NAPLES — When the Falmouth and Lake Region field hockey teams met last year, it was a gritty, defense-minded battle that resulted in overtime.
Despite going into two overtimes when the Yachtsmen and the Lakers met for the first time this season on Monday morning, the results were a little different, but the theme of defense remained consistent with each team holding off several late scoring attempts to tie 1-1 in a Western Class B matchup.
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“It was a very physical game, and probably our toughest competition so far this season,” Lake Region Coach Dagny Leland said. “Falmouth was fast and had good stick work and I’m very proud of my girls for being patient, especially after falling behind early.”
Falmouth (1-0-1) took a 1-0 lead a little over three minutes into the game when Mickey Richards took a pass from the right side and slipped it past Lake Region goalie Shannon VanLoan.
The Yachtsmen controlled the ball for most of the first half with the calm and quick play of senior midfielder Megan Fortier and a defense that only allowed one Lake Region shot in the first half.
As the second half got under way, the Lakers (1-1-1) again controlled possession, and after denying the Yachtsmen two scoring opportunities, the Lakers drove down the field and tied the score when sophomore Liz Schreiber crossed the ball from the right side, finding the stick of senior Monica Couvillon for a goal with 10:58 remaining.
“We weren’t really settled today and didn’t really get into our groove like we did at Wells,” said Fortier. She spent her freshman and sophomore years at Falmouth, spent her junior year at North Yarmouth Academy and came and back to Falmouth this year. “We didn’t really have competition like this until playoffs at NYA, and in Class B every game is like the playoffs, so you have to step up.”
After Lake Region (1-1-1) scored, a momentum shift became apparent in their favor, and VanLoan displayed some athleticism to save two powerful scoring attempts by Fortier and force overtime.
“Shannon was unbelievable in goal today,” Leland said.”She comes through at the most crucial moments, and she knows once she commits on a save she has to get back up and keep playing and that’s exactly what she did during overtime.”
Several scoring opportunities came and passed as the defenses and goaltending came through once again to force another overtime, and after going back and forth, neither team could score.
“Lake Region played a great game, and when we scored early, we were hoping that would set the tone for us, but they took us out of it,” Falmouth Coach Robin Haley said. “You have to give credit to them. They were very aggressive and physical and that made it difficult for us to get anything going.”
Although not completely satisfied with a tie, both coaches said their teams can take something positive from this game.
“I was encouraged we stayed in it for the long haul today. I had players who stayed in basically the whole game and they just really worked hard and maintained their focus, which is something that will help us in the our future games,” Haley said.
“This is a great group of girls, and they play for each other, not just one person,” Leland said. “Now we have a better understanding of what we can do and we’re going to use this to get better.”
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