of those games that we had to win,” said LHS veteran coach Derek Dane.
The LHS team wound up with many reasons to feel good about the victory, which lowered the Guertin side’s record below the .500 mark to 1-2.
“We were out-shot but had the better chances,” said Dane. “Their keeper made a good save, down to her right, to deny one chance and we hit the crossbar once, both in the second half. Their chances were primarily routine shots from distance and crosses. We defended well as a team. BG played the second half with four forwards, and we did a good job of not letting them get behind us. It was a great win for the team. They worked extremely hard for it.”
Londonderry then got a better battle from a winless (0-3) Concord High crew than some folks might have expected in the state capital Friday, Sept. 12. But when the final whistle sounded the Lady Lancers had a 2-1 victory.
Both sides potted a goal in the first half, but the locals notched the eventual game-winner when standout Emily Crocetti tallied for the second time with nine minutes left in regulation time.
Crocetti had given her Lady Lancers a 1-0 lead 22 minutes into the match when she was set up by MacKenzie Donovan. But the Crimson Tide answered before the half was over to leave the teams deadlocked at the break.
However, Crocetti was set up by Donovan once again in the 71st minute of the match to give Londonderry a 2-1 lead that would stand up.
LHS keeper Luckhardt made six saves in helping her team move its record to 4-0, and Concord goalie Steph Oberg made 10 stops in helping to keep her side in the tight contest.
Upcoming opponents for the Lady Lancers that they will take on at home are the winless Merrimack High Tomahawks on Sept. 23 and the 3-1 Pinkerton Academy Astros on Sept. 27.