Ocean City Still Team to Beat in Group III Field Hockey

The South Jersey field hockey playoffs feature familiar teams each year.

In Group III South, no school carries more weight than .

The defending Group III South champions are the No. 1 seed in this year’s tournament, and the road to states will include programs the Red Raiders have toppled in recent years.

“Playoffs are always an exciting time, since the competition rises exponentially compared to the regular season,” Ocean City Liz Cruz said. “It’s a nice feeling, and it’s an accomplishment to make it this far and be the top seed.”

Undefeated Ocean City (16-0) gets Saturday’s first round off, and will open play next week. Game day and time is yet to be determined.

The Red Raiders, led by Ali Stever, Cruz and goalie Rosin Dougherty, will play the winner of No. 9 Pinelands against No. 8 Timber Creek. A semifinal meeting could feature No. 4 Delsea or Cape-Atlantic League foe and No. 5 seed Hammonton.

The other side of the bracket features No. 2 Central, which Ocean City beat last year, and No. 3 Kingsway, a team Ocean City ousted three years ago.

The Red Raiders are not looking ahead just yet, and are just pleased with being in the tournament again.

“It doesn’t matter if you are in the playoffs a million times or not—it’s rewarding for an athlete,” Cruz said. “Whether or not we have been in them in the past years or not, it’s a rewarding experience.”

She added: “Every year we prove we are a strong team. We lost a bunch of starters and we have young players, but we wanted to show we are still strong and we proved it.”

The Red Raiders did just that with 16 wins, including nine by shutout. Ocean City has allowed just two goals in October.

The Red Raiders cruised past the competition in the CAL, and now will prepare for the rest of South Jersey.