RallyNorth.net

MANCHESTER — A season that had Londonderry on the verge of the school’s first state soccer championship since 1999 ended so quickly last night it shocked the Lancers.
After tying the match with a second-half penalty kick, top-seeded Manchester Central sent second-seeded Londonderry home three minutes into the second overtime and on the wrong end of a 2-1 score in the Division 1 title game in front of 1,212 at Southern New Hampshire University.
“All our kids played their hearts out,” Londonderry coach Jeff Colbert said after Petro Masumbuko rerouted a corner kick that glanced off Lancer goalie Craig Foley for the game winner. “We really played it until the end. I think we’re kind of stunned. It caught us off guard in the corner.
“But I can’t say enough about my team’s effort throughout the season, and the fight they all brought. I know they’re going to be disappointed, but they should certainly keep their heads up because they had a phenomenal season. And tonight they proved they could play with the best.”
Entering the match having won five straight since a 1-1 tie against Central a month earlier and unbeaten in its past 11, Londonderry (16-2-1) controlled the pace in the first half.
“We were certainly trying to press the tempo,” said Colbert, whose club tied the Little Green, 1-1, on Oct. 18. “We’re a fast-paced team. (Central) can run as well, but we thought if we could press their defense, we could catch them off guard.”
The Lancers’ speed kept the unbeaten Little Green (18-0-1) on their heels and Londonderry grabbed the game’s first lead midway through the opening half. A long curling pass from sophomore Brian Greene set up a leaping Kenny Desmarais and the junior midfielder knocked a header inside the right post past goalie Colin Farrington.
Both teams ended up with 17 shots, but it was a penalty kick by Ramiro Osorio that proved the biggest. A tripping penalty against Londonderry eight minutes into the second half provided Osorio the opportunity to tie the match.
“The first half (the Lancers) were much quicker than we were,” Manchester Central coach Chris LaBerge said. “I think we were a little tired. We played a double OT game Monday night (in a 4-3 semifinal win over Concord). But as the game wore on and they got a little tired, I think we kind of matched their speed.”
For Londonderry, Rob Hart, Andre Simmond and Alex Hall each had four shots on goal while Greene and Desmarais both added two.
“I thought we created a lot of chances,” Colbert said. “They had a lot of opportunities. We just didn’t have as many go in as we would’ve liked.”
 

In a battle befitting two of the top boys soccer teams in the Granite State this season, Londonderry and Manchester Central battled through two overtimes to a 1-1 draw. Rob Hart took a feed from Luke D'Urso to put the Lancers on top midway through the first half.