BATH — This time it was different.
A year after losing in the Class C field hockey state final, Oak Hill brought home its first title Saturday with a 2-0 win over Maine Central Institute at McMann Field.
“In August we put down what our goals were. And it was to get back,” Coach Betsy Gilbert said. “They had their first taste of it and they wanted to get back. …Our motto this year was ‘all or nothing.’ They were giving all, and we really were not stopping until we got here.”
The top-seeded Raiders got goals from Lexi Fuller on a penalty stroke and Erika Hannigan.
“(We) came in very headstrong, a lot different than what we did last year,” said Gilbert, whose team finished at 17-1. “This year they knew what to expect. They knew it was going to be loud, they knew it was going to be intense. You couldn’t let up for one second.”
It didn’t come easy. The teams played through an even first half, buzzing around each other’s net but struggling to earn corners and land shots on goal. That changed with no time remaining in the first half, when Oak Hill was awarded only its third corner of the game.
Pressure by the Raiders led to another corner, and Oak Hill crashed the net looking to knock in a loose ball until goalie Elspeth Taylor (six saves) covered it up to halt the chaos.
Officials noticed the move and called a penalty stroke. Gilbert called on Fuller – who had already missed two such shots this postseason – to put the Raiders in front.
“I said, ‘You’ve just got to be patient,’ ” Fuller said. “I was excited but nervous at the same time.”
Again, confidence prevailed for the Raiders. Fuller’s shot was perfect for the 1-0 lead. The Huskies got a corner at the start of the second half but Oak Hill turned the tide, earning the next four corners. On the fourth, the Raiders struck. Victoria Friend of MCI swatted away a shot headed for the cage but the ball eventually went from Hayden Spencer to Hannigan, who drilled it home for a 2-0 lead with 18:38 to play.
“To be up a couple of points was definitely a relief,” Hannigan said. “It was huge. It really took the pressure off of everyone so we could calm down and really play our passing game.”
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