The Dartmouth Indians are out of the state tournament, as the boys’ hockey team lost 2-0 against the third-seeded Hanover High School in the state sectional final on Sunday afternoon.

Supporters from both sides filled the stands and gave an electric atmosphere to the game at the Gallo Ice Arena in Bourne.

Dartmouth’s team put up a valiant effort, holding off Hanover and keeping the score to a nail-biting 0-0 nearly the entire match.

After a slow first period, the Indians dominated the second, with sophomore Nicholas Howarth almost scoring only to have the goal recalled by the referee and judges.

Despite some grumbling from the Dartmouth fans at the controversial call, the team continued to give it their all through the third period.

But Hanover’s offense proved too much even for JP Kerney’s strong goalkeeping, with the home side scoring a goal with three minutes left in the game and then one more on an open net in the last few seconds.

Even with the disappointing result, Dartmouth fans loved the excitement of the game.

“This is great, really. I go to a lot of high school sports, and this is the best,” said Westport resident Tom Enwright, who came out to support a friend’s son playing for Dartmouth. “It’s awesome.”

“Congratulations to Hanover, they’re a great hockey team,” said head coach Mike Cappello. “It came right to the end.”

“Our goaltending was fantastic today, he made a lot of big saves to keep us in the game,” he added.

As for recalling the Dartmouth goal, Cappello noted, it may have changed the outcome. 

“The game of hockey’s a game of momentum,” he said. But “the goal judge and the official on the ice both said it didn’t go in. It was certainly very close...I couldn’t see it from my vantage point, but if that goes in, it’s clearly a different game. But we can’t dwell on that. We just have to keep playing.”

Ultimately, he said, “I couldn’t be prouder of this team and the five seniors on it.”