The Belmont Hill Soccer team finished the regular season with a 12-3-2 record overall. Belmont Hill started off the season with impressive wins over A schools Bridgton and Exeter, before starting the ISL season. There was no shortage of drama in the ISL opener against rival school BB&N under the lights, as a last minute goal from freshman Matthew Goncalves rescued a 2-2 tie after being down for most of the second half. Belmont Hill soon returned to their winning ways, however, ripping off a five-game winning streak, which included a come from behind win against Rivers, as well as a crucial 2-1 win against Nobles. The winning streak came to a halt on October 15th, where Belmont Hill lost a devastating 1-0 game to St. Sebastian’s at the Arrows’ homecoming. Needing to bounce back, Belmont Hill managed to defeat Middlesex 3-2, with two goals from senior midfielder Cam Gordon, and another last-minute goal from Matthew Goncalves to give Belmont Hill the victory. Next came a clash with undefeated ISL leaders Brooks, where Belmont Hill lost 1-0 in a closely-contested matchup. Belmont Hill was able to hold Brooks’s high-scoring offense to only one goal, but was unable to break down Brooks’ defense and was handed another disappointing loss. Now with two losses on the season, Belmont Hill needed to finish the season perfectly to have a fighting chance at the NEPSAC Class A tournament at the end of the year. A midweek 5-0 win over Thayer got Belmont Hill back on track before their contest with ISL and NEPSAC defending champions Milton Academy. With both teams on the bubble, a win was critical for Belmont Hill if they were to make it two straight postseason appearances. The game was played at the Belmont Hill homecoming on October 29th, and Belmont Hill capitalized on the home-field advantage by jumping out to an early 1-0 lead through a header from senior midfielder Robbie Cronin. Belmont Hill proceeded to shut out Milton through the rest of the game, handing Milton their first ISL League loss since September 2013, a period spanning 51 consecutive games without a loss. With the win against Milton, Belmont Hill is in position to make the NEPSAC playoffs, sitting 7th out of all Class A teams, with the top 8 making the tournament. However, following a disappointing loss to St. Mark’s, the team earned the 8th seed in the NEPSAC tournament. With this record, Belmont Hill is slated to play Worcester Academy on November 16th in a bid to take the New England Class A title.
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