One person is dead after a car crashed into a utility pole in Pelham, New Hampshire, Thursday night, causing officials to temporarily turn off power in the area and close the road into Friday morning.
First responders were called to the area of 497 Mammoth Road around 9:07 p.m. and arrived to find a sedan on its side up against a majorly-damaged utility pole, the Pelham Fire Department said. The occupant was pronounced dead on scene.
Due to the pole being severely compromised, crews on scene contacted the power company and were instructed to turn off power in the area for the safety of first responders.
Pelham police advised that Mammoth Road would be closed in the area until late Friday morning, directing people to seek an alternate route of travel, or follow the detour signs.
It’s unclear when power was restored, or when Mammoth Road will reopen. Pelham officials also haven’t said what caused the crash, or released any information about the victim, including their name or age.
Accident reconstruction is ongoing, with Pelham police leading the investigation.
It didn’t matter – the Tewksbury High girls soccer team remained on a mission Saturday during a 2-0 victory at Martha’s Vineyard during a Div. 3 round of 16 game.
For No. 25 Tewksbury (11-5-5), the goals scored by Lyla Chapman and Sophia Nazzaro, assists from Samantha Ryan and Cordelia Zwirek, to oust No. 24 Martha’s Vineyard (15-5-1).
It was a true team victory. The Redmen got off to a slow start, but built momentum in the second half. Both goals were scored within the first 10 minutes of the second half. Nazzaro scored off of a crossed ball from Zwirek and Chapman scored soon after from 20 yards out.
The defensive line of Sophie Brewster, Sarah Marano, Vera Garabedian and Lila Chambers was outstanding.
Natick 2, Westford 1: An outstanding fall for 20th-seeded Westford Academy came to a painful end when fourth-seeded Natick scored in overtime during a Div. 1 round of 16 game in Natick.
Westford caps a 10-6-2 campaign. The Ghosts defeated Brookline in penalty kicks to advance to face Natick.
Pelham’s Nick Landry celebrates after a fourth-down stop against Manchester West during Saturday’s NHIAA Division 2 football quarterfinal in Pelham. Pelham won 7–6. (James Thomas for the Lowell Sun)
Boys soccer
Northbridge 1, Tyngsboro 0: Tyngsboro’s memorable season came to a tough close with a narrow loss in a Div. 4 round of 16 battle.
The ninth-seeded Tigers (10-4-6) weren’t able to send a shot past Northbridge goalkeeper J.P. Bolduc, who notched his second straight shutout.
Football
Pelham 7, West 6: It wasn’t easy and the Pythons had to play great defense all afternoon, but Pelham hung on for a tough NHIAA Div. 2 quarterfinal victory.
One touchdown and extra point kick was enough as No. 4 Pelham (8-2) edged No. 5 Manchester West (7-3) before a large home crowd.
Pelham, which has been banged up with injuries, entered the game having lost two of three game since hammering Manchester West, 35-0, in the regular season.
The Pythons advance and will play at top-seeded Souhegan on Saturday, Nov. 15 at 1 p.m.
Billerica 20, Beverly 0: Marc Luther led an inspired defensive effort as the Indians posted a home shutout during a Div. 2 round of 16 game Friday.
Luther finished with 10 tackles, while Luke McKenna had 2.5 tackles for loss for No. 6 Billerica (6-3), which didn’t let No. 11 Beverly (5-4) get its offense untracked. Offensively, the Indians were led by Erik Knight, who rushed for 106 yards on 17 carries.
Billerica advances to face third-seeded Bridgewater-Raynham.
OR 47, Wilmington 39: Old Rochester’s Connor Nelson scored the winning touchdown in the third overtime on a 1-yard run, followed by a successful two-point conversion, to hand the Wildcats a painful Div. 6 round of 16 loss Friday.
No. 4 Wilmington (6-3) was ousted despite a superb performance from quarterback Mark Holleran. He tossed two touchdowns passes and ran for two scores. Julian Martins broke loose for a 35-yard TD run.
Holleran tossed a 15-yard TD to Pasquale Delucia and in overtime a 10-yard strike to Delucia. He also sprinted in from 10 yards out in OT. Two failed two-point conversion attempts hurt Wilmington.
Quarterback Kevin Hardy (4) looks to pass for Pelham against Manchester West in Saturday’s NHIAA Division 2 football quarterfinal. Pelham advanced with a 7-6 win. (James Thomas for the Lowell Sun)
Non-playoffs
Algonquin 41, G-D 13: Liam Richard was 16-for-22 through the air for 153 yards and a TD, but Groton-Dunstable fell to visiting Algonquin Regional on Friday.
Finn Gallagher (1-for-1) tossed a nine-yard TD pass to Carter Maple in the second quarter. In the third quarter, Richard lofted a 21-yard strike to Gallagher.
G-D spread the ball to receivers Gallagher (4-41), Korbin Larsen (4-40), Jayce Szatkowski (1-32) and Jack Burrows (4-30). The Crusaders struggled to run the ball effectively.
Monty Tech 41, Littleton 16: Austin Hegarty scored on a 95-yard pass from Justin Kasey in the first quarter, but it wasn’t enough for the Tigers (2-7) against the Fitchburg school Friday.
Keniat Velez scored on a 2-yard TD run in the fourth. Evan Fitzgerald and Cole Macadie each converted two-point attempts. Damien Sor and Cole Makie played well in the defensive backfield, with Sor grabbing an interception.
Noah Johnson (15) recovers a fumble for Pelham against Manchester West in Saturday’s NHIAA Division 2 football quarterfinal. Pelham earned a tough 7-6 win. (James Thomas for the Lowell Sun)
The Pelham High football team will now try to start a new winning streak.
The Pythons (6-1) were handed their first defeat this fall Friday night in a 23-13 loss at Trinity (5-1) in Manchester, N.H.
Luke Draper rushed eight times for 53 yards and a touchdown and quarterback Kevin Hardy scampered for eight carries and 68 yards. Brady Williams gained 51 yards on 14 carries.
Hardy, however, struggled to get the passing game going, finishing 4-for-11 for 34 yards and an interception. Draper caught a 20-yard pass, but no other receiver had more than seven yards.
Defensively, Nick Landry led the Pythons with seven tackles, while Hardy and Domenic Peranelli each had five tackles. Jacob Chafe and Draper finished with four tackles each, Ben Maslanek had a fumble recovery and Brady Williams intercepted a pass.
Val Villa and Paityn Lemay collected a goal and assist apiece to power the Greater Lowell Tech girls soccer team to a 7-2 CAC win over Lowell Catholic.
Coach Butch Dion (5th season): “We are being positive that we will have another successful year. All teams in our league this year have recruited more athletes, which will make our meet a little more challenging this year.”
Coach Bruce Sullivan (10th season): “This year feels very promising. Though we haven’t won the CAC since 2021, our combination of experience and youth makes this an exciting year. Though we graduated our top point scorer in Ian McDermott, we have added lots of depth at every position.”
Pelham
League: NHIAA Div. 3
Last season: Boys second at D3 states; girls fifth at D3 states
Coach Brandon Hannon (7th season): “We have the largest team in the history of the program with over 80 athletes. We are going after a state championship this season.”
Nashoba Tech’s track captains this spring are, from left, Damion Carey, Sam Hesketh, Sydney Rokita and Lidia Davis. (Courtesy photo)
The Lowell High boys basketball team will be big underdogs when it takes the court Friday.
The Red Raiders have enjoyed a terrific season in the powerful Merrimack Valley Conference, but the No. 9 seed (16-6) will be playing in enemy territory against the top team in Massachusetts.
North isn’t just the defending Division 1 state champions. The top-seeded Polar Bears (21-0) are undefeated and rarely tested.
Lowell will attempt to pull off the upset in a round of 8 game in Worcester at 6:30 p.m.
Lowell has eliminated Beverly, 83-57, at home and then MVC rival Andover on the road, 54-45, thanks to an impressive third quarter.
Tzar Powell-Aparacio and Xavier Rivera has been dominant in the postseason for the Red Raiders, as they were in the regular season.
Not surprisingly, North has cruised to two state tournament victories over King Philip, 90-64, and Waltham, 78-40. The Polar Bears seem to play at a different tempo than their opponents, the faster the better.
Here are other state tournament games involving local teams this weekend.
Friday: The Littleton girls basketball team will play in Division 4 round of 8 action. The No. 5 Tigers (17-5) and senior star Victoria McCoy will play at No. 4 Millis (17-7) at 6 p.m.
Saturday: Tewksbury and Shawsheen Tech will play in Division 2 and Division 3 final 4 games, respectively, at Stoneham Arena.
No. 1 Tewksbury (20-3), which has outscored opponents 22-3 in three tournament games thanks a dominant first line, will face No. 4 Woburn (15-5-1) at 7 p.m.
In the game before, No. 2 Shawsheen Tech (22-1-0) will face No. 6 Marblehead (15-9-1) at 4 p.m. The Rams and goaltender Mike Cedrone have been stingy in three tournament wins and are coming off two shutout performances.
In a Division 4 round of 8 girls basketball contest, No. 2 Tyngsboro (21-1), sparked by Gianna Donato and Carly DiMento, will entertain No. 7 Bourne (20-2) at 5 p.m.
Sunday: The Pelham boys basketball team will attempt to net its second straight state Division 2 championship. The top-seeded Pythons, led by Zach James and Dom Herrling, will clash with No. 2 Hanover at 1 p.m. at Lundholm Gymnasium on the campus of the University of New Hampshire.
