WATERBORO — The York High field hockey team hasn’t been behind often this season. When it happened Wednesday in the Class B South championship game against Yarmouth, the Wildcats didn’t panic.

Izzy Bretz scored two goals off penalty corners in the second half as top-ranked York rallied to defeat third-seeded Yarmouth 2-1 for the Wildcats’ fourth consecutive regional championship and 53rd consecutive victory.

“We had to dig, had to work, had to earn it,” said Wildcats Coach Barb Marois. “Any time you can come away with a win when you’re down … it was a matter of us digging a little deeper, getting a little lower and fighting a little harder.”

York, which has won 11 of the last 13 regional titles, improved to 17-0 this year and will play Belfast in the Class B state game Saturday at McMann Field in Bath, time to be determined.

Yarmouth (12-5) was making its first appearance in a regional championship game since 2000.

The Clippers held a 1-0 lead at the half on a goal by Emelie Martin, only the second time this year York trailed at the half. But the Wildcats controlled the second half.

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York had a substantial 21-3 edge in penalty corners, including 12-1 in the second half.

“It was tough, a great game,” said Lily Posternak, York’s senior star midfielder bound for Duke.

“During that whole game, when we were down, I just kept believing in my team. I knew that we could get back up there.”

Yarmouth, which lost 3-1 to York on Sept. 12, frustrated Posternak in the first half by double- and triple-teaming whenever she got the ball. So Marois made the halftime adjustment of pushing the ball to the outside, then working it back into the circle.

It paid off almost immediately, with Bretz scoring just 2:12 into the second half off a penalty corner. Bretz inserted the ball from the left of the cage to Posternak at the top of the circle. She dribbled to her right, then passed back to Bretz. who redirected the ball into the cage to make it 1-1.

York kept pressuring the Clippers. And on its 15th corner, Bretz struck again. Again she inserted the ball from the left to Posternak, whose shot was blocked by Sophia McGrath of Yarmouth. The ball rolled to Julia Harrod of York, who quickly pushed it to Bretz, again open at the left post. She put it in and York led 2-1 with 16:19 left.

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“That’s her job on the corners, be off the post and pick up anything loose or if there’s a pass to her, get a stick on it,” said Marois. “She certainly came through for us.”

Bretz didn’t recall much of either goal. “Honestly I don’t remember, it was such a rush,” she said. “It was a team effort.”

Clippers Coach Amy Ashley said she knew York was dangerous on the corners. “And we knew if we gave them too many offensive corners, it was just a matter of time before they would score,” she said. “But the girls competed to the end. They never gave up.”

Indeed, Yarmouth got a penalty corner with three seconds remaining. But Emlyn Patry of York blocked the shot and the Wildcats held on.

“I saw the pass to the left and that’s my side to cover,” said Patry. “I knew I had to get my stick in and tipped the ball, and hoped for the best. It worked.”


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