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Third-seeded Londonderry fell to No. 4 Exeter, the defending state champions, 1-0 in a hard-fought game that was won with just 12 minutes to go in regulation.

"It's really hard," said coach Jim Tremblay. "We have a team that certainly, as a seasonal goal, had the championship in mind. We lost to Exeter 1-0 in the regular season, and we hoped for a different outcome this time, and changed up our strategy slightly.

Margaret McSpiritt scored with six minutes remaining in regulation and No. 3 Londonderry made it stand up for a 1-0 win over No. 10 Timberlane. Tori McCombs had the assist for the Lancers (15-2-1) and Elise Berry made four saves to secure the win. Timberlane received a fine effort from keeper Courtney Lins, who made six saves.

After a scoreless first half, Tori McCombs scored eight minutes into the second half and Londonderry went on to beat Manchester Memorial, 3-0. Kellie Walsh and Kelley Griffin had the other Lancers goals.

The Londonderry defense, led by senior Kim Larie, held Goffstown to just three shots on net as the Lancers rolled, 6-0. The scoring was spread with only Caitlin Greene scoring multiple times. With the win, the Lancers improve to 8-2-1 on the season.

Nikki Heffernan scored a pair of goals to lead Londonderry to a 2-1 win over perennial power Manchester West.

Whoever came up with the phrase "making lemonade out of lemons" would have probably enjoyed spending a few minutes talking to Erin Griffin.

The dynamic senior captain for the Londonderry girls soccer team was back on the field Wednesday for the Lancers' 3-0 win over Salem. But with Griffin dressed in long pants and sneakers instead of shorts and cleats, yesterday probably marked the first occasion in the last four years that the Blue Devil coaching staff did not have to warn their team to keep an eye on the lightning-quick striker from Londonderry.

Sophomore Kelley Griffin had a great game, leading Londonderry over Salem 3-0. Griffin, Kim Larie and Tori McCombs scored for the Lancers and Katherine Donnelly and McCombs earned assists.

2006 record: 14-3-2, lost Class L semis

Returning starters (9): Elise Berry, Sr., goalie; Katherine Donnelly, Sr., midfield; Erin Griffin, Sr., forward; Kim Larie, Sr., defense; Kelsey Wood, Sr., defense; Dana Boyle, Soph., midfield; Kelley Griffin, Soph., forward; Margaret McSpiritt, Soph., midfield; Tori McCombs, Soph., midfield