Field hockey title games slated on artificial turf

Belfast High School field hockey coach Allen Holmes has coached in eight state championship games. He knows what it’s like to play an afternoon state final on a field that’s been put through its paces from other state games earlier in the day.

“If you had the first game and there was an early thaw, it was a little slippery but OK. If you had the middle game, it wasn’t quite as good,” he said. “But if you had the third game, the ground might have thawed, but it was all chewed up, especially in front of the goals.”

The Maine Principals’ Association is hoping to eliminate those problems this fall by holding all three state finals on the artificial turf surface at Fitzpatrick Stadium in Portland on Oct. 30.

It will be the first time that the state field hockey finals will be held on an artificial surface. Fitzpatrick is lined with a surface called FieldTurf, which has the look and feel of real grass.

Not all coaches had advocated playing on turf, said Holmes, who is in his 32nd season with the Lions, because of the lack of experience most teams in the state have on the artificial surfaces.

But because the field will be in consistently good shape for all three games, and the relatively smooth surface it provides, it’s worth it.

“It takes away all the bumps and grass,” he said. “It’s the way the game was meant to be played. … Overall, you can’t go wrong with turf.”

The move was made possible when Gorham High School, which has been the host for the past several years, pulled out this year, MPA assistant director Larry LaBrie said.

FieldTurf is in place at sites such as the Winkin Complex in Bangor, where several field hockey postseason games were played last fall because of bad weather; the Hampden Academy complex, and the MBNA field at Point Lookout in Northport. Point Lookout has hosted state soccer finals in recent years.

Holmes said teams like Hampden Academy, which regularly play on its FieldTurf surface, may have an advantage. But most of the kids in the state have already played on artificial fields at camps and clinics and know what to expect, he added.

The Class A state final will kick off the day at 10 a.m., followed by Class C at noon and Class B at 2 p.m.

Fitzpatrick Stadium has served as the host site for state football championship games.

KVAC game set for today

The Skowhegan and Gardiner field hockey teams will square off today for the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class A championship.

The defending state champion Indians and the Tigers will play at noon at Leavitt High School in Turner.

Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for students.

Skowhegan and Gardiner are ranked first and second, respectively, in the Eastern Maine Class A Heal Points.