Needham seizes its moment
When the final whistle blew, Needham’s defense converged on the turf at Manning Field, embracing for a well-deserved moment of hugs and handshakes.
Behind another stellar performance from the defense, second-seeded Needham defeated No. 11 Winchester, 2-0, in Tuesday’s Division 1 semifinal in Lynn to advance to a second straight state final and third since 2019. The Rockets will play Wednesday’s No. 1 Concord-Carlisle vs. No. 5 Weymouth winner Saturday.
“I have a lot of confidence in our defense,” Needham coach Jimmy Odierna said with a smile. “They’re phenomenal.”
For the second game in a row, Needham scored early on. In the fourth minute, Jonathan Ross sent a corner kick into the box, where it was headed home by Matthew Brayer, a senior captain who returned Sunday from a broken ankle.
The Rockets (18-2-2) doubled their lead in the 30th minute on another set piece. Harry Clapham beat a few defenders down the left side and fired a cross into the box that was volleyed in by Zander Laidlaw.
“They’re an extremely talented team and very tough to break down,” said Winchester coach Vinnie Musto, whose team finished 16-2-2.
Division 2 State
Oliver Ames 2, Melrose 1 —
Craig Churchill’s brother, Luke, scored the winner in 2022 to send Oliver Ames to the state title game, so it was only fitting that Craig, a junior for the sixthseeded Tigers, netted the winner this time around.
After Ryan Linhares sent a corner in during the 87 th minute, Churchill’s head rose above the Melrose defense and propelled Oliver Ames (18-3-1) over the No. 7 Red Hawks (16-4-2) Tuesday night at Xaverian in Westwood.
“It was great to hear everyone cheering,” Churchill said. “I just knew right away, pulled the shirt off and pointed to the crowd.”
After a scoreless first half, the Red Hawks capitalized on a defensive mistake that allowed senior Jovan Ssebugwawo to score in the 42nd minute.
Like many times this season, the Tigers had to rally, and senior Joey Carney came through in the 57 th minute.
Oliver Ames will face No. 5 Wakefield or No. 8 Hopkinton in Saturday’s championship match (time/location TBD).
Division 3 State
Norwell 2, Dighton-Rehoboth 0 — With both defenses making space to shoot hard to come by, Tuesday’s Division 3 boys soccer semifinal between third-seeded Norwell and 26th-seeded Dighton-Rehoboth had the feeling that only one goal might be necessary to book a ticket to Saturday’s state final.
Norwell senior Ronan Blake pounced on a rare mistake from the D-R defense, stealing the ball at the edge of the box, dribbling around the goalkeeper and slotting home the opening goal two minutes into the second half as the Clippers defeated the Falcons at Weymouth High School.
“What you saw there was, the payoff of the mentality and the hard work and the dedication of the game plan those guys showed,” said Norwell coach Mike O’Dea. “That wasn’t a fluke, not a mistake, it was wellorganized, sustained pressure and we got the payoff we were looking for.”
Sophomore Bret Amorosino doubled the lead in the 54th minute redirecting a beautifully placed set piece from senior Zach Bello.
The Clippers will play for their second state title in three years against No. 4 Pembroke on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
Pembroke 2, Oakmont 1 — The fourth-seeded Titans had a game for the ages to reach the state finals for the first time in program history by defeating No. 1 Oakmont at Walpole High School.
Junior Colin Blake wasted no time when he scored in the very first minute. In the second half, senior captain Matt McAuliffe headed in a corner, giving the Titans a comfortable lead.
But Pembroke’s defense, led by junior Jack Gill, was the key to success.
“I’m so happy for Jack,” said Scott. “He’s obviously not the biggest guy and I’ve definitely been critical of him in terms of asking more of him all the time.”
Division 4 State
Lynnfield 2, Hampshire 1 — Dillon Reilly wanted to make sure the second-seeded Pioneers (182-2) got off to a fast start in the semifinal.
The Lynnfield junior delivered, scoring twice in the victory over No. 3 Hampshire (18-1-3) at Doyle Field in Leominster. Reilly got the scoring started in the third minute and added another in the 30th to give the Pioneers a 2-0 halftime lead.
“Its all that I’ve ever dreamed about,” said Reilly on going to the state final against the Gardner-Monomoy winner. “It’s all I’ve been able to think about, I haven’t been able to pay attention in school.”
Division 5 State
Westport 2, Boston International0— Coach Chris Parker had aspirations of leading a perennial contender when he took over the Westport boys’ soccer program seven years ago.
After going on deep postseason runs the past two seasons, Parker and the Wildcats have reached new heights.
Senior captains Marcos Dutra Africano and Tommy Bernard each notched header goals off free kicks to help eighth-seeded Westport upset fourth-seeded Boston International Newcomers Academy at Scituate High.
“I’ve had a good run these last three years, but this team had that X-factor right from the get-go,” Parker said.
Westport (20-0-1) will play Wednesday’s Douglas-Bromfield winner on Saturday in the state final.
Division 4 State
Monomoy 1, Gardner 0 — The moment wasn’t too big for the Sharks.
After displaying its composure in one-goal victories over eighth-seeded Frontier and topseeded Cohasset in the past two rounds, ninth-seeded Monomoy stuck to the script and showcased its toughness and clutch scoring. Junior Ryan Laramee scored the only goal with 18:52 remaining, and the Sharks defense held on to earn a 1-0 victory over fifth-seeded Gardner in a semifinal at Scituate High.
The win propels Monomoy (16-3-3) into the first state final in program history.
“That was the greatest accomplishment of my life — scoring that goal knowing that we were going to hold up at the end,” Laramee said.