By Roger Brown
MaxPreps.com
When the pairings for this year's Class I boys basketball tournament were released, Portsmouth coach Jim Mulvey said there were eight teams capable of winning the title. He didn't include Hanover in that group.
Mulvey, like many others, underestimated the 10th-seeded Marauders, who completed an improbable run to the Class I championship by beating fourth-seeded Portsmouth, 40-38, at the University of New Hampshire on Saturday.
Hanover's record dropped to 6-8 following a regular-season loss to Portsmouth, but the Marauders ended their season with an eight-game winning streak.
The difference in the championship game was Hanover's ability to limit Portsmouth center Tom Dowd, a 6-foot-5 senior who scored a game-high 23 points in the first meeting between the teams. Dowd didn't score in the championship game until the fourth quarter, and finished with eight points.
"When we played them earlier he put a clinic on, so we really had to buckle down on him," Hanover coach Tim Winslow said. "What we tried to do is make sure any time he got the ball he had to work hard to get a basket. He sometimes had to go through two or three guys. Fortunately for us their shooters weren't on as much as they could have been, and that makes a big difference."
Junior guard Grady Chaltain gave Hanover a 39-38 lead it wouldn't relinquish when he made a 3-pointer with 1:13 to play. Portsmouth's John Mulvey missed a 3-pointer with 16.4 seconds to play and, after Portsmouth collected the rebound, Chaltain intercepted a pass and maintained possession until time expired.
Hanover held Portsmouth to its lowest offensive output of the season. The Clippers completed their first season in Class I with a 17-5 record.
"Our effort was great, we just didn't make any shots - layups, five-footers, 10-footers, 20-footers - and that's a credit to Hanover's defense," Mulvey said. "This team, they earned it. There's no doubt about it. You have to give them a lot of credit."
It was Hanover's first state championship since 2002, when it beat Berlin in the Class I final.
Elsewhere Saturday:
Top-seeded Conant won its second-consecutive Class M championship with a 53-39 victory over third-seeded Gilford at Plymouth State University.
Conant (22-0) received a game-high 22 points from 6-foot-7 center Kyle Todd, who also grabbed seven rebounds.
Chip Veazey led Gilford (18-4) with 15 points.
Second-seeded Lisbon won its third Class S title in as many seasons by beating eighth-seeded Woodsville, 50-31, at Plymouth State University.
Lisbon (20-2) used a 10-0 run that spilled into the fourth quarter to open up a 37-22 lead.
Mike White led Lisbon with 23 points and nine rebounds.
Junior Zach Maerder led Woodsville (14-8) with 11 points.
Girls Basketball: Winnacunnet Knocks Off BG
Third-seeded Winnacunnet broke open a close game in the fourth quarter and held on to beat fifth-seeded Bishop Guertin, 48-39, in the Class L championship game Friday night at Southern New Hampshire University.
The Warriors (18-4) finished their season with 13-consecutive victories.
"It would have been very difficult to lose because this group is so deserving," Winnacunnet coach Ed Beattie said. "We're glad the basketball gods smiled on us."
Abigail LaRosa scored a team-high 15 points for Winnacunnet, which won its first championship since 1998. Freshman Tiffany Ruffin added 13 points for the Warriors, who received 10 points and 18 rebounds from forward Conley Burns.
Forward Kristina Hayner led BG (16-6) with 22 points.
Hockey: BG, Spaulding Finish On Top
Bishop Guertin and Spaulding won ice hockey championships at the Verizon Wireless Arena on Sunday.
Defenseman Zachary Bradanick and forward Eric Harries scored first-period goals to help top-seeded Bishop Guertin defeat second-seeded Bishop Brady 2-1 for the Division I championship.
It was the fourth state title for the Cardinals (23-1-0). BG goalie Taylor Wood made 20 saves in the victory.
Bishop Brady (15-5-1) got its goal from sophomore forward Brooks Herrington. The Green Giants held the Cardinals to 10 shots on goal over the final two periods.
Top-seeded Spaulding needed two third-period goals to beat second-seeded Oyster River 3-2 in the Division II championship game.
Oyster River (13-5-3) led 2-1 after two periods, but Spaulding (21-0-0) tied the game on Eric LaBatte's power-play goal before Josh McGilvary scored what proved to be the game-winning goal with 26.5 seconds to play.
The victory gave the Red Raiders back-to-back Division II championships and extended the program's winning streak to 40 games.
Ryan Randall and David Wilson scored 10 seconds apart in the opening period to give Oyster River a 2-1 lead. Spaulding's Nick French opened the scoring five minutes into the contest.