LYNNFIELD — The No. 2 Lynnfield Pioneers are headed back to the Division 4 semifinals after a 3-2 win against No. 7 Hampshire Regional on Thursday. It was a rematch of last year’s Final 4 – a game that saw Lynnfield squeak out a 2-1 victory en route to coach Brent Munroe’s first state championship.
“We knew Hampshire Regional was going to be great. We played them last year and they were terrific,” Munroe said. “We came out on such a high note and played a great first half and converted our chances.”
A great first half, indeed.
Less than nine minutes into the action, Dillon Reilly was brought down in the penalty box and awarded a penalty. The senior captain, who missed all of the regular season with a broken bone, stepped up and lashed the ball into the back of the net to give Lynnfield an early 1-0 cushion.
“He’s always a threat. He’s not moving like he used to, but he puts their backline under pressure,” Munroe said. “He’s a great player and I wasn’t sure if he was going to take the penalty. He hasn’t taken one all year. I guess he wanted it and he put it in.”
Just as the Lynnfield faithful were sitting back in their seats, the Pioneers struck again. This time, left winger Matt Reinold got past his defender and whipped a ball to the back post, where Joel Anthony met it and tapped the ball home for a 2-0 advantage.
Lynnfield dominated the midfield, mainly because of the stellar play from defensive midfielder Mohammed Ayari. The junior patrolled the area, breaking up most attacks and keeping the ball moving.
Ayari received high praise from his head coach.
“It was the best I’ve ever seen him and it probably was the best I could have ever expected him to play,” Munroe said. “We got possession from him all the time. The first half, he was phenomenal. In the second half, we didn’t have as much possession. It wasn’t his fault, but he was unreal today.”
Ayari said he knew he had to be aggressive.
“I came into the game giving it my all. I knew I had to be strong to win the ball back,” he said. “I just tried to be clean and help my team play simple, like my coach wants.”
With a couple of minutes remaining in the first half, Lynnfield took a corner kick in a hurry. The ball found Reinold, who produced a similar cross as before. This time, Rocco Scenna was on the end of the delivery to make it 3-0.
“The third goal was very similar to the second where Matt put in another cross, but Rocco Scenna put it in,” Munroe said. “Then, we hung on.”
Going into halftime with a three-goal advantage, it looked like it was going to be smooth sailing for the hosts, but the Raiders weren’t ready to go home.
Hampshire Regional scored with 16:59 remaining in the match. It was the first goal Lynnfield had conceded all tournament.
From there, the script completely flipped. The Raiders dominated possession and were finding gaps in Lynnfield’s defense.
The Raiders potted a second goal with 5:24 remaining off a corner kick. Luckily, the three-goal cushion was enough for Lynnfield to escape.
“We were terrific in the first half and in the second half, I think we got a little bit flat and they picked their game up and it got a little scary,” Munroe said. “We were dying for the last whistle and finally got it.”
Now, the Pioneers are back in the Final 4 and look to defend their state title.
“It feels good,” Ayari said. “We put a lot of work in during the offseason and during the season, we continued to work hard.”
Lynnfield will face No. 14 Frontier Regional in the Final Four with the time and date TBD.
“Every team is different,” Munroe said. “Last year, we were very fortunate to get to the Final 4 and, this year, we are very fortunate to be back. This game could have gone either way and the message is to enjoy it.”
