The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Guilford dominates, tops Cheshire for SCC crown
GUILFORD — Lexie Hemstock, one of the top field hockey goalies in the state, did her best to keep Cheshire within striking distance of Guilford, which dominated just about every phase of the game in the Southern Connecticut Conference final at Kavanaugh Turf Field on Saturday.
The Indians had 14 penalty corners to the Rams’ one. The Rams’ defense and Hemstock denied the Indians during most of the opportunities and Hemstock ended up with 14 saves, but the penalty corners led to constant ball possession in the Cheshire zone and the relentless pressure on Hemstock took its toll.
Ella Stanley, Maddie Epke and Hannah Tillier scored to lead No. 2 Guil-
ford to a 3-1 win over No. 1 Cheshire. It was the Indians third SCC final appearance and first title. Eve Young had one save for the Indians.
The win avenged the Indians’ 1-0 regular-season loss to the Rams.
“Our girls, they really wanted it,” Guilford coach Kitty Palmer said. “Last time we played Cheshire they stopped everything we shot at them, we couldn’t get anything by them. Today, the difference was we converted our opportunities, we were able to finish and score.
“Cheshire is so good, especially at stopping balls. Our team was just so determined out there. I’m proud of all our girls and so happy for them. Playing at home helped a little too because we play so much better here. We don’t usually do so well in Cheshire. That team is having a heck of a season.”
Although the Rams were the higher seed, Guilford High was the predetermined site before the season for the SCC final.
The Rams entered the SCC final 18-0 with 17 shutouts and only allowed one goal in those 18 games.
“We didn’t play our best today, especially when it came to disciplinary things like winning 50-50 balls,” Cheshire coach Eileen Wildermann said. “Guilford played phenomenal. In our first game Guilford had a lot of penalty corners. But the difference today is they finished them.”
Guilford (16-2-1) took a 1-0 lead at halftime with most of the ball possession inside Cheshire’s 20-yard line. As a result the Indians had eight penalty corners in the first half. Eventually, the Indians were able to cash in on off a scramble in front of Hemstock during a penalty corner opportunity.
With players scrambling for the ball about eight yards in front of Hemstock, Stanley, named the tournament’s most outstanding player, grabbed a loose ball. She wristed a shot into the lower left corner of the net to give Guilford a 1-0 lead with 15:24 to go in the half.
In the second half, Kayla Sansone sent the Rams’ faithful to their feet when she took a shot in front of the left post and scored to tie the game at 1 with 11:59 to go in the game.
But those Guilford penalty corners kept coming and Epke took advantage. She weaved around two defenders and took a hard shot from about eight yards out. The ball rolled by two defenders and through the legs of Hemstock for the goal and a 2-1 lead.
“When I first hit the ball, I wasn’t sure it would go in,” Epke said. “But when I saw it roll between the goalie’s legs into the net, I was so happy I jumped in the air. In this game, we turned it on today. We kept getting better all year and this is the result. Everyone has worked so hard for this.”
The Rams couldn’t get a quality shot the rest of the game and Tillier added an insurance goal with 3:38 to go for the 3-1 final.