When Tim Gregoire is down, he’s not coming out. The Auburn resident is one of four locals on the Memorial boys soccer team who bring gritty play to a squad battling for a top spot in the Class L tournament.

Along with Gregoire, Auburn’s Brian Lipsett and Seth Lafay earned starting spots along with Hooksett’s Matt McQueeney, a key offensive threat for Memorial.

“(The area players) have brought a lot of leadership throughout their time with me,” said Memorial head coach Paul Ostberg. “They just play extremely hard and have been critical to our team all year.”

Gregoire in particular brought a physical style to the defensive backfield against 6-3- 0 Salem, on Oct. 2.

Twice, the defenseman landed hard, clean tackles on Salem opponents to win balls before falling to the ground in pain. Neither hit forced him to miss any action, however, and he helped shut down the Blue Devils the rest of the game.

“He’s been with me for four years, and he has always been one of the toughest players that I have coached,” said Ostberg.

Though the home team took a 1-0 lead just six minutes into the game, McQueeney tied the match when he took a loose ball from the left side and sent it into the upper-right-hand corner of the net late in the first half.

Forward Peguy Ngatcha added the game-winner midway through the second half, as Memorial won the contest, 2-1, to improve to 7-1-2.

Since then, the Crusaders faced two opponents higher in the standings: Pinkerton Academy and Londonderry.

On Oct. 6, Memorial handed Pinkerton its second loss of the year before absorbing its second setback in a 5-1 loss at Londonderry on Friday, Oct. 9.

The Crusaders have two matchups left with top teams, hosting 10-2-1 Bishop Guertin on Friday, Oct. 16, and 11-1-1 Concord to close the regular season on Thursday, Oct. 22.

Ostberg said facing these difficult opponents pays dividends for his largely inexperienced team as it enters the postseason.

“This gets them ready for the playoff atmosphere,” he said. “These tough games bring out the best in our players. It gives them a chance to be challenged when the pressure’s on.”