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Sat, Nov 07, 2015 07:00 PM @ Londonderry

Team	1st	2nd	Final
Concord	1	0	1
Londonderry	0	0	0

Londonderry falls in state title game

Saturday, November, 07 By By Mac Cerullo

HOOKSETT — The Londonderry boys soccer team's high-powered offense finally met its match on Saturday, as the Lancers were shut out by Concord 1-0 in the Division 1 state championship game before a packed crowd of 1,890 at Southern New Hampshire University.

Londonderry was held to five shots - just one on goal - and the team's lone corner kick opportunity didn't come until the final minute of the game. The Lancers did have a handful of chances, particularly late, but ultimately couldn't get anything past Concord goalie Dylan Thomson, who is a UNH commit and is widely considered one of the top goalies in New Hampshire.

"I thought it took us a little bit to feel our way out in the first half but in the second half I think we fought all the way to the end," said Londonderry coach Todd Ellis. "They're probably not happy right now but I just told them there are 17 other teams that I'm sure wish they were here right now."

Londonderry's best chance came in the 19th minute, when midfielder Nate Gaw took a ball in the corner and delivered a perfect cross to forward Tarik Dallahi, who was practically on the goal line with no defenders within reach.

But at the last moment, Concord goalie and UNH commit Dylan Thomson came all the way across the net to swallow up Dallahi's one-timer and preserve the shutout.

"Dylan made a great stop," Ellis said. "That we had and if we'd gotten that one maybe it would've been a bit different."

Four minutes later, Concord got its first big scoring opportunity and made it count, with Luck Ndahigwa corralling a bouncing ball in the box and sending it into the bottom left corner to put Concord ahead 1-0.

Concord had a chance to extend its lead early in the second half when a corner kick found its way to Ngongo Mungeta, but the shot was stopped by defender Griffin Cowles on the goal post, who cleared it away to end the threat.

After that, Londonderry started to put more pressure on Concord's defense. Shortly after Mungeta's near-goal, Lancer midfielder Thomas Stanley received a cross at the other end, but couldn't get it on net. Then with 12 minutes left, Londonderry got a free kick just outside the box, and a quick sequence found Gaw open for a booming shot that went just a couple feet wide.

Then, with under a minute to play, Londonderry finally got it's first corner kick opportunity. Though the initial kick was easily defended, the Lancers got a throw in afterwards that once again found Gaw, but like the first, his shot went wide, and that would ultimately be Londonderry's last chance.

Londonderry finishes 15-3-2, while Concord wraps up at 15-1-4.