PEMBROKE – They led, they trailed. They were called for penalties, they drew penalties. They were up and they were down. But in the end, they came from behind. 

The Pembroke Academy Spartans experienced nearly every emotion in their first match of the season, but senior Bailey Gatchell scored a pair of goals in the second half, helping PA overcome a halftime deficit to secure a 3-2 victory over the visiting John Stark Generals.

Despite Friday’s matchup between last year’s Division II First Team and Second Team All-State goalkeepers, it didn’t take too long for Pembroke to break onto the scoreboard, with junior Giannah Michelson scoring a goal from the top center of the box off a corner kick sent in by senior captain Lindsey Jones in the 12th minute.

While Stark First Team goalie, senior Lexi Boudreau (five saves) was the busier of the two keepers overall, it was the Generals who controlled the run of play for large swaths in the final 25 minutes of the first half.

The Spartans outshot John Stark 13-10, and had a 9-3 advantage in shots on target, but the Generals were more efficient near the net in the first half. 

In the 21st minute, Elsa Winther sent a corner kick into the box that Pembroke goalie Laila Al-Shawafi (one save) got a piece off, but the ball squirted free just in front of the goal line for Brenna Crean to hammer it into the open net to tie the game.

A point of emphasis for referees of NHIAA soccer games this year is the Stopping a Promising Attack rule, otherwise known as the SPA rule. 

The officials of Friday’s match applied the SPA rule early and often, including awarding a penalty kick to John Stark in the 29th minute. Madi Lamothe’s right footed strike to the top left corner of the net was beyond the outstretched hand of Al-Shawafi, sending the Generals into halftime with a 2-1 lead.

“We’re a very young squad,” John Stark head coach Eddie Marceau said. “We’re replacing 11 strong seniors that  were very experienced in this league, so I’m proud of their resiliency. We went down fairly quickly, but worked our way to come back. … We have already been talking about having resiliency and I think you saw that in our response, that we knew we weren’t down and that we fought to the very end.”

Gatchell was tightly marked throughout the entire second half, but still tied the game in the 51st minute, accepting a pass from fellow senior Kayla Amyot, turning and firing it into the back of the net from the middle of the box to tie the game 2-2 in the 51st minute.

The referees were equally critical of both teams regarding the SPA rule, awarding another PK, this time to Lindsey Jones, but her shot went straight into Boudreau’s arms. 

There was plenty of action in the final 15 minutes with both teams transitioning the ball quickly down the field with swift counterattacks, both teams getting shots on goal and both teams picking up yellow cards.

The most exciting sequence was when Gatchell dribbled down the right flank on a fast break and struck the ball off the inside of the crossbar. The ball came straight down, but the referee ruled that the ball never crossed the line. Boudreau scooped it up and carried it to the edge of the box to punt it away. 

But the official called a handball on Boudreau, claiming that she had stepped outside the 18-yard box prior to punting the ball, setting up a direct free kick near goal. Lily Royer lined up as if to fire the ball on net, but instead sent a short pass to Gatchell who neatly tucked the ball into the near side of the goal for the game winner.

“It was a lot of emotions,” Pembroke head coach Jess Kaufman-Desrochers said. “We knew this was going to be a grudge match. We respect (John Stark), we play with a lot of them. Eddie is a fantastic coach. We knew both of our keepers were going to be tough. We knew we both have a high-powered forward. … Both teams played well, it could have gone either way.”

Spartan center back Jules Davis did an excellent job marking Lamothe, particularly in the second half to lead Pembroke’s defense.

Marceau praised the play of Stark center backs Chloe Caron and Lexi Purington, and midfielders Avery Pellerin and Haley Stafford.

“I always tell them that losing is an education, so all we can do is take (lessons) from this match and apply them to the next one,” Marceau said. “Pembroke is perennially one of the strongest teams in the league, so we still have our heads up high.”

Both teams next play on the road on Tuesday, with John Stark playing at Laconia, while Pembroke travels to Kingswood.