Pentucket capitalizing on moment in sun
Over 27 years, a moment or two sticks with you.
Pentucket head coach Ruth Beaton remembers joining a program freshly rebounding from a few winless seasons in 1994, only to post three consecutive winless seasons right out the gates herself. She remembers coaching both of her daughters before they moved on to college, along with the good teams, the bad teams and a whole crop of the in-between she’s been in charge of. Star players have come and gone on each team, all of them leaving a positive mark on the program, too.
FIELD HOCKEY NOTEBOOK
Though, none have helped it reach the glory many of them aspired to.
There’s no doubt about the strength of the program as it’s molded throughout the years. Tucked within a deep Cape Ann League that just saw powerhouse Masconomet leave only a couple of years ago, Pentucket has held its own against more challenging opponents than most other leagues even have. But any time anybody walks into the Pentucket gymnasium, they can see a bevy of CAL title banners hanging on the wall – none of from field hockey.
Beaton and the players have taken notice.
“Seeing that reminder every day, it really drives you,” said senior captain Meg Freiermuth.
And yet, after beating Amesbury 2-0 on Friday for a 15-1 record and having split its two games with nextbest Triton (10-3-2), the group finished off a sensational run with two games left to secure its first CAL Kinney championship.
Something special brewed all year in Pentucket, and the level of superstition Beaton felt to get everything right the rest of the way indicates just how much it means to her and the girls to finally reach this accolade.
“As we started becoming successful, there’s this little voice in the back of your head saying, ‘Oh, this is really happening,’ but we (didn’t) want to jinx ourselves or put the cart before the horse,” she said. “But I think about all the girls that played before that were part of the 0-18 teams, or the 0-15-3 teams. This has been historic in that way. They’re a really humbled group of kids, it’s been really fun. … We did it.”
What’s particularly heartwarming about this run – which pins Pentucket at the No. 3 seed in the latest MIAA Div. 3 power rankings in the final leg of the regular season – are the quirks behind it.
For the past 15 years, Pentucket rented out a turf field to play on. This year, it’s a construction site. The seven seniors on the squad have gone from three years on the slick playing surface to an elementary school grass field with patches of sand, and a spot of water not too far from the far-side end line. There weren’t even goals to practice with a week before the start of the regular season.
Beyond the field, there are admittedly no superstars on this squad, either. Beaton is actually shocked at how impressive the team looks without one or two supreme talents. Senior leadership is strong, and while Freiermuth, Lana Mickelson (12 goals, 4 assists), Reese Gallant (7 goals), Haley Dwight (8 goals, 13 assists) and Charlene Basque (12 shutouts) have stood out, what powers Pentucket is the balance.
“This team is very wellrounded in that everyone contributes their each piece, and we don’t put all the pressure on one girl,” Freiermuth said. “When we all work together and play as a team, it’s easier to win a team sport. It’s not individualistic. … We share the wealth, everybody gets to contribute their part.”
“We’re the little engine that could,” Beaton added. “We said all year long – control your controllables. We can only take care of what we can take care of. … They’ve really bought into that.”
No, there’s nothing flashy about what Pentucket does. Just five of its 16 games thus far have been decided by three or more goals, most of which even characterized by three or four different goal-scorers. But despite all of its quirks, everything seems to be working the best it ever has.
If that’s the recipe it takes to beat Div. 1 teams like Central Catholic (4-3 win) and Methuen (2-0 win, 2-1 win) in nonleague play, so be it. If that’s what it takes to nearly run the table in the CAL for the program’s first league title, so be it.
If that’s what it takes to give Beaton yet another great memory from her long coaching career, then so be it.
Quick spotlights
■ Pentucket isn’t the only team going for something special, as Dedham looks to win the Tri-Valley League Small division for the first time since switching over from the Bay State Conference several years ago. It’s been a white-knuckle race with reigning Div. 2 state champion Dover-Sherborn for the mark, but after the Raiders lost to Medway and Dedham beat them 1-0 on October 20, the Marauders need just a tie against Medway on Monday to outright seal the crown.
■ The TVL Large is just as competitive and comes down to one game on Monday. Westwood hosts Holliston at 3:45 fresh off a loss to Walpole, looking to secure the league title right before both head into the playoffs as legitimate title threats.
■ Durfee won’t win the Southeast Conference over Dartmouth, but it has the playoffs around the corner for a squad that the majority of the roster will return to next year. Freshman Kathryn Gauvin has established herself as a scoring force to be reckoned with, entering the weekend tied for the school record with 30 tallies – keeping pace with upperclassmen dynamos from Masconomet (Maggie Sturgis ,32 goals) and Monomoy (Caroline DiGiovanni, 30 goals).
■ Walpole’s dominance this year has absorbed much of the spotlight from the Bay State Conference, but the conference could very well see a few of its teams make a deep run in the playoffs. All Wellesley (12-1-1) does is win, and that includes a 5-4 victory over a legitimate force in Concord-Carlisle. In fact, Wellesley’s only loss came against Natick on a wild comeback. Senior captain Megan Webb leads the way for the Raiders, while Newton North has shined in the meantime behind Ella Maher’s scoring prowess. Needham and Natick each appear geared to make some playoff noise, too.