HANOVER — If there was one player Wednesday on Merriman-Branch Field who should have been smothered by the opposing defense, it was Hanover High’s Josie Laabs.
A proven scorer, the sophomore was nonetheless left unmarked in front of the Lebanon net Wednesday as the first overtime of the teams’ NHIAA Division II preliminary round field hockey playoff game ticked away.
With 4 minutes, 43 seconds remaining and the arch-rivals playing seven-a-side per their sport’s rules, Hanover’s Maggie Higgins drove along the end line and toward the right post before cutting back and whacking the ball into the crease.
The cross found a seam between goaltender Ashlee Blashock, lunging off her line, and defenders Harper Rancourt and Lindsey Stark, running back to try and help.
On the opposite end of the feed waited Laabs, a German exchange student and Hanover’s leading scorer. A swing of the sophomore’s stick resulted in her ninth goal of the year and boosted eighth-seeded Hanover past ninth-ranked Lebanon, 2-1, and into a Saturday quarterfinal at top-seeded John Stark.
“Their goalie is great, but we saw (during the teams’ regular-season game) that she came out far on the right side,” said Hanover coach Jean Essex. “So we worked on taking the ball low, then taking it back high and putting it toward the far post.
“You have to have the composure to field the ball, stop it, breathe and then put it in. It was beautifully executed.”
Hanover pinned a 3-0 loss on visiting Lebanon on Oct. 5 and also dominated much of Wednesday’s first quarter. Savannah Walczak scored at the right post out of a goalmouth scramble to give the hosts a 1-0 lead with 1:30 remaining in that stanza.
Had Hanover (9-5-1) been able to double its lead, the contest might have been all but over. Instead, Lebanon slowly rallied, no longer ceding loose balls as easily and then starting to actually win them. Speedy wing McKenzie Ray drove up the right wing before pushing the ball toward the circle, setting up a goal by freshman Peyson Fowler-Thorsen with three minutes remaining in the third quarter.
Lebanon coach Amanda Valliere said her team, despite having regularly proven it can play with Hanover, must always overcome rivalry jitters when visiting its neighbor. Her players were hesitant and chasing the Bears early on.
“We were slower than molasses in the first quarter,” Valliere said. “Hanover came out ready to go, and they did everything right. Our second quarter was better and by the third quarter, we started to click and got adjusted to the (artificial turf). We had our sticks down and ready.”
Valliere noted that Hanover gets all 10 of its field players back on defense, hustle that required the Raiders (7-7-1) to push their midfielders forward more than usual in an effort to at least draw penalty corners.
Lebanon reached last year’s semifinals, but this fall’s finish didn’t feel like much of a shortcoming.
“It was such a good game, and I’m so proud of these girls’ growth during the last three weeks,” Valliere said. “Today was tangible proof.”
Hanover, top-seeded for last season’s tournament before being upset in the quarterfinals, this time looks to be the spoiler. The Bears lost, 3-0, on John Stark’s grass field on Sept. 30, but it was the visitors’ third game in four days.
Hanover finished the regular season with 10 contests in 18 days, compression required because of a COVID-19 outbreak on its roster that still had some players sidelined early this week. Another Bear is out for the season because of mononucleosis.
“This is a smart and resilient group of girls who have overcome a lot of adversity this season,” Essex said. “We’re just going to regroup and see what happens Saturday.”
Tris Wykes can be reached at twykes@vnews.com.