Nashua South players celebrate after a huge comeback untimed play win over Nashua North in 2021. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

NASHUA – The Battle of the Bridge has brought out the best in local high school athletes over the years, with some fantastic and memorable performances.

After missing the spring of 2020 due to COVID, high school sports returned in the fall with some restrictions, but some memorable North-South regular season games.

With the Battle of the Bridge set to resume its fall Battle this Monday and continue throughout the week, The Sunday Telegraph takes a look at one writer’s top 10 fall season games of the half decade:

SEPTEMBER 24, 2021

SOUTH FOOTBALL 43, NORTH 42

It was a North-South game for the ages, but certainly not the aged.

“I’m in my 50s but I feel like 80,” Nashua High School South coach Scott Knight said after his team’s dramatic 43-42 win over Nashua North before a lively four-figure crowd at Stellos Stadium.

There was drama and confusion all rolled into one as South picked up its first win (1-3) while handing the Titans their first loss (3-1) on Connor Rowsell’s two-point conversion run on the game’s final play. Rowsell had actually fumbled the ball, but somehow corralled it on the ground with help from Nathan Smith. Officials delayed the call but then arms were raised, and the wild celebration began.

“I definitely felt I had it in the end zone,” Rowsell said. “I got hit, the ball dropped on the ground and I fell on it in between my legs.”

Going for two rather than a PAT kick that would’ve sent things to overtime was a bold call by Knight, whose team overcame an illegal formation penalty that wiped off a 2-yard touchdown by Josh Compoh with no time left. But after the penalty, Compoh was still able to run it in from 7 yards out on an untimed down. Then came the decision.

“We knew we were going for two with four minutes left,” Knight said. “I told the kids that. We’re struggling in our coverages, and we’re playing better on offense than we are on defense right now, and I wanted to put the game in the offense’s hands.

“Rowsell and Compoh, we’re going to let our guns finish the game down there, that’s why we did that.”

“I had a feeling,” Nashua North coach Dante Laurendi said. “I think they had the momentum, they were running the ball, they scored on fourth-and 5 running the ball on the untimed down, which shows they have confidence in their running game. Great call, great game. Who wants to go overtime, and they had the momentum.

“Hats off to them, they did a great job, and deserved to win the game.”

South’s “guns” were firing up quite a ground game tally, some 375 yards, led by Compoh’s 206 yards and three TDs on 40 carries. But the killer for North in the second half was the ability of South quarterback Mike Rutstein to consistently make positive yards, as he rushed for 109 yards on 18 carries and three TDs as well.

South got the ball on its own 20 with 3:40 left, and marched 80 yard in 14 plays, aided by a pass interference call as well. South scored on all four of its second half possessions.

Still the Titans, who had benefited from two comebacks this year were in position to win as they had taken the lead, 42-35, with 3:44 left thanks to their main standout, quarterback Derek Finlay, who ran it in from 20 yards out for the advantage. Finlay had a monster night as well, throwing for 260 yards and three TDs, and ran for another score.

And the fact that the Panthers’ season was on the line certainly was a factor, as South was 0-3 and North 3-0.

“One hundred percent,” Rowsell said. “We knew we were coming in 0-3, they were 3-0. We had to beat them in a big conference game, Battle of the Bridge, obviously, big fan section everywhere. We had to do it for our city, everyone.”

SEPTEMBER 22, 2022:

NORTH BOYS SOCCER 2, SOUTH 0

They had waited for nearly 11 months for the moments they enjoyed on this night. For the North boys soccer players, their season was just made.

“It feels so good,” North junior Arthur Santos, who scored the only goal the Titans would need, said. “The feeling of being part of this team, such talented players, and witness this moment, and beat this team, especially 2-0, it was a great game.

“Props to South, really good team. But I think we wanted this more.”

They had revenge on their minds, for certain, after losing last year’s Division I semifinal in front of a large Stellos Stadium crowd on a goal in the final minute.

In front of another big crowd, though not as large, it was a case of North (6-2, five straight) cashing in on a couple of opportunities, while South failed to do the same for theirs. Panther junior Santiago Somorrostro hit the crossbar not once but twice, and missed another high over the goal.

But nearly 17 minutes into the second half, North junior Arthur Santos rolled a shot toward the goal that seemed an easy save for capable South keeper Ansh Khanna. But the ball rolled off his fingers into the net, and the Titans had the 1-0 lead.

And basically the win, North’s sixth straight to stand at 7-2.

“We had the better opportunities, the better chances,” South coach Tom Bellen said of his 6-2 team that went on to win a second straight Division I title.”It’s the first time we’ve been shut out in a long time, too.”

“We prepared very hard, we knew this game was on the schedule and the boys circled it from last year,” North coach Jeremy Zelanes said. “They got after it today, they enjoyed playing out there, they worked hard, and we got the win that we’ve been looking for.”

But what was even just as memorable was the Titan reaction, as they ran over in front of the South crowd in part celebration and part taunting, leading to a post-game verbal scolding from school officials.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021:

SOUTH GIRLS SOCCER 1, NORTH 0

It was perhaps an overlooked detail, but not to those who know the game of soccer. Nashua South’s Soraya Ross hustled downfield to pressure what looked like a certain Nashua North possession midway through the second sudden death overtime – yes, that’s when they had regular season overtime.

Ross’s effort led to a South corner kick, and during the frenzy that followed Panther Ava Kopicko boomed a shot from the 20 yard line with 5:15 remaining that found the back of the net, high over the reach of Titans freshman keeper Nora Ross for a dramatic 1-0 South win.

“That’s the first thing I said to (Ross), ‘That goal started with you,’ South coach Lauren Keating said, her team now 4-2-1. “Her pressure, not giving up.

“It was our second game in a row in double overtime. For them to come here and fight through that was incredible.”

“I just hit it as hard as I could,” Kopicko said, “and I was so happy when I did.”

Until then, no one was happy. Not North’s Brooke Lane, who had four free kicks during the contest but was unable to convert. Or her teammate Kaylee Moore, who hit the crossbar behind South keeper Abigail Finchum (four saves) from 25 yards out during the first overtime. Or South’s Camile Michon, who hit one post, saw the ball bounce all the way to and off the other post inside of 10 to play in regulation.

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

NORTH FOOTBALL 28, NASHUA SOUTH 15

A tale of two halves, and in the end, perhaps a tale of two seasons.

The North football team somehow recovered from a turnover and penalty plagued first half to score 28 unanswered points and down city rival Nashua South before about 2,000 fans at Stellos.

But when the Panthers (0-4 overall, 0-3 in Division I), who still led the overall series 23-15, grabbed a 15-0 lead in the second quarter, it certainly didn’t look like that would be a possibility.

“We came out flat,” said North two-way back Luke Peters, who had a game-changing 101-yard – yes, you read correctly – interception return for a touchdown that got the Titans (3-1) to within two points. “Coaches got us hyped going into the second half and we knew what we needed to do.”

The first half was a North disaster for the most part as Peters had fumbled the ball away and North QB John Canaway tossed two costly interceptions, the Titans had over 60 yards in penalties.

“I say it every year with this North-South game,” Titans coach Chad Zibolis said. “There’s always a ton of stuff that happens at the beginning of the game. We completely kept shooting ourselves in the foot with penalties, dropped passes, missed assignments, that type of stuff was hurting us, and they (the Panthers) were capitalizing. I knew they were going to do a good job defensively, and I knew we were going to have issues with it. … South played an unbelievable game, it was a great game on both sides of the ball. … The records never matter coming into this game.”

North turned the tables beginning with a 14-play, 65-yard scoring drive just before the half to trail 15-6 going into the locker room. Then, after Peters’ pick six just when it looked like the Panthers were ready to increase their lead with a first and goal at the 2 to start the third quarter, a key punt return and long Peters run to set up the go-ahead score, and finally another pick six by Jonathan Torres, (a 33-yarder) and the game was completely reversed in a quarter and a half.

“Same as last week,” South coach Scott Knight said, referring to another second half meltdown by his young team at Lowell after it led 8-0. “We just couldn’t hold it together. Made some huge mistakes. Two pick-sixes. You do that in any game you’re not going to win.”

Nashua South’s Santi Somorrostro tries to push the ball ahead against Nashua North’s Brady Martin as fellow Panther Jadiel Bomfim looks on during the Titans’ 2-0 win in 2022 at Stellos Stadium. (Telegraph file photo by TOM KING)

SEPTEMBER 19, 2023

NORTH GIRLS SOCCER 1, SOUTH 0

The seeds were planted a week earlier, when the North girls soccer team took powerful Bedford to double overtime before succumbing by a goal.

Who knew they would grow seven days later into a memorable 1-0 victory over arch-rival South? It was the Titans’ first win after starting out 0-3-2.

“They figured out when we played Bedford that they didn’t need to sit back and play with fear,” North coach Jacqueline Thompson said. “To gain that confidence, they’ve been working on it. I just told them to trust the process.”

South (5-2) did everything to get their scorers like Soraya Ross and Ella Benzekri in good position, moving them all around. Their one constant was Addison Varley, who had a couple of chances, including an open shot that sailed over the goal in the second half.

But it certainly wasn’t a one-way game. North had plenty of offensive bursts here and there, led by the trio of Allison and Sarah Frye and Lilly Baker-Olliviera. But the best one came in the 58th minute, when after Panthers keeper Lily Petricca (five saves) survived one storm, the ball was loose about 40 yards away and Baker-Olliviera made an instinctive play. She just kicked it and it sailed over Petricca, who had come out, and bounced into the net for the game’s only goal.

“I wish I could say I meant to do it,” Baker-Olliviera said. “I just booted it. I’m so happy for everyone, we played amazing. (The Panthers) weren’t expecting it at all, they told me they thought they were going to blow us out of the water.”

SEPTEMBER 24, 2024

SOUTH GIRLS SOCCER 1, NORTH 0

There was no way the North vs. South Soccer Battle of the Bridge could end in two ties.

Not if Panthers senior Ava Kopicko had anything to say about it.

And she did.

Kopicko headed in Addison Varney’s corner kick with about two minutes left in what was a scoreless game to give South a dramatic 1-0 win over the Titans at Stellos Stadium.

It was the second late Panther goal of the day in the rivalry, as the South boys salvaged a 2-2 tie earlier.

Kopicko was also thinking about last year’s loss to the Titans.

“After last year, losing, we really had the energy this game,” she said. “I knew Addison was going to kick it where I needed to be, and I was there and just hit it in.”

It took a change in corner kick strategy by South coach Curt Dutilley to produce the game winner. The Panthers had been using a back/far post strategy on their corner kicks, but North’s second half keeper Rachael Gauthier, had defended it well (five saves), and the emotion of the game sometimes produced a long hit.

“I walked down to Addison and said ‘Let’s go front this time, take a little bit off of it,” Dutilley said. “Those two players connecting, that’s a beautiful thing. That was just a great high school girls soccer game.”

SEPT. 21, 2020

SOUTH FIELD HOCKEY 5, NORTH 0

Sometimes a team will go into a season not quite knowing where its firepower will come from.

That wasn’t the case for the Nashua High School South field hockey team in the first high school event at Stellos Stadium since COVID shut the world down,a 5-0 season opening win over rival Nashua North at Stellos Stadium.

Nope, Panthers coach Ciki McIintire knew that junior Kaitlyn West was going to be her new go-to player. Her faith was rewarded when West scored all five South goals.

“She’s kind of always been right at that level,” McIntire said. “She’s been waiting to come into her own. I think this year she’s kind of realized as a junior she can step into that leadership. I think she’s just playing with confidence and being a great leader on the field.”

Much to the Titans’ chagrin.

“I thought we were a little too passive on defense,” North coach Robert Bailey said. “The ball would pop loose in by our net. We did a nice job defending the goal line but they would get people loose five yards in front of our net.”

And one of them was always West. Her first goal came nearly eight minutes in, and she got her second three minutes later. West’s third goal came with 6:47 left in the half, which ended with the Panthers up 3-0.

She put away two in the second half, and that was that.

“She’s been such a leader,” McIntire said of West, “trying to bring the level of play up for the team. I’m really proud of her.

“She’s been such a workhorse this summer. She put in a ton of work and it paid off. The icing on the cake for her.”

SEPTEMBER. 22, 2021

SOUTH GIRLS VOLLEYBALL 3, NORTH 2

The South girls volleyball team went for the block almost more than the kill.

And on a Wednesday night, the Panthers got both in a big 3-2 win over arch rival Nashua North at the newly refurbished Titans Gym. The win improves South to 3-4 and gives the school a 5-4 lead in the Battle of the Bridge.

South needed a way to contain North’s heavy hitters, and they found it right at the net.

“It was the best blocking we’ve had all season,” South coach Tom Langer said. “They’re allowed to play how they want to play. This is their team, they wanted it, they kept up with the energy and the intensity, and they came ready to go.”

The pivotal moment? It had to be early on in the fourth set. The teams split the first two sets (26-24 North, 25-21 South) before the Titans, led by Alyssa Stanton and Maddy Novak, had taken a 2-1 lead with a decisive 25-18 win in the third set. And then they jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the fourth, seemingly ready to take control before the Panthers just went on a roll and took 16 of the next 20 points and went on to a match tying 25-19 win.

South raced out to a 4-0 lead in the fifth and deciding set, but North’s Alyssa Stanton served five straight points for a 5-4 Titan lead. Then Katrina Norton served three straight points for a 9-6 lead, and the Panthers led by junior Kathryn Garland, took six of the next eight points to cement things. And, unfortunately for North, put the still talented Titans in a 1-6 hole nearly halfway through the season.

“This game will forever be a Boston-New York game, it will be the biggest rivalry we see all year,” North coach Nicole Fitzgibbons said. “It’s such a momentum game, they have some really tough servers, they did well with what they needed to do.”

SEPTEMBER 19, 2022:

SOUTH FIELD HOCKEY 2, NORTH 0

The South field hockey team, just like its North counterparts, went into that Monday’s Battle of the Bridge clash scoreless on the season.

They thought they had broken through when Karina O’Donnell had apparently scored late in the first half, but that goal was overruled due to a dangerous hit.

No problem, Erin Flaherty scored in the third quarter and the Panthers continued their rule of the Bridge with a 2-0 win over the Titans at Stellos Stadium for the first win of the season for either team.

Her goal, during a frenzy in front of Titans goalie Abigail O’Malley, came nearly eight minutes into the third quarter.

And if that wasn’t enough, Pari Parikh added another in the same manner three minutes into the fourth as insurance.

One of these teams had to leave Stellos with a good feeling.

“It felt amazing,” Flaherty said, “my team cheering me on, running back to the 50 (yard line), and the fans cheering too. I kind of like froze for a second, I couldn’t believe it.”

Nashua North girls volleyball coach Cassandra Desfosses hugs her Titan daughter Johanna after North beat South 3-2 in the 2024 Battle of the Bridge at the Belanger Gym. (Telegraph file photo by TOM KING)

SEPTEMBER 25, 2024

NORTH GIRLS VOLLEYBALL 3, SOUTH 2

The system that Nashua High School North girls volleyball coach Cassandra Desfosses preaches about to her team worked.

And at the best possible time – the Battle of the Bridge.

“We talk about it like a system, they’re each a gear in the system,” Desfosses said after the Titans rallied to win the fourth and fifth sets for a 3-2 win at the Belanger Gym. “If each gear doesn’t start, it doesn’t work out. But the system worked out, though. That’s what it’s about.”

South (6-2) had North (5-4) reeling after the third set, as it led 2-1. The wins were fairly decisive, 25-14 and 25-18, sandwiched around a North 25-19 win in set two. But the Titans dominated the match thereafter, winning 25-19 again and then grabbed a 2-1 lead in the fifth set and never gave it back, winning going away, 15-8.

“It’s a game of momentum, and every set is a fresh start,” South coach Tom Langer said. “And unfortunately they came out with that momentum, and we had to keep fighting back every time, and that turned into us scrambling.”

That wasn’t what many thought would happen, as South arguably had the court’s best player in outside hitter Mia Suljic and Molly Lecklider, who got her 500th career dig during the match.

But the Titans had, well, more gears. The one that operated perhaps the best with several blocks at the net was junior Hayley Maurhoff, who said that was the best she’s played.

“Oh yeah, definitely,” she said. “We all arrived together. The team really came back, we worked together, it was great.”

Desfosses credited Johanna Desfosses with leading the way on the floor, while Taylor Joyal led North in kills, although Amaya Gordon was a key in the critical fourth set during which the Titans stormed out to a 9-2 lead and never looked back.