Boys Varsity Soccer

Coaches: Richie Carlsen & John Drury

Story and pictures courtesy Village Soup

RICHMOND (Oct 26): The Vinalhaven boys soccer team hoped the third time would be a charm in a rematch with Richmond Friday afternoon, but the talented Bobcats refused to cooperate as the hosts denied the islanders the chance to write another thrilling chapter in what has been a historically significant season.
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The No. 1 Bobcats defeated the No. 6 Vikings 2-0 in the Western Class D championship Friday. Richmond had beaten Vinalhaven twice during the regular season — 3-0 and 2-0. In fact, Richmond was the only opponent to shut out the islanders this fall.

Veteran Vinalhaven coach Richard Carlsen, middle, admires the Western Class D runner-up plaque with his players following Friday's 2-0 loss to Richmond. (Photo by Ken Waltz)

The Bobcats will face Ashland (14-1-1) or Machias (13-2-1) in the state championship game on Saturday, Nov. 3. Richmond lost to Van Buren 2-1 in overtime last year and Bangor Christian two years ago in recent state championship games.

Vinalhaven's dream season came to a close Friday, but not before the Vikings (9-7-1) made school history by being the island's first soccer squad to advance to the regional final.

Andy Harrington scored two first-half goals to lift the Bobcats. Eric Murrin added an assist. Harrington scored his goal 45 seconds apart, with one coming 18:18 into the first half and the other being at 19:03.

Richmond, which has lost in the state final the past two seasons, held a 24-5 edge in shots and 6-0 advantage in corner kicks.

Viking goalie Nathan Hopkins, right, battles Richmond's Brandon Lancaster for the ball. (Photo by Ken Waltz)

Standout sophomore goalie Nathan Hopkins turned in another stellar effort in the Viking goal, making 17 saves. Bruce Carver had one save for the Bobcats.

Harrington took 13 shots on goal in the game, while Sam Carter added nine and Murrin six for Richmond.

The Vikings, who have only two seniors (Sam Rosen and Ethan Watt), had a magical run through this year's regional playoffs. Earlier in the postseason, Vinalhaven, led by head coach Richard Carlsen, who has guided the islanders for 21 years, beat the No. 2 and No. 3 teams in the tournament.

Vinalhaven's Keith Drury is on the move. (Photo by Ken Waltz)

Vinalhaven bested No. 2 Rangeley (13-3) 3-2 in overtime in Wednesday's semifinal playoff. The game was postponed from Tuesday due to heavy rain and unplayable field conditions. The Lakers led 2-0 in the first half when the game was halted with 10 minutes remaining. The next day the teams played a morning contest and Rangeley led 2-0 before the Vikings stormed back with two second-half goals.

During the regular season, Vinalhaven lost to Rangeley twice, 4-1 and 3-2, to begin the season on the road.

After losing two one-goal contests to Greenville during the regular season, Vinalhaven upended No. 3 Greenville (9-4) 1-0 in a quarterfinal playoff game on Oct. 20.

For Friday's regional final, played in perfect weather conditions, several hundred Vinalhaven fans made the trip to Richmond to support their Vikings.

Vinalhaven outscored opponents 51-26 and was shutout only three times — all against Richmond. The islanders recorded six shutouts.

The Vikings had several solid scoring chances in the game, with the best coming late in the contest when Keith Drury, who turned in a superb all-around performance, hit the post with a shot.

Despite losing in the regional final, the Viking players were satisfied with their strong run through the playoffs.

Viking fans, including Izza Drury, left, and Chrissy Martin, cheer and take photos during the game. (Photo by Ken Waltz)

"We were probably the underdogs coming in [to the playoffs] and we just fought hard," said Hopkins. "We knew we could beat every team [in the playoffs] because we were pretty equal. We just played our hearts out."

Hopkins said it was not hard for the islanders to get motivated to play Richmond. He said the Vikings had lost twice to both Greenville and Rangeley before winning those playoff games. So Vinalhaven entered the regional final with plenty of confidence.

Rosen and Watt said they were happy to be part of the first Viking team to advance to the regional championship game. Rosen said making the finals was "promising" for the future for the island soccer program. "[Soccer] has gotten a lot more interest as we have done better and the season has gotten better," he said. "A lot of younger kids are getting interested in the sport."

Battling for the ball are Vinalhaven's Corey James, left, and Richmond's Andy Harrington. (Photo by Ken Waltz)

"This is just like heaven," Watt said of the Vikings playing in a regional title game. "It is an awesome feeling. It feels good to have all these people's support."

Rosen and Watt said the playoff wins over Rangeley and Greenville were exciting. The first round win was made sweeter because Greenville had eliminated the Vikings from the playoffs several times in recent years.

Drury said the Vikings "really came together at the end of the season. Richmond always has been great. They have a great team and great program here. We knew this was going to be a tough game but we just came out and gave it our all … We had an awesome run. Too bad it had to end."

Viking Ethan Watt eyes the ball. (Photo by Ken Waltz)

Carlsen said the Vikings had an amazing run, especially when one considers the team struggled early in the season to field a team. "It has been a dream season for me," he said. "We struggled to even get 11 guys at practice the first two weeks. The guys either had to haul [lobsters] or had to be on the [ferry] boat. We had a lot of younger kids who showed up for practice. It was a progression the whole season. Every game you could see them getting better."

The Vikings also had to play three road playoff games, thus making many ferry boat rides from the island to the mainland and then taking long bus trips to the game sites. The road journeys started with a trip to Greenville on Oct. 20 and then a trip to Rangeley on Oct. 23, only to have that game start, stop and be moved to the morning of Oct. 24 at Mt. Abram High School in Strong. Then the team turned around and traveled to Richmond on Oct. 26.

"These guys played their hearts out," the coach said, "and they are tired. We played a lot of games this week. And we don't have 20 kids sitting on the bench. We have a good bunch of kids. I'm going to miss Sam and Ethan. It is hard to replace those two guys on the team. I'm already thinking about next year. What am I going to do? Who is going to step up in those spots?"

Carlsen and the Vikings will find a way. Just like they did this fall on their journey to the regional finals.

Vinalhaven High School Vikings — 2007 Western Class D boys soccer runners-up. (Photo by Ken Waltz)

By Ken Waltz
VillageSoup/Knox County Times Sports Director