BY RYAN O’CONNORA 15-5 playoff loss to Pinkerton in the Division I quarterfinals aside, Bill Lawson is ecstatic about the progress his Central boys lacrosse team made this season. “We ended up 10-9, including the playoffs, but we had five losses in tight games that could have gone either way,” said Lawson, who added that ...

BY RYAN O’CONNORAmong his 32 years coaching the Central boys tennis team, Mark Telge had to admit this season was one of the most gratifying. After all, the mentor said three of his six starters never picked up a racket prior to this season. Another had never played competitively. Yet there the Little Green were, in the state semifinals ...

BY RYAN O’CONNORBill Cannon thought – his heart racing – the defending state champs might just pull off the comeback. Down 4-2, needing three wins in doubles action, the Central girls tennis team fought handand- raquet with Concord. Central singles No. 1 Margaret Teague and No. 3 Justine Beaudoin faced match point, trailing 7-5 ...

BY RYAN O’CONNORIt was a tale of two halves. The second half, which Central girls lacrosse coach Whitney Nelson said is more indicative of her team’s level of talent, saw the Little Green match undefeated Souhegan goal-for-goal for 20 of 25 minutes. The first half, which Nelson said she’s rather forget, was quite the opposite. ...

BY RYAN O’CONNORAfter sneaking up on the competition in 2007 and reaching the state finals with one of the youngest teams in Class L, coach Ed Poisson knows his Pioneers aren’t surprising anyone this year. But the expectation remains the same. “To make it beyond that first round in Class L you’ve got to throw your No. 1, ...

BY RYAN O’CONNOREvery game is an adventure. So Dan Drewniak and his Lady Blue Knights are enjoying the excitement, though they won’t be needing a nail file anytime soon. West, which currently maintains a 4-4 record on the young softball season, averages 1.3 runs scored per game – second to last in Class L. Though Drewniak is ...

BY RYAN O’CONNORAfter losing a pivotal game down the stretch and missing the 2007 playoffs, Central boys lacrosse coach Bill Lawson admitted he and his players weren’t just disappointed to be on the outside of the postseason looking in. They were angry. If their first 2008 contest is any indication, they’ll be spending the ...

BY RYAN O’CONNORWith his fourth-seeded squad playing its best basketball of the season, Central boys basketball coach Doc Wheeler said a 16-point home loss to undefeated Salem two weeks earlier helped propel his young hoopsters into the Class L semifinals. The Little Green have won five in a row since the embarrassing setback Feb. 22, ...

BY MATT SCHOOLEYManchester Central generated little on offense, falling 3-0 on the road to Salem High School in Division I boys ice hockey on Saturday, Jan. 5. Salem scored little more than two minutes into the contest when forward Derek Tomes put in a rebound past Central goalie Jared Cox. Central trailed by three when, with 9:20 remaining in ...

BY MATT SCHOOLEYMany times in practice, teams run a drill in which every player must touch the ball before a shot is taken. It doesn’t always translate into game play. It did for the Central High School boys basketball team, which consistently made the extra pass and shot past visiting Winnacunnet High School, 71-44, on Friday, Jan. 4. It ...