Raiders claim crown again
Somerset Berkley put detractors behind them
WORCESTER — A year after becoming the first coed team to win a state title, the Somerset Berkley field hockey team entrenched itself in history again as the first to repeat on Saturday.
SOMERSET BERKLEY 4 LONGMEADOW 1
Behind a pair of early goals from standout Lucas Crook, defensive endurance and a couple of insurance goals in the second half, the Raiders (24-0) finished off their undefeated season in the face of a scrutinizing crowd by taking the Div. 1 state final, 4-1, over Longmeadow at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Head coach Jen Crook was brought to tears afterward not only because her team won for a second straight year, nor just because she won with her two kids — Lucas and Camryn Crook — on the team, but also because she got what she wanted for her seniors after experiencing all the “hate” along the way.
“(The criticism) was the worst it’s been,” she said. “I’m just so proud of these seniors because of all the baloney that’s gone with (winning the state title). I’m just so happy that they can end their career, all of them, all nine of them, together with a win. You can hear all the hate, all the reporter’s hate, and everybody’s hate … and I couldn’t be prouder of them.”
Repeating as state champs adds fuel to critics’ fire, and so did the start of this one.
Lucas Crook, Alex Millar and the team effectively pushed the ball up the field and the team capitalized on that. About midway through the first half, Camryn Crook sent a ball into the circle that her brother slammed home for a 1-0 lead. Not too long after, he got the ball again at midfield and weaved through the defense for a second goal.
Longmeadow played competitively until the end, controlling possession and pushing the ball up itself for large chunks of the game. The Lancers (17-3-2) cut the deficit to 2-1 in the second half on an Ashley Barron goal. But the Raiders defense held their own the rest of the way while Riley Durette and Reaghan Cadorette responded with insurance goals to seal it.
“It means so much to me because I get to (win) with my mom, my brother and my best friends,” Camryn Crook said after touching on assisting on her brother’s first goal. “It feels really good. It hypes us up, it makes us want to keep scoring.”
Longmeadow head coach Ann Simons wasn’t pleased with the degree of criticism the crowd shouted at Somerset Berkley, but said the big hits around the middle posed a big challenge for a Lancers team that otherwise had “an outstanding season,” and “played their best” in “a good match.”
She hopes the MIAA does something about boys’ involvement soon.
“I’ve been coaching for 39 years and this is not the first time this has happened to us,” she said. “I definitely think once they go to a state tournament, maybe (the MIAA) should do a large school, small school, middle school … and mixed gender (section). We have boys that want to come out and play, but they don’t because they know where they should be playing, at least in our area. It’s just something that hopefully will get fixed in the near future.”