By Tyler Maheu
EAGLE TIMES STAFF
CLAREMONT — In the First Round of the NHIAA Division III Field Hockey Playoffs, the eighth-seeded Stevens Cardinals dropped a double-overtime thriller to the visiting ninth-seeded Mascoma Royals, 2-1.
Coming into Tuesday’s tournament opener, the Royals held all the momentum, having rattled off three straight wins, and five of their last seven, including a 2-0 victory over the Cardinals on October 5th. On the other end of the spectrum, Stevens started the year on fire, storming out of the gates at 7-2, but a slump in which they lost four of their last five, dropped the Cardinals to the big dance’s eighth seed. A Mascoma tie earlier in the season was the only thing keeping the contest from being held up the interstate in Enfield.
The first period showed just how even the two squads were, as both teams went scoreless. Both teams had numerous runs up and down the field, but the defenses were able to turn the tide on each scoring attempt. By the end of the quarter, both Stevens and Mascoma had only mustered up one shot-on-goal apiece. “We played the first 15 minutes really flat, really slow,” said the Royals’ first year Head Coach Danielle Pushee.
Midway through the second period, the Cardinals would draw first blood. Stevens’ Lilly Clark found the back of the cage, giving the home team a 1-0 lead. Late in the period, Mascoma was presented with several scoring opportunities, with multiple corner sets in a row. However, Stevens’ goalkeeper, Sarah Wheeler, was standing on her head, batting back any would-be goals. The half would end with the Cardinals up 1-0.
Wheeler continued her dominance in the third, as she stopped two great Royals scoring chances, before a scorcher from the top of the circle, would fall harmlessly due to her brilliance. But on the Stevens offensive end, they would face more of the same, with scoring attempts thwarted at every turn. The game would head into the decisive fourth period with the Cards up one.
At this time, tensions both on and off the field were beginning to rise. Mascoma’s fan section, who traveled incredibly well considering the tilt’s 3PM start time, began to show their umbrage with the officiating.
Late in the period, with their backs against the wall of elimination, the Royals began to push the pace. “They knew we were down, and we talked about it, and just said girls if you want it, you’re gonna have to dig deep and get it,” said Pushee. And want it they did. A hard push up the turf from defender Haley Miller led to a pass to senior Carmen Zani. Zani then wove her way into scoring position and found paydirt, tying the contest at 1-1 with only 2:24 remaining in regulation, leading to an explosion of cheers from the Mascoma parents, and a hush over the Stevens crowd.
“We couldn’t have asked for more,” the Royals coach stated. “Haley is one of our captains. She is the most hype if you want to call it, so to see her be able to come up with a big play and go up and make that happen so her teammate could score was amazing.”
The contest would end tied, leading to the first overtime period. Throughout the first OT, the exhaustion from both sides was clear. “I was a little nervous,” said Pushee. “We’ve gone into overtime in four or five games and haven’t come out on top.” With under two minutes to go, a Stevens corner presented the best scoring chance from either side. Sadly, for the raucous home crowd, Mascoma would end this chance with little more than a whimper, and the game would head to a second overtime.
Overtime period number two would end much shorter than the first. A rush up field by Mascoma, a beautiful pass to Ann Buffington, and her shot, were all it took to find the back of the net less than one minute into the period. “Going into the second overtime, I said you don’t want to go another ten minutes. You wanna get that ball, you wanna get that ball in that net, and you wanna get it as fast as we can,” said Pushee following the exhilarating win.
On the field and in the stands, the old adage of the joy of victory and agony of defeat were seen all around. Stevens players fell into each other’s arms in tears, parents of seniors looked solemnly at their children’s final days on the Monadnock Park pitch. On the other end, Mascoma players rushed the field, screaming in jubilation, while parents exclaimed in joy. One parent, with a particularly thick New England accent, exuded hopefulness as she claimed that the Royals are going to continue their playoff run and be, “a friggin’ Cinderella story.” Mascoma will hope to keep the clock from striking midnight on Friday, when they travel to the undefeated, number one-seeded Gilford Golden Eagles.
Then, followed by her players, Stevens’ Varsity Head Coach Patty Deschaine, and her Stevens JV Coach husband Rick, announced that this was the end of her illustrious career. She tearfully said goodbye to the families and former players in attendance, in addition to her current crop of Cardinals, and capped off her career with a cartwheel. “I guess I can say that I achieved some goals that I was hoping we were going to do as a team,” said the 20-year coaching veteran following her and her husband’s final game. “I wanted a winning record, we got it. I wanted the playoffs, we got it. We wanted home field advantage, we got it. We got those little things that we wanted, and I wanted, as a team.”
Deschaine also spoke highly of what would turn out to be her final group of players. “I have a young, young squad out there, and I am very proud of how much they improved.” She would later continue, “It was a great group of players, not even on the field, but off the field too. I really enjoyed this group, not just the varsity, but the JV as well. Getting to coach with my husband, and a former player, was very special.”
The decision, based on Deschaine’s comments, did not seem to be a spur of the moment choice, but something she had been ready to do for a while. “This last part of it, I just enjoyed it. I enjoyed the last part of this, I prepared myself,” she said.
The longtime Cardinal, cloaked in the setting sunlight of a fall day and of her coaching career, began to tear up as she described what this experience has meant to her. “20 years of coaching many, many players, some that have gone on to college, some that haven’t. It is an honor,” she said. “It is a true honor to be a Cardinal. I was a Cosmo over in Springfield (Vermont), but to wear the red and black has just been an honor for 20 years.”
Deschaine closed, “I appreciate the players, I appreciate the fans, family, everything. It’s been a great run.”
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