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Simply the best

Saturday, November, 17 By Dan Guttenplan
Staff writer

LOWELL | It took all of five minutes before it was evident to all in attendance at the Newburyport girls soccer team's state title game Saturday that the Clippers were the superior squad.

Position-by-position, the Clippers had more speed, power and general know-how than their Division 3 state final counterparts from Bromfield. The best player on the field, Jillian Kinter, wasted no time in asserting the Clippers' dominance with a now-you-see-me, now-you-don't charge to the net in the 14th minute. At the time, it appeared as if Kinter's goal would open the floodgates for a Newburyport scoring barrage.

It made sense in a way.

The Clippers had certainly paid their dues en route to the state title game. No one would've questioned the validity of their championship even if the clinching victory came to the tune of a 6-0 defeat of an inferior Central Mass. foe. Who could argue with Newburyport's 20-1-1 record entering the game? Certainly no one would say the Clippers had a cupcake tournament schedule | not after the way they beat all of their ghosts-of-controversies-past en route to the title game.

But state titles don't come easy.

No one had to remind the Clippers of that fact when Bromfield goalie Lindsey Burke turned away shot after shot in the first half, and Trojans striker Maddie Darden slipped a perfect shot into the upper left corner of the Newburyport goal less than two minutes before halftime. "We put so much pressure on their goalie for an entire half, and they came down to our end and score on their first opportunity," Newburyport coach Robb Gonnam said. "It seems like that happens all the time."

Even with a 1-1 score at halftime, the game appeared to be Newburyport's to lose. Eventually the Clipper shots would find the back of the net, it seemed.

Wouldn't you know the first 30 minutes of the second half played out almost exactly like the first?

Countless Newburyport scoring opportunities. Countless Bromfield saves.

And then in the biggest shocker of the game, Bromfield was the team to break the 1-1 tie on another perfect shot by Darden with only 8:09 to play.

Now Newburyport was in trouble | uncharted territory for a team with a 21-1-1 record.

"We haven't always been a comeback team," Newburyport goalie Lindsey Tomacz said. "That's never really been our style."

No, this is a team that wins 6-0. This is a team that cruisies through a Cape Ann League schedule with the exception of occasional matchups with North Andover or Masconomet. This is a team that plays with leads.

But for a team known for putting pressure on its opponents, the pressure was now on Newburyport.

"I think our players got a little scared," Gonnam said. "They may have realized we were extremely close to losing what we'd worked so hard for all year. This has been two or three years in the making, and we were a few minutes away from throwing it all away."

Maybe the second Bromfield goal was a wakeup call. Maybe it was the exact point in the game when Lady Luck changed sides.

But if the Clippers played the entire state final the way they played the last eight minutes, they would've won 20-0. Two minutes after Bromfield's second goal, Newburyport was awarded a free kick from 25 yards out after an inadvertent handball. Clippers junior Laura Muise booted the kick of her life, sending a low line drive that had just enough sidespin to elude the outstretched arms of Burke. Tie game.

"We'd been dodging bullets all day," Bromfield coach Gary Wenger said. "Newburyport's great. We felt teriffic about being on the same field as them. We just needed to keep the ball out of the net for five more minutes."

It's funny how much can happen in five minutes. Less than two minutes after Muise's game-tying rocket, Newburyport appeared to notch the game-winning goal when Maggie Mahoney played a rebound into the top of the net. The 300-or-so Clippers fans in attendance were jubilant, Newburyport players sprinted around in celebration, Bromfield players collapsed to the ground, and one official raised his yellow flag to signal a penalty.

The celebration would have to wait another 1:21. Illegal throw-in.

But this was a team that wouldn't be denied.

With 39 seconds left to play, Taylor Bresnahan played the role of hero, finding a crossing pass from teammate Veronica Porier that she was able to drill into the back of the net on a header.

"This team refused to lose all year," Bresnahan said. "A state championship meant everything for us. We were willing to give everything we had to win one."

It wouldn't have been the same if that effort was unnecessary.