RallyNorth.net

Danvers' seniors season ends short of state final

Thursday, November, 15 By Matt Jenkins
Staff writer

Danvers High girls soccer coach Jimmy Hinchion didn't have a speech prepared for the postgame last night.

Even if he had, it couldn't have eased the pain of the 16 seniors who fell short in their bid for a state title. Meeting their match for the first time this postseason, Danvers fell at the hands of a powerful Oliver Ames team, 1-0, at Veterans Memorial Field in the Eastern Mass. final. Hinchion has delivered the season-ending speech several times before, but it hasn't become any easier over the years.

"Nine years of coaching, and I've had to give it nine times," Hinchion said. "I told them there was nothing I could say to make them feel better. They'll realize (eventually) that they had an unbelievable season." The Falcons finished 19-4 with their first North title since 2003.

It has been an unbelievable season for Danvers | but it's also been an unbelievable four years for the seniors, many of whom have played varsity since freshman or sophomore year.

The team compiled a 67-13-8 record during the four years they spent at the school, and it's going to be difficult for all of them to imagine life without Danvers soccer.

"It does make it that much harder, having the 16 seniors, including the team manager," Hinchion said. "They've had a great run, and (this) will sting for awhile.

"It's tough with seniors every year. Unless you win the state championship you have to make the speech I just made." If nothing else, the Falcons can take solace in the fact that they didn't beat themselves in their final game. The truth is Oliver Ames was the better team.

No matter how much effort Danvers put forth, it simply couldn't penetrate a Tigers' defense that was harder to crack than the DaVinci Code.

Oliver Ames had opportunity after opportunity (with 10 corner kicks), while Danvers rarely advanced the ball into the penalty area.

"They played a difficult style. They crush it. They boom it out and don't play it on the ground the way we liked to play," Hinchion said. "They disrupted us all day, and they converted on their chance. We didn't really get a whole lot of chances, so you can't really be sour about it."

The tears came immediately after the final whistle sounded. But it didn't take long for the reflection to begin.

Captains Jackie Gauthier, Katelyn Hartnett, Ashley Sullivan, Caraline Moholland and Casey King have been the leaders of the senior group all year, and each made her presence felt at some point last night.

They were joined by classmates Keri Mroszczyk, Emily Smith, Kelli Getchell, Lauren Hovey, Alicia Franklin, Allie Read, Amanda Walke, Megan Gilbert, Chrissy Barrows, Katelyn Gilbert and manager Cate DiNitto in making this a very memorable Falcon team.

"Obviously we would have liked to go a step further, but we did make it to the Eastern Mass. championship game and for any team to do that in any year is an amazing thing," Moholland said. "To do it with this group of girls, the other 15 seniors on the team, made it an incredible season for all of us. It's really something special."

Moholland, who stopped nine shots under heavy pressure, has been playing with the majority of this crew since the fifth grade. And while the wins have piled up over the years, the Falcon players who will be moving on will have far greater memories than their win-loss records.

"I'll just remember how many of them turned into great friends," Moholland said. "From when we started in 5th grade, I was the only kid from my elementary school on that team. I didn't know any of the girls, and every single one of them has turned into a best friend that I'll have for the rest of my life. That's something special that I'll never forget about them."

Additional stories:

• Danvers falls to Oliver Ames in state semifinals