HODGDON, Maine — A hat trick by senior Josh McGillcuddy lifted the Hodgdon boys soccer team to a 5-0 victory over Woodland Friday in a Class D North preliminary playoff.
No. 7 Hodgdon (10-3-1) advances to the quarterfinals where it will face second-ranked, and undefeated, Lee Academy (15-0). That game is tentatively slated for Tuesday, Oct. 26.
In Friday afternoon’s game, the first half featured a much tighter contest, with the Hawks only able to score once in the first 40 minutes of play.
McGillicuddy put Hodgdon on top 1-0 with just 3:15 to play in the first half as he took a pass from Oisin Gardiner and beat his defender, gaining a strong look at the net.
“I think there were a lot of playoff jitters (in the first half),” Hodgdon coach Jason Little said. “We started passing a lot better, and talking better to find the open guys, especially in the second half.”
In the second half, the Hawks did a much better job of moving the ball against Woodland’s defense and peppered Dragon goalie Shain McIver with multiple shots. McIver finished with seven saves on 18 shots.
McGillicuddy slid one past the keeper with 32:10 to play on another pass by Gardiner. That goal opened up the scoring floodgates as Anton Mowery followed less than 20 seconds later with an unassisted goal.
McGillicuddy struck again with 25:42 to play, this time on a pass from Mowery. Brody Little, the coach’s son, rounded out the scoring with a goal assisted by Drew Duttweiler with 3:45 to play.
“We knew Woodland was well-coached,” coach Little said. “We knew they would be a very quick team, so we knew it wasn’t going to be an easy game.”
HODGDON, Maine — October 22, 2021 — Sam Duff (left) of Hodgdon and Justin Overlock of Woodland soar into the air to head the ball during a Friday afternoon Class D North prelim. Hodgdon won 5-0. (Joseph Cyr | Houlton Pioneer Times)
HODGDON, Maine — October 22, 2021 — Hodgdon’s Josh McGillicuddy (left) and Woodland’s Alden Bacon leap into the air to head the ball during a Friday afternoon Class D North prelim. Hodgdon won 5-0. (Joseph Cyr | Houlton Pioneer Times)
