Scoring machine breaks down

Springbrook falters in state title game

Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2005

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by James Peters

Staff Writer

Click here to enlarge this photo

David S. Spence⁄The Gazette

Springbrook’s Lauren Kessler (right) and South River’s Hope Battista chase after the ball Monday at the University of Maryland, during the MPSSAA Class 4A championship game. The Blue Devils, who scored 57 goals through the regional tournament, were shut out 3-0 in the title clash.

In capturing Montgomery County’s Division II title and its second regional crown in two years, the Springbrook High field hockey team displayed one of the most potent and diversified offensive attacks in the area, if not the state.

The Blue Devils pounded the opposition for 57 goals during that time, including a combined 13 goals in their three-game run through the 4A South Region.

Perhaps even more remarkable, Springbrook had 12 different players score at least one goal or contribute at least one assist, led by juniors Lauren Kessler (17 goals, 5 assists), Larissa Rodney (9 goals), Yuri Sin (9 goals, 6 assists) and senior Jacquie King (9 goals, 2 assists).

For all that firepower, though, Springbrook scored just one goal in two state playoff games, a drop-off that came back to bite the Blue Devils Monday night. After notching a 1-0 win over C.M. Wright in the 4A state semifinals last Wednesday, the Blue Devils suffered a 3-0 loss to South River in the championship at the University of Maryland.

In the win over C.M. Wright (13-3-1), Springbrook, which averaged 3.4 goals per game this season, managed just a handful of shots but pulled out the victory with a goal by King about eight minutes into the second half, thanks to an assist from Leah Arthur.

But South River (16-3-1) limited Springbrook to a pair of shots, both in the second half, and two penalty corners even though Springbrook coach Kearney Francis replaced two defenders for two offensive players throughout the second half.

‘‘We just couldn’t connect today,” said Kessler, whose possible first-half breakaway in the circle was stripped away by South River defender Heather Bresnahan. ‘‘The turf was a little faster. It just seems our drives were a little too hard. We need to learn to temper our hits. When we do that, I think we’ll be back here next year.”

The loss ended Springbrook’s season at 14-3 and denied the county of a state field hockey championship at any level for the first time since the 1993 season.

‘‘I think we met some very strong defensive teams,” Francis added. ‘‘I think we moved to the ball well but not as well as we could have to create options. We actually took a lot of risks [in pulling the two defenders in the second half]. We were really trying to make something happen offensively. For whatever reason, we couldn’t get it done. [But] I’m so proud of what they’ve done.”

South River defended its 2004 championship despite having to replace three all-county players in forwards Shannon Long and Jill Hodges, who produced a combined 35 goals and 29 assists, and goalkeeper Irene Jorden (139 saves).

‘‘Losing our whole forward line, losing our starting goalkeeper, it was a little nerve-wracking at the beginning, but these girls really stepped up to the plate,” South River coach Katie Corcoran said. ‘‘They knew there were a bunch of starting positions open, and they fought tooth and nail to get on that field and played their best. Our philosophy, we stuck with it: Defending our title, playing strong ‘D.’ But this year, we really focused more on scoring. We wanted to score right away. That was our goal tonight: score right away, score quick, score often. That’s what got us here, and that’s why we’re winning.”

South River forward Adrienne Hunt kick-started the team’s offense by tipping in a goal on an assist by Abigail McNair about 13 minutes into the first half. Hunt’s tipped ball went about chest-high and squeaked by Blue Devils goalkeeper Avian Spiller into the left corner.

‘‘I was scrambling for the ball and I hit it and I kind of lost it, but Adrienne was right there to knock it in for me,” McNair said. ‘‘We just want to get it in the goal. It doesn’t matter who scores as long as it gets in there.”

The score remained 1-0 until McNair scored on a rebound from a Kellie Dress shot with 7:25 left in the game. Molly Gregoire, with Springbrook pushed up, added a breakaway goal late in the match.

‘‘I think it’s an amazing season,” Francis said. ‘‘I told the kids not to let the final 60 minutes or the score dampen the season. The kids walked out on the field Aug. 15 and said, ‘We’re going to states’ and everything they did in the off-season and everything they did all season long contributed to their getting here.”