Hingham High Boys Soccer Suffer Late Semi-Final Heartbreak

Sandwich Blue Knights will be playing in their third successive State Tournament Final on Sunday after they defeated Hingham High School 2-1 in the semi-final of the MIAA South Division 2 tournament at Cohasset Alumni Field Friday.

In front of a large crowd that was predominantly dressed in the red of Hingham, the Knights booked their place in the final with a goal six minutes left when Dallas Donovan burst through a tiring Hingham defense to coolly slot the ball into the bottom right corner of the net.

In an evenly matched game, Hingham drew first blood when captain James Rosso put the ball in the net after just nine minutes but the game was all square in the 21st minute when a thumping half-volley from Sandwich’s Peter Alvarenga leveled the score.

Both teams had the opportunity to go into half-time with the lead but two minutes after the re-start, a goalmouth scramble in the Sandwich penalty area saw the ball in the back of the net but after consulting with his linesman, the referee disallowed the goal for an apparent foul on the keeper.

Hingham continued to press forward for the winner and Levi Dwyer was making the most of the space he got on the right-hand side and slung in a series of crosses that Kyle VanCleef in the Sandwich goal could only punch away.

But with the clock counting down and extra-time looking like the likely outcome, Sandwich broke Hingham hearts. A sustained period of Hingham pressure saw the ball cleared and after a series of quick passing moves the ball came to Donovan who calmly tucked it away, sparking celebration on the bench and in some of the bleachers.

A late shout for a handball in the penalty area wasn’t given and as the final whistle sounded, it was the white shirts of Sandwich that could look forward to the final on Sunday.

Ken Carlin, Hingham Varsity Boys Soccer Coach, was pleased with the performance despite the disallowed goal and the lost chance to bring more silverware to the High School. 

“I think a couple of calls should have gone our way and it’s a whole different game,” Carlin said. “I thought we played well, they’re a very good team and I’m a little disappointed. We’ve been in the mix every year since I’ve been here, thirteen straight years but we will be back here again, I promise you.”

Ted Tedeschi, Sandwich Blue Knights Coach, was full of praise for Hingham High and admitted it was “a great win for us.”

“They moved the ball well and formed the toughest opponent we’ve faced,” Tedeschi said. “We knew what we were in for and to beat them three times in a row is a real feat. We weren’t as creative as usual and Hingham were physical on us but credit to the team, they sucked it up and stood up.”