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WORCESTER — What took a girls soccer program 15 years to reach, Central Catholic’s Jill Lane needed only a few seconds — and a powerful foot — to secure. The senior midfielder rifled home Central’s second goal of the night, powering the Raiders to the school’s first state soccer title with a 2-1 victory over Shrewsbury in the Division 1 championship. An incredulous Shrewsbury coach Chip DelPrete called it a “shot of a lifetime.” “She’s a gutsy player,” Central coach Casey Grange said. “I think she took two people on ... The keeper was playing the cross but (Lane) stepped up and snuck it behind her. It was a phenomenal goal from a phenomenal player.” The goal came with 8:11 left and 15 minutes after Shrewsbury tied the score. Lane appeared to be running out of space to the right of the net, but drilled the game-winner from a severe angle. “The ball kind of went over my head into the corner,” Lane said. “I controlled it and got it to the net a little bit, but I had a weird angle. I just hit it the right way and it went over the goalie’s head into the top corner. But I’ve gotten goals like that before sometimes. I just watched it go, thinking ‘This is amazing.’ ” Lane, who finished the year with 12 goals, might have been nonchalant, but it stunned the Colonials. “There were two good teams playing tonight,” said DelPrete, whose squad finished 15-4-2. “Somebody’s got to win. That was a shot of a lifetime (Lane) made from the corner. That was a laser beam. My defender did the right thing, shading her outside and pushing her to the end line, but she turned and made just a perfect shot.” The Raiders (18-1-3), who had not lost since the second game of the season, looked intent on making their first trip to the state-title game a success, dominating action from the start. Central outshot the Colonials 11-6 the first half. And when freshman Courtney Walsh connected from seven yards out off a pass from Alex Riddle, the Raiders grabbed the lead with six minutes left before intermission. Lane and Walsh each had four attempts in the opening half while. Those two combined with Gabie Polce and Alexa Poulin to keep pressure on the Shrewsbury goalie. “My assistants and I were very good at evaluating the other team right away,” said Grange, who never had the chance to scout Shrewsbury. “We marked their best player right away (senior Emily Benjamin) and she kept switching all over the field, so our girls knew right away that Nicolette (Pelrine) was going to be on her. Like she’s done all year, she shut (Benjamin) down.” Shrewsbury, however, tied the score midway through the second when Jess Morana hauled in a save by Jill Hatzikonstantis off a corner kick and popped the rebound past the Central goalie. “Corner kicks have sort of been our Achilles’ heel,” Grange said. “So if we can stop them on corner kicks, I know we’ll be golden.” Fifteen years after the program got its start, it was Lane who had the Midas touch. Central Catholic 2, Shrewsbury 1 Division 1 State Final Goals: CC — Courtney Walsh, Jill Lane; S — Jess Morana Assists: CC — Alex Riddle Saves: CC — Jane Hatzikonstantis 7; S — Davinne Zadravec 5 Shrewsbury (15-4-2):    0 1 — 1 Central Catholic (18-1-3):    1 1 — 2

 LYNN — Everyone on the Central Catholic bench sprinted as quickly as they could over to Nicolette Pelrine and mobbed the Raiders senior with hugs right after she kicked a loose ball by Franklin keeper Ellie Getchell for the game-winner with 4:16 left in overtime in the Division 1 state semifinal yesterday. 

LYNN — Alex Riddle’s entry pass was so slow that recipient Gabie Polce’s entire soccer career flashed before her eyes. “I was thinking this is all I’ve worked for since I was 3 years old,” the Central Catholic senior said about the second overtime sequence, “to get to my senior year and make it past the (Division 1) North finals.“ When the ball finally traversed the Manning Field turf to Polce, the senior redirected it past lunging goalie Jessica Underhill and into the Westford Academy goal, making every Raiders’ dream come true. For the first time ever, Central (16-1-3) won the sectional championship, 2-1, and will move on to the state semifinals against South champ Franklin (19-2-1) tomorrow at Manning Field at 5 p.m. “That was probably the slowest rolling ball I’ve ever seen in my life,” Polce said. “I don’t even remember how it got to me. It’s just that it was the last 10 (minutes of overtime), this is my senior year and I’m not ready for this to be done.” Riddle added: “I saw Gabie making the run and I just kind of lifted it up over the defense hoping she’d be there. I had it in my mind, I had the vision and Gabie was there to put it away, finish it off.” It was a glorious end to a marathon day for Central as the starting time for its game was pushed back more than one and a half hours due to two earlier tourney contests going to shootouts. After a scoreless first half due to highway robberies by stellar Raiders netminder Jane Hatzikonstantis (seven saves) on shots by Caitlyn Paltsios and Jennifer Larrick, the third seeds struck first. Taking a direct kick from 35 yards out at the 55th minute, senior Mikayla Hickey hooked the ball over Underhill and into the top right corner of the cage, burying her head into her hands after the ball touched the twine. “I had an adrenaline rush,” Hickey detailed of her second tourney direct kick goal, the first kicking off an 8-0 rout of Everett. “Honestly, I don’t know what I felt till it went in. Thinking about it makes me tear up, it was unbelievable.” Ninth-seed Westford struck back 11 minutes later when Rachel Mahan headed in a perfect Larrick corner kick, but all it did was charge the Raiders up. “I didn’t know how the team would react after having a goal scored on them,” head coach Casey Grange said of a now-broken streak of 10 straight shutouts as Tewksbury last found the mark on Oct. 8. “It didn’t even faze them, really, they just got hungrier. We kept attacking right from the kickoff after (Westford) scored.” After four-star scoring attempts in regulation from Polce and Riddle and from Courtney Walsh in the second extra session, the end finally came. “On paper, our goal was to get past the second round of the tourney because that’s where we’ve been stuck for a couple of years,” Grange said. “But the second we did that, I said cross that off, we’ve got to win the North. Now we can cross that off and just go all the way. We might as well.”

Central Catholic 2, Westford Academy 1 (2 OT) Goals: CC — Mikayla Hickey, Gabie Polce; WA — Rachel Mahan Assists: CC — Alex Riddle; WA — Jennifer Larrick Saves: CC — Jane Hatzikonstantis 7; WA — Jessica Underhill 9 Westford Academy (14-6-2):    0 1 0 0 — 1 Central Catholic (16-1-3):    0 1 0 1 — 2

ANDOVER — Central senior goalie Jane Hatzikonstantis has looked like a veteran in net all year for the Raiders girls soccer team despite this being her first season starting on varsity. And she credits her dad Steve — an ex-Greek professional soccer player — for much of her success. Hatzikonstantis of Tewksbury had another big day yesterday. She made 14 saves to record her 15th shutout, as No. 3 Central beat No. 2 Masconoment 1-0 in the semifinals of the Division 1 North tournament at Andover High School. Hatzikonstantis and the Central defense hasn’t allowed a goal in the past 10 games. “I worked so hard and I couldn’t have done it without my dad,” Hatzikonstantis said. “My dad was a forward. He played in Greece. She was a professional and played Division 2. My dad, he has like so much knowledge of the game of soccer. He specializes in being a forward but he also knows from scoring on goalies, what I should do as a goalie, which helps me out a lot. He’s had a big influence on me.” Hatzikonstantis made one stellar save in the first half yesterday on a shot off a cross pass. “(The shooter) was a little outside the six and it was more like a reaction save,” Hatzikonstantis said. “I just stuck my hand up and got it.” Central coach Casey Grange said Hatzikonstantis has stepped in this year like she had previous varsity experience. “She is a legit, good goalie,” Grange said. “Her technique is phenomenal and she comes up with the big saves. She doesn’t bobble anything. She can go as high as she wants (to any level of college soccer). I think if any college coaches where here tonight they would try to get her information, for sure.” Hatzikonstantis, who has been playing goalie since she was 10, said some colleges have shown interest in her this fall and Quinnipiac is her top choice right now. She has yet to receive a scholarship offer. She wants to study either physical therapy or athletic training in college.    “Me and some coaches have been talking and they are going to come watch me in a tournament I am going to play in in December,” she said. Hatzikonstantis also gave credit to her brother Bobby, a Central freshman, for helping her become a better keeper. “Whenever I want to go to the soccer field, he will always come with me,” she said. “He will always shoot on me or help me with what I need.” Central freshman Courtney Walsh scored the game’s lone goal. She was assisted by fellow freshman Stephanie May in the first half. “Steph May crossed it in right from defense into the center of the 18 and I just kind of put it away,” Walsh said. “It couldn’t have been more of a perfect ball.” Grange added about Walsh: “She’s probably one of the most composed athletes I’ve seen in a while. I think there’s a lot of pressure on you as a freshman to finish a breakaway. And that’s probably her third breakaway of the season. We actually had her on JV for a scrimmage and the JV coach was like, ‘Oh, no, she’s got to play varsity.’ And she’s really been a solid contributor.”

Central Catholic led 3-0 at halftime and surged for five more goals in its first round victory over Everett 8-0. Central Catholic had eight different goal scorers in the game. Central plays Concord-Carlisle on Wednesday in the Quarterfinals of the Girls Soccer North Division 1.

Jane Hatzikonstantis had her 12th shutout of the season and Central Catholic rolled to a 5-0 victory over Swampscott. Central had five different players score goals during its senior night.

Central Catholic's girls soccer team clipped Haverhill 2-0 to eliminate its hopes for a state tourney berth. Gabie Polce and Jillian Lane scored for the Raiders (11-1-3).

Jane Hatzikonstantis made nine saves for her 10th shutout of the season as Central Catholic played Lowell to a 0-0 tie.

Central Catholic won the MVC title for the third year in a row with its 5-0 win against Chelmsford. Jane Hatzikonstantis had her ninth shutout this season, stopping 11 shots in net.

Central Catholic won the MVC title for the third year in a row with its 5-0 win against Chelmsford. Jane Hatzikonstantis had her ninth shutout this season, stopping 11 shots in net.