WALES — Hayden Fletcher already had the record. But with one regular-season game left, there was still a chance to accomplish something special.
Fletcher did, scoring his 100th goal and following it up with his 101st as the Monmouth boys soccer team defeated Oak Hill 4-1 Tuesday, wrapping up its season at 9-2-2.
“It’s pretty cool. Now I’m just focused on getting ready for the playoffs, and trying to make a good, long run,” Fletcher said. “It’s cool and everything, but the ultimate goal is to win a championship.”
Part of a successful soccer family, Fletcher broke the program record for goals held by brother Kyle and Avery Pomerleau with his 93rd goal on Sept. 21. His sisters Hayley and Audrey were prolific scorers at Monmouth, as well, with 86 and 111, respectively, and Hayden had a good shot at becoming the second in his family to reach triple figures.
“He’s been pressing,” said Monmouth coach Joe Fletcher, Hayden’s father. “He surpassed his brother and (Audrey) reminded him that she had 111, so it’s a friendly family rivalry. But it’s off his shoulders now, I think he can relax a bit.”
The 100-goal milestone goal came in the 26th minute, 15 after Monmouth went up 1-0 on a Ryan Michaud goal off a set piece. Fletcher gained possession of the ball in the Oak Hill (6-5-1) end, used both feet to dribble past Raider defenders, and then smoothly slid it past the approaching keeper for a 2-0 advantage.
“After I got the school record, I had my sights set on the 100,” he said. “After I got that, it definitely feels like there’s no pressure. It’s just go out there and help our team win.”
Monmouth’s Ben Haman, left, and Oak Hill’s Ethan Vattaso fight for a ball during a boys soccer game Tuesday in Wales. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal
Monmouth went into halftime up 2-0, but saw its lead cut in half in the 51st minute when Oak Hill’s Ethan Vattaso brought the ball up, outran the Monmouth defense, and then beat keeper Hunter Frost (six saves) for a goal. The Mustangs weren’t happy, and calls to “wake up” could be heard among the players.
“We didn’t think we should let that one up,” Michaud said. “We know we’re better (than that).”
“Right after they scored, you could see it was a sense of urgency,” Joe Fletcher said. “Like, ‘Uh oh, we’ve just allowed them back into the game.'”
The Mustangs leaned on their star again, as Hayden Fletcher got a feed from Kyle Palleschi, beat his defender, saw the goalie covering the right post and fired a shot from the right side that snuck inside the left post in the 52nd minute — one minute after Vattaso’s goal.
“He’s a dynamic player, and he’s a pass-first player,” Joe Fletcher said. “He’s a good teammate, and he works extremely hard.”
The Mustangs, who were without one of their top scorers in senior Jacob Godbout, got a goal on a penalty kick in the 68th minute from Travis Jamison to round out the scoring, and as soon as the game was over they could look ahead to the playoff road ahead of them.
“I like where we’re at defensively,” Joe Fletcher said. “Defensively, we’re pretty solid. We gave up three goals to (Oak Hill in a 7-3 win on Sept. 8), that’s the most we’ve given up all year. That was our focus today. We wanted a clean sheet, but we’ll take one goal.”
Hayden Fletcher said he’s excited to see how this team does in the postseason, which is scheduled to begin last next week.
“We’ve got a little break, and we’re definitely going to work hard,” he said. “We’ve got to get ready for whoever we play. It’s going to be a tough test, but I think we’re ready for it.”
Oak Hill has a game with Lisbon remaining before starting its playoff chase, but coach Bill Worth said he liked what he saw defensively from his team after allowing seven goals to Monmouth in the first meeting.
“It was just good covering,” he said. “We’ve been talking a lot about just communication in the backfield and covering for each other. If somebody peels out to the outside to cover a run, that outside defender has to peel inside to be backup. It’s just a lot of talk, a lot of tough play in the backfield that certainly helped.”
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