Bishop Brady, Derryfield girls soccer play to a tie

CONCORD – Bishop Brady High School girls soccer coach Andrew Mattarazzo thought his team had lost its bout against Derryfield School four minutes into overtime Thursday at New Hampshire Technical Institute.

That was before he watched Green Giants goalkeeper Mackenzie Wetherill make a head’s-up save, helping Bishop Brady secure a 1-1 draw with the Cougars.

Derryfield’s Kallie Polgrean fired a shot from close range that looked destined for the left corner of the Green Giants’ net. Wetherill (nine saves) was drifting to the right before reversing direction to make the diving save.

“That first overtime, she made a huge save with her right arm and brought it right in,” Mattarazzo said of Wetherill. “She stood on her head for us when we needed her to and made some big saves when we had to (have them).”

Following the tie, both Bishop Brady and Derryfield are 5-8-1 heading into their final two regular-season games. Both teams are trying to secure one of the final playoff spots in Division III.

“I’m glad it ended in a tie because we both needed a point and both teams really put it out there,” Cougars coach Pete Miller said.

Derryfield opened the game’s scoring in the 50th minute when Olivia Strong sneaked through the Green Giants defense and scored on a low shot from inside the penalty box.

Bishop Brady began to create more offensive chances following Strong’s tally and made the most of a penalty-kick opportunity in the 57th minute. Green Giants junior Olivia Crainich collected her own rebound following her penalty kick and directed the ball past Derryfield goalie Grace Feigl (four saves) from point-blank range.

“I think that helped our girls get the confidence they needed in the second half to control the game and everything like that,” Mattarazzo said. “I think that PK to get it tied back up, get us rolling again, it gave us that confidence that we could do it and had a chance.”

Madison Thorne nearly delivered the Cougars a win with her shot following a Kelly Collins free kick in the 63rd minute but Wetherill was up to the task and made the save.

Wetherill also stopped a promising opportunity for the Cougars three minutes into the second overtime. Collins and teammate Darby Gillett chased after a through pass into the penalty box from Kim Gosselin. Wetherill came off her line to cover the ball before Gillett or Collins could get a shot off.

Bishop Brady’s best chance to break the deadlock came in the final seconds when it was awarded a corner kick. Feigl tracked the ball down through traffic and punched it away just before the final whistle.

“(It was) a hard-fought battle between two teams that needed the points,” Mattarazzo said.