Belmont Ends Strong WHS Field Hockey Season

Despite their third-ranked seeding, 14 wins this season and playing their second tournament game at home Saturday, there was only one way Belmont High School Field Hockey Coach Jessica Smith could described the first 20 minutes of her team's performance against Wilmington in the quarterfinals of the Division 2 North playoffs.

"We were awful, awful," said Smith as the visiting Wildcats kept her team bottled up in the defensive zone by winning every contested ball around the field. 

"They were scarred and nervous," said Smith, who called a time out a minute after the Wildcats took a 1-0 lead midway through the first period.

"I told them 'You're the number third-seed. They're the lower-ranked team but they are playing with more confident then you.'"

"I said 'You have 13 seniors so step it up. You're (record is) 14-2-1 and show them that you are this good," Smith said.

And the team responded, scoring a few minutes after the time out.

"And once they saw they could scored, it opened up and they calmed down," said Smith.

And as if an 'on' switch was flipped, Belmont not only seized control of the game but dominated the remainder of the match, winning going away, 4-1, and securing a return to the semi-finals of North Sectionals.

Their opponent will be determined Sunday, Nov. 6, from the winner of second- seed Newburyport and Wayland. While the game date has not been set, the game will be played in Reading. 

There was no question that senior forward Erin O'Donovan was the star of the match, scoring a hat trick and producing a sensational assist – maneuvering by three defenders to direct a pinpoint pass – that put Belmont up by two in the second.

"It's because Erin and the rest (Caroline McCarthy, Britta Marden, Becca Moore) are ice hockey players," said Smith.

"The seniors are so confident and they know where they are heading up field they can just dribble around players. They have no problem with the stick and they aren't nervous. And Erin did that and was unbelievable today," said Smith. 

Yet the game did not start out that way as Wilmington – whose highlight this season was going to state powerhouse Watertown home field and coming away with a 2-2 tie – simply outworked Belmont for most of the first half. 

"We definitely came out stronger then them and it showed," said Wilmington Head Coach Jodi Campbell, who fielded eight senior starters of her own.

Led by midfielder seniors Ryanne Newhouse and Jennifer Stewart, Belmont could not get out their defensive zone.

"My center fielder Ryanne is a very consistent player and has it together on the field. She not known to be the quickest but she has the quickest train of thought," said Campbell. 

Wilmington also took advantage of openings in the Belmont middle to send long connecting passes to forwards Cristina Wilson who had three open shots on Belmont goalie Shannon Reynolds.

"Shannon saved us. Oh, boy did she ever save us,"  said Smith of her senior goaltender. 

"She had cat-like reflexes; she can get balls up high and down low and she doesn't budge from the line," said Smith.

But Wilmington's dominance paid off when a Wilson shot hit a Belmont player and redirected by Reynolds at the 16th minute, putting the Wildcats in front.

And the offensive had two apparent goals waved off the the officials, the first one for hitting a foot before the shot and the other on a high ball. 

But Belmont began taking control by connecting with short passes through the middle and down the wings and dribbling into open space. Once they got into the attacking area, Belmont's forwards swarmed the net. It was the second barrage of attackers as O'Donovan scored from in close at eight minutes.

"That's when Belmont just woke up and they came back on us and took over," said Campbell.  

And while Wilmington did have a pair of scoring opportunities in the final five minutes of the half, they would not have another for nearly 20 minutes.

Smith point out Moore as the rock in the midfield, who "saw that she could take control of this game and took it under herself to dribble around players and keep her stick down on the ground and get things done."

The second half was owned by Belmont, winning five penalty corners in a three minute stretch with the pressure providing O'Donovan the opportunity to score from a Caroline McCarthy pass in-close again at 22 minutes. 

Belmont's third saw O'Donovan lead the counter down the left side, dribbling as she sprinted to the end line before turning to the goal and shuttling a pass to an open Marden who put it into an open net with 10 minutes remaining. 

O'Donovan finished the scoring with seven minutes left, beating the tiring Wilmington back line for her third.