November 08, 2024
CLASS A FIELD HOCKEY

Indians win sixth straight ‘A’ crown Lions get 3rd ‘B’ title, 54th victory in row

PORTLAND – The streaks are intact, with two state championships to top things off.

The Skowhegan field hockey team used two Courtney Veinotte goals and Belfast got one from Jillian Ross as both teams successfully defended their Class A and Class B state championships, respectively, and continued their winning streaks Saturday at Fitzpatrick Stadium.

The 18-0 Indians won their sixth straight Class A title with a 4-3 victory over Gorham, while the 18-0 Lions earned their third straight B crown and won their 54th game in a row, a 1-0 win over York.

In the Class B game, York was hoping to break a streak of its own.

The Wildcats (17-1) had lost two state finals in a row to Belfast. With 15 seniors on the roster, York was hoping the Lions’ run would end this year.

“I thought we had a good chance, absolutely,” Wildcats coach Barb Marois said. “Anytime you get back here, you’ve got a chance to win.”

But Belfast’s defense was too much for York all game as fullbacks Helen Berry, Carrie Hart, Christine Hill, and midfielder Kallie Aldus intercepted passes, stole away balls, and fell to the ground as needed to knock away shots. Goalie Liz Anderson was backed up with saves from the defense at least twice.

“[Berry] stepped up really big there in the first half,” Holmes said. “She brought the ball up the field four or five times, made some good plays, saved one goal.”

The Wildcats have had trouble finishing against Belfast over the years, Marois said. The teams were fairly even overall with Belfast outshooting York 8-7. The Wildcats had eight penalty corners while the Lions had six.

“I think we kind of got flat a little bit,” said Marois. “We were waiting for the ball to come through and they stepped up and intercepted a couple of plays there.”

Ross’ goal was her fourth of the postseason, and it came with 19:06 left in the first half. Ross was in position when the rebound of an Aldus shot came to her.

“Kallie had a really nice shot,” Ross said. “The goalie tried to kick it out and I stopped it and put it back in. I think that caught her off-guard.”

Anderson recorded her first shutout in states with four saves.

“The defense was amazing today,” she said. “York was really gunning to beat us, so I knew I needed to work that much harder.”

York’s Brittany Barrett made three saves.

In the Class A game, coach Paula Doughty guided the Indians to their ninth state crown. This time, however, Skowhegan had to withstand a strong second half from 15-2-1 Gorham.

Indians senior star Courtney Veinotte scored twice, including a penalty stroke to the left of Gorham goalie Rachel Lolley with 15:08 left in the second half. That goal made it 4-1 and proved to be the game winner as the Rams tried to rally with two goals in the final 7:16.

“It was like we got up so high that we had a letdown and we were sitting on our lead,” said Veinotte, who was surprised to find out her stroke went on to seal the win. “Doughty always tells us never sit on our lead, but it never works out.”

Both of Gorham’s late goals were scored on corners.

Skowhegan converted both of its first-half corners. Veinotte scored the first, followed by Becca Roy.

Roy’s goal came on a corner during which Lindsey Pinkham faked a whiff. It’s a set play that has worked well this year.

“She always says she hates doing it because it makes her look like she misses,” Roy said with a smile. “But it’s a good one.”

Gorham’s Emma Deans flicked in a penalty stroke to cut the lead to 2-1 before halftime, but a Caitlyn Lancaster goal and Veinotte’s stroke gave Skowhegan what seemed like a big cushion.

The Indians had never given up more than two goals in any of their state title wins.

“This one was tough,” Roy said. “They’re a good team. But we pulled through and we did it.”

Skowhegan goalie Megan Smith had three saves on seven shots, while Lolley recorded two saves on five shots.


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