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Pelham loses 4-goal lead in finals, falls in OT

Sunday, June, 14 By David Willis
Staff writer

EXETER — What appeared so close to glory quickly turned into heartbreak for Pelham.
The Pythons led by four goals and were seemingly in control late in the third quarter before Trinity raced back to tie the game, then score the winner in sudden-death overtime to beat the Pythons 7-6 and claim the New Hampshire Division 3 title Saturday afternoon.
A victory would have given Pelham its first state title since the program began in 2005.
“I thought the kids played a great game,” said Pelham coach Joe Young. “They battled for four quarters. That is a very good Trinity team. It was the kind of game that was going to come down to the last possession, and that’s what happened. It’s tough that moving pick call made such a big difference.”
The Pythons had a ball on offense first to start the sudden death extra session, but could not manage a shot on goal as their possession ended when a player was called for a moving pick. Trinity then took possession and never gave the ball back, scoring with 1:45 to go in the four-minute overtime.
“That is one terrific Pelham team,” said Pioneers coach Mike Martinez. “We tried to come out and pressure them. In the first half we didn’t do that. Then, in the second half the nerves settled down and we could. We had to make every possession count because this Pelham team doesn’t make many mistakes.”
Pelham grabbed the lead just 1:30 into the game as Nick Wolfrom scored his first goal of the day. Trinity tied the game, but Bryce Blanchard scored late in the first period and star Luke Tracy netted a goal in the second as the Pythons took a 3-1 lead into halftime.
Another goal by Wolfrom and a Tim Callahan blast from 20 yards out gave Pelham a 5-1 advantage with 4:08 to go in the third. That, combined with a crushing Pythons defense which rarely allowed a shot on goal, gave Pelham seemingly dominant momentum.
Trinity, however, rallied to tie the game early in the fourth. Tracy’s second goal of the game, a rocket from 10 yards away, gave the Pythons the lead again with 6:58 left. But the Pioneers tied it up with 5:11 left.
“There’s a reason Tracy is the Division 3 MVP,” said Martinez. “He’s a fantastic scorer. In the fourth and overtime we just put our best defender on him and told him to lock up on Tracy and not let him score.”
Then, 2:15 into OT, Trinity’s Will Towner scored his sixth goal of the game, setting off a massive celebration.
“This is obviously not the note we wanted to end our season on,” said Young. “This is a terrific group and to go 18-2 is a great accomplishment. I am really going to miss the seniors on this team.”