Courtmanche clutch in Hall’s quarterfinal victory

three goals before the break.

“It’s never going to be easy,” Seguro said. “But we were ready to play. We were locked in and focused and took advantage of opportunities against a very good team.”

Hall’s first opportunity came with 23:42 left to play. Clay Courtmanche, the team’s leading scorer, worked around his defender on the right side of the goal and flicked a pass to Jamie Cowan, who deftly touched the ball into the lower left corner for the 1-0 lead.

Courtmanche, who served as the team’s starting goalie last year and will likely play that position in college, would add to the lead a short time later. With 16:23 to play, he found some space from a Cheshire defender for a clear shot at goal. Cheshire keeper Matt Pasini got a hand on the ball but not enough to deflect.

“He’s a great talent and we rely on him big, not just to score but to set guys up,” Seguro said of Courtmanche. “But this is really a team effort, there’s not one guy that’s carrying us. This is probably my most complete team I’ve had and that has a lot to do with our success so far.”

Hall would build on its lead a short time later. With 10:48 left in the first half, Liam Wilson found Isaiah Perry open in front of the net. Perry would put the ball past Pasini for Hall’s third and final goal of the afternoon.

The Rams would have their opportunities in the second half, as Hall settled into a more defensive role. But Cheshire, despite playing a better game in the second, was unable to find the back of the net and trim into the Hall lead.

For Seguro, though, it all started by capitalizing on the early opportunities, something Hall wasn’t able to do against Warde in the second round.

“Fairfield Warde came in here and they were tough. They were ready to play,” Seguro said. “But it still comes down to putting your chances away. We did that here and that’s how you get this outcome.”